CA1262888A - Countertop snack vendor - Google Patents
Countertop snack vendorInfo
- Publication number
- CA1262888A CA1262888A CA000505804A CA505804A CA1262888A CA 1262888 A CA1262888 A CA 1262888A CA 000505804 A CA000505804 A CA 000505804A CA 505804 A CA505804 A CA 505804A CA 1262888 A CA1262888 A CA 1262888A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- drum
- cabinet
- doors
- movement
- compartments
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
- G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
- G07F11/00—Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles
- G07F11/46—Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles from movable storage containers or supports
- G07F11/50—Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles from movable storage containers or supports the storage containers or supports being rotatably mounted
- G07F11/52—Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles from movable storage containers or supports the storage containers or supports being rotatably mounted about horizontal axes
Abstract
Abstract of the Disclosure A countertop snack vendor in which a drum having a plurality of groups of circumferentially spaced article-receiving compartments is mounted within a cabinet for rotary movement around a generally horizontal axis with the groups disposed respectively behind normally locked elongated trans-parent doors, each of which spans a plurality of compartments of its associated group to afford a potential customer a view of a large number of articles. Each door is freed upon the deposit of money in the vendor for limited movement from a normally closed position to an open position at which a single compartment of the associated group is accessible.
Description
~6~8~3~3 Title oE tl-e Invention COUNTE~TOP SNACK VENDOR
F'ield of the Invention , My invention relates to the field of merchan-dising machines and more particularly to a countertop snack vendor.
Background of the Invention Various types of merchandising machines are known in the prior art for dispensing a variety of snacks.
~ 10 Most of these are relatively large, free-standing machines ; which are relatively expensive. They have a large capacity so as to be particulary adapted for installation at locations at which the volume of sales can be expected to be relatively large. Many of these machines provide the prospective customer with a view of a large number of articles from which he may make a selection. In general these machines are not suitable for locations at which space is at a premium and whereat the expected volume of sales is relatively low.
Neither are they suitable for locations whereat inexperienced persons are to load the machine from bulk supplies rather m than being loaded by experienc~d route men.
Summary of the Invention One object of my invention is to provide a count-ertop snack vendor which is especially adapted for instal-lation at a location whereat space is at a premium.
Another object of my invention is to provide a countertop snack vendor which is especially adapted for installation at a location whereat the expected volume of sales is relatively small.
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The above objects are met by this invention which provides a merehandiser especially adapted for use in relatively low volume locations in whieh a eabinet adapted to be supported on a countertop or the like houses a drum-like merchandise carrier for movement around a generally horizontal axis to position the eompartments behind transparent normally locked doors forming at least part oE a transparent portion oE
tne cabinet and adapted to be selectively released by money responsive mechanism to permit them to be moved upwardly to afford access to the compartments. The door control mechanism is located within the eabinet above the transparent means.
Other and further features of my invention will aPpear from the Eollowing deseription.
Brief Description of the Drawings In the accompanying drawings to whieh referenee is made in the instant speeifieation and whieh are to be read in eonjunetion therewith and in which like reference characters are used to indicate like parts in the various views.
Figure 1 is a perspeetive view of my countertop snack vendor with the lid elosed and with the cash box withdrawn.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of my countertop snaek vendor with the lid raised and with parts removed.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of my countertop snack vendor with parts broken away.
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.. ~ 3t~3 Fiyure 4 i5 a fragmentary section of my counter-top snack vendor tsken along the line4-~ of Figure 1.
Figure 5 is a fragmentary top plan of my counter-top snack vendor with parts removed and with other parts broken away taken along the line 5-S of Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of my countertop snack vendor taken along the line 6-6 of Figure 4.
Figure 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of my ; 10 countertop snack vendor taken along the line 7-7 of Figure 4.
Figure 8 is a chematic view illustrating one form of electrical control circuit which may be employed with myl,countertop snack vendor.
I Description of the Preferred Embodiment ~ I Referring now to Figures 1 to 3 of the drawings `i my countertop snack vendor indicated generally by the refe-, rence character 10 includes a cabinet 12 provided with a ; lid 14 supported on the cabinet 12 by means of a hinge 16 for movement between an open position at which the machine i can be loaded in a matter to be described and a closed posi-tion. A lock 18 may be provided to secure the lid in its ~, closed position.
j Cabinet 12 houses a drum indicated generally -~ 25 by the reference character 20 having end plates 22 and 24 j and a nTmber of partitions 26 at spaced locations between the ends 22 and 24. A plurality of radially extending div-iders 28 separate the drum into a plurality of merchandise receiving compartments. A sub-housing or receptacle 30 within 30 , the cabinet 12 rotatably supports the shaft 32 of the drum 20.
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This sub-housing 30 includes an arcuate shroud 34 in sufficiently closely spaced relationship to the outer periphery of the drum and over a sufficient portion of the periphery to prevent articles from sliding out of the drum compartments under the influence of gravity.
A space between one side of the sub-housing 30 and a sidewall of the cabinet 12 supports the coin mechanism 36 as well as a coin and slug box 38. A coin slot 40 in a downwardly inclined front portion of the lid 14 guides coins into the coin mechanism 36. A first push button 42 in this part of the lid just above the coin slot 40 can be actuated to return bent coins to the customer in the event one is caught in the coin mechanism. A second push button 44 arranged in the lid above the push button 42 is adapted to be actuated in a matter to be described to cause the drum 20 to rotate so that all of the articles in the drum can be viewed by a potential customer.
An electrical plug 46 is adapted to be inserted in any suitable receptacle to provide the vendor 10 with electrical power.
From the structure thus far described it will be apparent that the drum 20 occupies a portion of the space within cabinet 12 at one side of the space below the downwardly inclined lid portion. I provide the portion of the lid to the left of the downwardly inclined front lid portion with means for slideably supporting a plurality of curved transparent doors corresponding in number to the number of groups of circumferentially arranged merchandise containing compartments in the drum. Moreover, each of the sliding doors 48 has a width which corresponds to the width of the compartments of the group of drum compartments associated ~C:lcm 4 ~ ~ i~
¦ therewith. Each door 48 is provided with a handle 50 by means of which the door can be moved upwardly along an arcuate ¦ path in a manner to be described more fully hercin below.
I The underside of a generally horizontal portion oE the lid I 14 behind doors q8 carries a plurality of spaced control I mechanisms supporting plates 52 corresponding in number to ¦ the number of groups of merchandise corltairlillg compartments ¦ in the drum.
A drive motor 54 supported on the outside of ¦ one of tl-e sidewalls of the subhousing 30 is adapted to be ¦ energized to step the drum 2~ in a number of steps equal ¦ to the number of merchandise containing compartments in each group which is the particular form of the invention shown is 24. More specifically si-aft 32 carries a Geneva wheel 56 adapted to be driven by a driver 58 on the output shaft of the motor 54. As is known in the art in such a drive the driven member which in this case is the drum 20 is stepped in a number of equal steps and so as to be relatively precisely positioned at the end of each step.
I provide the lid 14 with a latching mechanism indicated generally by the reference character 60 which releasably holds the lid in its open position for loading.
A pair of arms 62 at each side of the machine are pivotably supported on pins 64 on the cabinet 12. Each arm 62 has a slot 66 which receives a pin 68 carried by a lid-supporting strut 70 pivoted on a pin 72 in the lid 14. An over center spring 74 is connected between pin 68 and the lid 14. When the lid is raised to its open position strut 70 moves to a position at which a notch 76 therein engages a bracket 78 in the cabinet 14 so as to hold the lid in its raised position ''. .
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¦ To lower the lid it is first raised beyond its open position ¦ to cause the over-center spring 74 to move the struts 70 ¦ out of engagement Wittl the bracket 78 so that the lid may ¦ then be lowered to its closed position.
¦ Referring now to Figure 4, a respectlve negator ¦ spring 80 secured on a bracket S2 is associated wi,th each door 48 so as normally to urge the door to its closed positio I' ¦ at which access to a compartment of the associated set of i ¦ drum compartments is not possible. In order to move the ¦ door 48 to its open position the handle 50 is grasped and ¦ moved upwardly so as to raise the door. This results in ¦ a movement of the upper end of the door to the right as ¦ viewed in Figure 4, Each door 48 has a slot 82 adjacent to ¦ its upper end for receiving one lobe of an actuator 84 mounted I for pivotal movement on a pin 86 supported on the bracket ~' 1 52. A spring 88 urges the actuator 84 to a position at which ,~ I it abuts a stop 90 on a bracket 92 secured to the plate 52.
~' ¦ A plurality of locking slides 94 are supported in a housing '~'`; ¦ 96. When a door 48 is opened the actuator 84 tends to move i 20 ¦ upwardly between a pair of adjacent slides 94 in a matter : :.!`i 1 known to the art. As will be more fully described here-¦ inbelow, this arrangement prevents more -than a single door from being opened at the same time. -;
~ ¦ As the actuator 94 rotates in a counterclock-,-~ 25 wisedirection when its associated door,is opened a pin 9~
,~ I on the actuator operates a switch 100. , ,~;, I The operating mechanism associated with each (~ of the doors 48 includes a lock bar 102 pivotally supported on a pin 104 carried by plate 52. A spring 106 normally ¦ urges the lock bar 102 to rotate in a counterclockwise direc-¦ tion as is viewed in figure 4. When the bar 102 is in the , -6-.. ~
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position shown, it limits the opening movement o the corre-sponding door 48 by virtue of the engagement of a foot 108 with the end of the bar 102.
¦ A solenoid 110 carried by the plate 52 has an armature 112 carrying the pin 114 which is received in a slot 116 in the bar 102. Solenoid 110 is energized by the i closing of switch 100 when sufficient money has been deposited in the machine. Energization of the solenoid moves the lock~
bar 102 to a position at which the left end as viewed in Figure 4 is out of the path of movement of the foot 108 so the door can be moved to its fully opened position. At the ¦ same time a flange 118 on the other end of the bar 102 releases the actuating element of a switch 120 to permit the switch to open to deenergize the solenoid in a matter to be described herein below.
;~ A lock bar latch 122 is pivotably supported on ~' a pin 124 on the bracket 92. A spring 124 normally urges the latch 122 to the full-line position shown in Figure 6.
When the lock bar pivots to door-releasing position under the ' 20 action of solenoid 110, the nose 128 of the latch 122 snaps under the bar 104 to hold it in its door-released position.
I form the plate 52 with a door limit stop 130 " adapted to be engaged by the foot 108 when the door 48 has ~-.1, been moved to its fully open position.
~i 25 Referring now to Figures 4 to 6, the locking i~ slides 94 are urged to their normal positions which they occupy in the absence of any actuator 84 between a pair of adjacent slides by a pair of leaf springs 131 and 132. When any actuator 84 has been moved into the space between a pair ,~; 30 of adjacent slides 94 the other slides are so positioned as ...j ~ -7-, ... .
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1 to prevent a corresponding movement of any other actuator.
¦ My machine includes a reset bar 134 slideably ¦ mounted on pins 136 on a plate 137 by means oE slots 13B.
I Eorm an offset flange 139 on bar 134 with a plurality of ¦ spaced slloulders 140 past which the upper ends of the pawls 122 extend. When the bar 134 moves downwardly as viewed in Figure 5 in a manner to be described, the shoulders 140 engage the latches 122 to pivot them in a counterclock~ise direction, as viewed in Figure 6, to release any lock bar 102 which has been latched.
¦ A downwardly extending flange l41 on the other ¦ side of the lock bar 134 from the flange 139 is formed with a plurality of shoulders 142. When any actuator 184 is latched in its door-opcn position, any attempt to move the reset slide 134 downwardly as viewed in Figure 5 will be ~ prevented by the engagement of a shoulder 142 with the raised '~d actuator 84.
¦ Referring now to Figures 3 and 5, I may employ a spring 143 to urge the bar 134 to the Eull-line position shown in Figure 5. A length of wire or cord 144 connects ~'''8 reset bar 134 to an upwardly extending arm 146 of the bell-`~'; crank supported for pivotal movement around an axis 148.
I connect the other arm 150 of this bellcrank to a downwardly extending arm 154 of a second bellcrank by means of a wire : 25 or cord 152. The second bellcrank is mounted for movement around a pin 156. The other arm 158 of the second bellcrank ~,' is adapted to be actuated when button 44 is pressed.
When the reset bar 134 moves to the broken line :'!` position illustrated in Figure 5, it closes a normally open ~; 30 switch 160. When the locking slides are displaced from their ,,?'' normal positions by the presence of an actuator 84 between,,.,; F a pair of adjacent slides, spring arm 132 opens a normally ' closed switch 162.
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oerrring now to r~igure r, I colln at sw~tch 1~0 ¦ switch 120, solenoid 110 and thc coin mechanism 36 in serics ¦ between thc terminals 164 and 166 of the power supply of ¦ our machine. Similiarly I connect switches 160 and 162 ¦ in series with transport motor 54 between the termlnals 164 and 166.
In operation of our machine a potential customer ¦ approaching the machine pushes the transport button 44 to move reset bar 139 downwardly as viewed in Pigure 5 to move lU all of the locking pawls 122 to positions in w~ich they release their corresponding lock bars 102 to permit them to move to door-blocking positions. It is to be noted that my rnachine includes a mechanical and a electrical safety. If an actuator 84 is in position between a pair of locing slides 94, then the reset bar can not be moved downwardly as viewed ~' in Figure 5. At the same time displacement of a locking slide ,~ operates switch 162 to prevent the transport motor from being ;`~ energized. Assuming that all of the doors 48 have been moved ~` ¦to their closed positions so that no member 89 is between a pair of slides 94, the reset bar 134 wiil move downwardly ; in the manner described to release all of the bars 102 and to ~`l operate switch 160 to start the transport motor S4.
,. ¦ The transport motor continues to run until the . customer releases the button, at which time the Geneva drive -~, 25 will precisely position the drum 20 so that the compartment ~, containing the desired article is in a position at which , ¦it can be removed when the associated door is moved to fully open position. ' Once the compartment containing the desired , article. When that has been done, he grasps the handle ,,~, , ' ~', ` _9_ ~2~21~ il 50 of the door in ront of the desired article and moves the ¦door upwardly. In response to this movement of the door ¦the actuator 8-1 moves up into positlon between a pair of ¦adjacent slides 9~ to prevent more than a single door at 1a time from being oyened. At the same time pin 9~ operates ¦switch 100 to complete a circuit to the solenoid 110 through ¦the coin mechanism 36 and througl- the switch 120. Solenoid ¦110 then moves bar 102 to door-releasing position. Pawl 122 snaps under the bar to lock it into door-releasing ¦position and switch 120 opens to deenergiæe the solenoid.
¦The door can now be moved to fully opened position against ¦the stop 130 and the article removed. The machine is now ready for the next operation.
I It is to be noted that over a 90 degree sector of the drum 20 is visible through the doors 48 without transporting the drum so that a relatively large selection of articles is visible. In the particular embodiment shown this means tl-at a potential customer can view six compartments of any group or 24 compartments overall. In addition to affording a view of a large number of compartments, the transparent doors admit sufficient light to the interior to afford a good view of the merchandise without the liecessity a! of any interior lighting.
To load the drum 20 the lock 18 is released and the lid is raised until the notches 76 and the struts $; 70 engage bracket 78. The drum can then be loaded with 3 relative ease. When the loading operation is complete the lid is merely raised a little further to cause the over-center ii? spring 74 to release the strut 70 to permit the lid to be ~ 30. lowered.
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~ Owing to t e fact that the machine oper:tes f'~ ~ ¦ in a shopper mode, a large variety of articles can be '~' `` ¦ dispensed. ~11 that is necessary is that all articles to be sold from one group of compartments sell at the same price.
It will be seen that I have accomplished the ¦ objects of our invention. I have provided a countertop ven-dor which is especially adapted for use in locations at which space is at a premium. My countertop vendor is adapted for use in locations where the anticipated demand is relatively small. My vendor is relatively simple in construction and in , operation. It affords the customer a view of a relatively large selection of articles without actuating the machine.
It is relatively inexpensive as compared with large free-- standing vendors of the prior art. It is easy to load. It ¦ dispenses a wide variety of articles.
¦ It will be understood that certain features ¦ and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations.
¦ This is contemplated by and is within the scope of my claims.
'` ~ 20 ¦ It is further obvious that various changes may be made in - ¦ details within the scope of our claims without departing ¦ from the spirit of my invention. It is, therefore, to be ~-~ ¦ understood that my invention is not to be limited to the ¦ specific details shown and described.
~- 25 ¦ Having thus descri~bed my invention, what I
claim is:
F'ield of the Invention , My invention relates to the field of merchan-dising machines and more particularly to a countertop snack vendor.
Background of the Invention Various types of merchandising machines are known in the prior art for dispensing a variety of snacks.
~ 10 Most of these are relatively large, free-standing machines ; which are relatively expensive. They have a large capacity so as to be particulary adapted for installation at locations at which the volume of sales can be expected to be relatively large. Many of these machines provide the prospective customer with a view of a large number of articles from which he may make a selection. In general these machines are not suitable for locations at which space is at a premium and whereat the expected volume of sales is relatively low.
Neither are they suitable for locations whereat inexperienced persons are to load the machine from bulk supplies rather m than being loaded by experienc~d route men.
Summary of the Invention One object of my invention is to provide a count-ertop snack vendor which is especially adapted for instal-lation at a location whereat space is at a premium.
Another object of my invention is to provide a countertop snack vendor which is especially adapted for installation at a location whereat the expected volume of sales is relatively small.
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The above objects are met by this invention which provides a merehandiser especially adapted for use in relatively low volume locations in whieh a eabinet adapted to be supported on a countertop or the like houses a drum-like merchandise carrier for movement around a generally horizontal axis to position the eompartments behind transparent normally locked doors forming at least part oE a transparent portion oE
tne cabinet and adapted to be selectively released by money responsive mechanism to permit them to be moved upwardly to afford access to the compartments. The door control mechanism is located within the eabinet above the transparent means.
Other and further features of my invention will aPpear from the Eollowing deseription.
Brief Description of the Drawings In the accompanying drawings to whieh referenee is made in the instant speeifieation and whieh are to be read in eonjunetion therewith and in which like reference characters are used to indicate like parts in the various views.
Figure 1 is a perspeetive view of my countertop snack vendor with the lid elosed and with the cash box withdrawn.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of my countertop snaek vendor with the lid raised and with parts removed.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of my countertop snack vendor with parts broken away.
rn/ss A
.. ~ 3t~3 Fiyure 4 i5 a fragmentary section of my counter-top snack vendor tsken along the line4-~ of Figure 1.
Figure 5 is a fragmentary top plan of my counter-top snack vendor with parts removed and with other parts broken away taken along the line 5-S of Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of my countertop snack vendor taken along the line 6-6 of Figure 4.
Figure 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of my ; 10 countertop snack vendor taken along the line 7-7 of Figure 4.
Figure 8 is a chematic view illustrating one form of electrical control circuit which may be employed with myl,countertop snack vendor.
I Description of the Preferred Embodiment ~ I Referring now to Figures 1 to 3 of the drawings `i my countertop snack vendor indicated generally by the refe-, rence character 10 includes a cabinet 12 provided with a ; lid 14 supported on the cabinet 12 by means of a hinge 16 for movement between an open position at which the machine i can be loaded in a matter to be described and a closed posi-tion. A lock 18 may be provided to secure the lid in its ~, closed position.
j Cabinet 12 houses a drum indicated generally -~ 25 by the reference character 20 having end plates 22 and 24 j and a nTmber of partitions 26 at spaced locations between the ends 22 and 24. A plurality of radially extending div-iders 28 separate the drum into a plurality of merchandise receiving compartments. A sub-housing or receptacle 30 within 30 , the cabinet 12 rotatably supports the shaft 32 of the drum 20.
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This sub-housing 30 includes an arcuate shroud 34 in sufficiently closely spaced relationship to the outer periphery of the drum and over a sufficient portion of the periphery to prevent articles from sliding out of the drum compartments under the influence of gravity.
A space between one side of the sub-housing 30 and a sidewall of the cabinet 12 supports the coin mechanism 36 as well as a coin and slug box 38. A coin slot 40 in a downwardly inclined front portion of the lid 14 guides coins into the coin mechanism 36. A first push button 42 in this part of the lid just above the coin slot 40 can be actuated to return bent coins to the customer in the event one is caught in the coin mechanism. A second push button 44 arranged in the lid above the push button 42 is adapted to be actuated in a matter to be described to cause the drum 20 to rotate so that all of the articles in the drum can be viewed by a potential customer.
An electrical plug 46 is adapted to be inserted in any suitable receptacle to provide the vendor 10 with electrical power.
From the structure thus far described it will be apparent that the drum 20 occupies a portion of the space within cabinet 12 at one side of the space below the downwardly inclined lid portion. I provide the portion of the lid to the left of the downwardly inclined front lid portion with means for slideably supporting a plurality of curved transparent doors corresponding in number to the number of groups of circumferentially arranged merchandise containing compartments in the drum. Moreover, each of the sliding doors 48 has a width which corresponds to the width of the compartments of the group of drum compartments associated ~C:lcm 4 ~ ~ i~
¦ therewith. Each door 48 is provided with a handle 50 by means of which the door can be moved upwardly along an arcuate ¦ path in a manner to be described more fully hercin below.
I The underside of a generally horizontal portion oE the lid I 14 behind doors q8 carries a plurality of spaced control I mechanisms supporting plates 52 corresponding in number to ¦ the number of groups of merchandise corltairlillg compartments ¦ in the drum.
A drive motor 54 supported on the outside of ¦ one of tl-e sidewalls of the subhousing 30 is adapted to be ¦ energized to step the drum 2~ in a number of steps equal ¦ to the number of merchandise containing compartments in each group which is the particular form of the invention shown is 24. More specifically si-aft 32 carries a Geneva wheel 56 adapted to be driven by a driver 58 on the output shaft of the motor 54. As is known in the art in such a drive the driven member which in this case is the drum 20 is stepped in a number of equal steps and so as to be relatively precisely positioned at the end of each step.
I provide the lid 14 with a latching mechanism indicated generally by the reference character 60 which releasably holds the lid in its open position for loading.
A pair of arms 62 at each side of the machine are pivotably supported on pins 64 on the cabinet 12. Each arm 62 has a slot 66 which receives a pin 68 carried by a lid-supporting strut 70 pivoted on a pin 72 in the lid 14. An over center spring 74 is connected between pin 68 and the lid 14. When the lid is raised to its open position strut 70 moves to a position at which a notch 76 therein engages a bracket 78 in the cabinet 14 so as to hold the lid in its raised position ''. .
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¦ To lower the lid it is first raised beyond its open position ¦ to cause the over-center spring 74 to move the struts 70 ¦ out of engagement Wittl the bracket 78 so that the lid may ¦ then be lowered to its closed position.
¦ Referring now to Figure 4, a respectlve negator ¦ spring 80 secured on a bracket S2 is associated wi,th each door 48 so as normally to urge the door to its closed positio I' ¦ at which access to a compartment of the associated set of i ¦ drum compartments is not possible. In order to move the ¦ door 48 to its open position the handle 50 is grasped and ¦ moved upwardly so as to raise the door. This results in ¦ a movement of the upper end of the door to the right as ¦ viewed in Figure 4, Each door 48 has a slot 82 adjacent to ¦ its upper end for receiving one lobe of an actuator 84 mounted I for pivotal movement on a pin 86 supported on the bracket ~' 1 52. A spring 88 urges the actuator 84 to a position at which ,~ I it abuts a stop 90 on a bracket 92 secured to the plate 52.
~' ¦ A plurality of locking slides 94 are supported in a housing '~'`; ¦ 96. When a door 48 is opened the actuator 84 tends to move i 20 ¦ upwardly between a pair of adjacent slides 94 in a matter : :.!`i 1 known to the art. As will be more fully described here-¦ inbelow, this arrangement prevents more -than a single door from being opened at the same time. -;
~ ¦ As the actuator 94 rotates in a counterclock-,-~ 25 wisedirection when its associated door,is opened a pin 9~
,~ I on the actuator operates a switch 100. , ,~;, I The operating mechanism associated with each (~ of the doors 48 includes a lock bar 102 pivotally supported on a pin 104 carried by plate 52. A spring 106 normally ¦ urges the lock bar 102 to rotate in a counterclockwise direc-¦ tion as is viewed in figure 4. When the bar 102 is in the , -6-.. ~
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position shown, it limits the opening movement o the corre-sponding door 48 by virtue of the engagement of a foot 108 with the end of the bar 102.
¦ A solenoid 110 carried by the plate 52 has an armature 112 carrying the pin 114 which is received in a slot 116 in the bar 102. Solenoid 110 is energized by the i closing of switch 100 when sufficient money has been deposited in the machine. Energization of the solenoid moves the lock~
bar 102 to a position at which the left end as viewed in Figure 4 is out of the path of movement of the foot 108 so the door can be moved to its fully opened position. At the ¦ same time a flange 118 on the other end of the bar 102 releases the actuating element of a switch 120 to permit the switch to open to deenergize the solenoid in a matter to be described herein below.
;~ A lock bar latch 122 is pivotably supported on ~' a pin 124 on the bracket 92. A spring 124 normally urges the latch 122 to the full-line position shown in Figure 6.
When the lock bar pivots to door-releasing position under the ' 20 action of solenoid 110, the nose 128 of the latch 122 snaps under the bar 104 to hold it in its door-released position.
I form the plate 52 with a door limit stop 130 " adapted to be engaged by the foot 108 when the door 48 has ~-.1, been moved to its fully open position.
~i 25 Referring now to Figures 4 to 6, the locking i~ slides 94 are urged to their normal positions which they occupy in the absence of any actuator 84 between a pair of adjacent slides by a pair of leaf springs 131 and 132. When any actuator 84 has been moved into the space between a pair ,~; 30 of adjacent slides 94 the other slides are so positioned as ...j ~ -7-, ... .
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1 to prevent a corresponding movement of any other actuator.
¦ My machine includes a reset bar 134 slideably ¦ mounted on pins 136 on a plate 137 by means oE slots 13B.
I Eorm an offset flange 139 on bar 134 with a plurality of ¦ spaced slloulders 140 past which the upper ends of the pawls 122 extend. When the bar 134 moves downwardly as viewed in Figure 5 in a manner to be described, the shoulders 140 engage the latches 122 to pivot them in a counterclock~ise direction, as viewed in Figure 6, to release any lock bar 102 which has been latched.
¦ A downwardly extending flange l41 on the other ¦ side of the lock bar 134 from the flange 139 is formed with a plurality of shoulders 142. When any actuator 184 is latched in its door-opcn position, any attempt to move the reset slide 134 downwardly as viewed in Figure 5 will be ~ prevented by the engagement of a shoulder 142 with the raised '~d actuator 84.
¦ Referring now to Figures 3 and 5, I may employ a spring 143 to urge the bar 134 to the Eull-line position shown in Figure 5. A length of wire or cord 144 connects ~'''8 reset bar 134 to an upwardly extending arm 146 of the bell-`~'; crank supported for pivotal movement around an axis 148.
I connect the other arm 150 of this bellcrank to a downwardly extending arm 154 of a second bellcrank by means of a wire : 25 or cord 152. The second bellcrank is mounted for movement around a pin 156. The other arm 158 of the second bellcrank ~,' is adapted to be actuated when button 44 is pressed.
When the reset bar 134 moves to the broken line :'!` position illustrated in Figure 5, it closes a normally open ~; 30 switch 160. When the locking slides are displaced from their ,,?'' normal positions by the presence of an actuator 84 between,,.,; F a pair of adjacent slides, spring arm 132 opens a normally ' closed switch 162.
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oerrring now to r~igure r, I colln at sw~tch 1~0 ¦ switch 120, solenoid 110 and thc coin mechanism 36 in serics ¦ between thc terminals 164 and 166 of the power supply of ¦ our machine. Similiarly I connect switches 160 and 162 ¦ in series with transport motor 54 between the termlnals 164 and 166.
In operation of our machine a potential customer ¦ approaching the machine pushes the transport button 44 to move reset bar 139 downwardly as viewed in Pigure 5 to move lU all of the locking pawls 122 to positions in w~ich they release their corresponding lock bars 102 to permit them to move to door-blocking positions. It is to be noted that my rnachine includes a mechanical and a electrical safety. If an actuator 84 is in position between a pair of locing slides 94, then the reset bar can not be moved downwardly as viewed ~' in Figure 5. At the same time displacement of a locking slide ,~ operates switch 162 to prevent the transport motor from being ;`~ energized. Assuming that all of the doors 48 have been moved ~` ¦to their closed positions so that no member 89 is between a pair of slides 94, the reset bar 134 wiil move downwardly ; in the manner described to release all of the bars 102 and to ~`l operate switch 160 to start the transport motor S4.
,. ¦ The transport motor continues to run until the . customer releases the button, at which time the Geneva drive -~, 25 will precisely position the drum 20 so that the compartment ~, containing the desired article is in a position at which , ¦it can be removed when the associated door is moved to fully open position. ' Once the compartment containing the desired , article. When that has been done, he grasps the handle ,,~, , ' ~', ` _9_ ~2~21~ il 50 of the door in ront of the desired article and moves the ¦door upwardly. In response to this movement of the door ¦the actuator 8-1 moves up into positlon between a pair of ¦adjacent slides 9~ to prevent more than a single door at 1a time from being oyened. At the same time pin 9~ operates ¦switch 100 to complete a circuit to the solenoid 110 through ¦the coin mechanism 36 and througl- the switch 120. Solenoid ¦110 then moves bar 102 to door-releasing position. Pawl 122 snaps under the bar to lock it into door-releasing ¦position and switch 120 opens to deenergiæe the solenoid.
¦The door can now be moved to fully opened position against ¦the stop 130 and the article removed. The machine is now ready for the next operation.
I It is to be noted that over a 90 degree sector of the drum 20 is visible through the doors 48 without transporting the drum so that a relatively large selection of articles is visible. In the particular embodiment shown this means tl-at a potential customer can view six compartments of any group or 24 compartments overall. In addition to affording a view of a large number of compartments, the transparent doors admit sufficient light to the interior to afford a good view of the merchandise without the liecessity a! of any interior lighting.
To load the drum 20 the lock 18 is released and the lid is raised until the notches 76 and the struts $; 70 engage bracket 78. The drum can then be loaded with 3 relative ease. When the loading operation is complete the lid is merely raised a little further to cause the over-center ii? spring 74 to release the strut 70 to permit the lid to be ~ 30. lowered.
~ `
:" .!.
i ~, ~ 1 0 ~
,X, 11 ':,1 ~,6ZB~3~
~ Owing to t e fact that the machine oper:tes f'~ ~ ¦ in a shopper mode, a large variety of articles can be '~' `` ¦ dispensed. ~11 that is necessary is that all articles to be sold from one group of compartments sell at the same price.
It will be seen that I have accomplished the ¦ objects of our invention. I have provided a countertop ven-dor which is especially adapted for use in locations at which space is at a premium. My countertop vendor is adapted for use in locations where the anticipated demand is relatively small. My vendor is relatively simple in construction and in , operation. It affords the customer a view of a relatively large selection of articles without actuating the machine.
It is relatively inexpensive as compared with large free-- standing vendors of the prior art. It is easy to load. It ¦ dispenses a wide variety of articles.
¦ It will be understood that certain features ¦ and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations.
¦ This is contemplated by and is within the scope of my claims.
'` ~ 20 ¦ It is further obvious that various changes may be made in - ¦ details within the scope of our claims without departing ¦ from the spirit of my invention. It is, therefore, to be ~-~ ¦ understood that my invention is not to be limited to the ¦ specific details shown and described.
~- 25 ¦ Having thus descri~bed my invention, what I
claim is:
Claims (20)
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. A snack vendor including in combination, a cabinet comprising a body having a top and a front, a drum having a plurality of groups of circumferentially arranged compartments for receiving articles of merchandise to be dispensed, means mounting said drum in said cabinet for rotation around a generally horizontal axis to present a drum upper front quadrant extending over a plurality of compartments of each of said groups, an opening in said cabinet extending over said drum upper front quadrant from a first location in the front of the cabinet below the cabinet top and adjacent to the lower terminurs of said drum upper front quadrant to a second location in the top of the cabinet spaced rearwardly of the cabinet front and adjacent to the upper terminus of said drum upper front quadrant, transparent means in said cabinet opening spanning said drum upper front quadrant so that a potential customer has a view of a plurality of articles in respective compartments and of the articles next to be dispensed, said transparent means comprising a plurality of transparent doors disposed in side-by-side relationship in registration respectively with said groups of compartments, means mounting said doors for movement from closed positions at which the lower edges thereof register with the edge of said front at the bottom of said opening to prevent access to the compartments of the associated group to open positions at which a compartment of the associated group is accessible, means for rotating said drum selectively to position said groups of compartments in registry with said doors, means normally locking said doors in their closed positions, money responsive means for releasing said doors, and means in the upper portion of said cabinet behind said second location and below said top for controlling the movement of said doors between said open and closed positions.
2. A snack vendor as in claim 1 in which said drum has a generally cylindrical outline configuration, said body comprising a lid forming said top and said transparent means and means mounting said lid for movement between an open position and a closed position, said drum upper front quadrant projecting out of said opening in the closed position of said lid, said transparent means having a curved configuration conforming to the shape of said projecting portion of said drum.
3. A snack vendor as in claim 1 in which said cabinet is generally rectangular, said cabinet comprising a lid forming said body top and a downwardly and forwardly extending front portion comprising said transparent means, means mounting said lid for movement between an open position and a closed position, said opening being formed in said downwardly and forwardly extending front portion, a portion of said drum extending through the opening on closed position of said lid, said transparent means being curved to conform to the portion of said drum extending through said opening.
4. A snack vendor as in claim 1 in which said control means comprises a plurality of lock bars associated respectively with said doors, means mounting each of said bars for movement between a locking position at which an end thereof prevents movement of the associated door to its open position and a released position at which the bar end permits movement of the associated door to open position, said money-responsive means selectively moving said locking bars to said released positions.
5. A snack vendor as in claim 4 in which said control means includes respective latches for holding bars which have been moved to released position, a reset slide, means mounting said reset slide for movement from a home position to an operative position at which it resets said latches, transport means adapted to be energized to rotate said drum around its axis, means including an externally accessible manually operable element on said cabinet adapted to be actuated to energize said transport means and a mechanical coupling between said manually operable element and said reset slide for moving said reset slide in response to operation of said element.
6. A snack vendor as in claim 1 including means for latching said locking means in disabled condition, and means for resetting said latching means.
7. A snack vendor as in claim 6 including means responsive to the presence of a door in open position for inhibiting the operation of said resetting means.
8. A snack vendor as in claim 6 including a transport motor and means responsive to the operation of said resetting means for energizing said transport motor.
9. A snack vendor as in claim 7 including means responsive to the presence of a door in open position for inhibiting the operation of said transport motor.
10. A snack vendor as in claim 6 including a transport motor, means responsive to operation of said resetting means for energizing said transport motor, means responsive to the presence of a door in open position for inhibiting the operation of said resetting means and second means responsive to the presence of a door in open position for inhibiting the operation of said energizing means.
11. A snack vendor including in combination, a cabinet comprising a body having a top and a front, a drum having a plurality of groups of circumferentially arranged compartments for receiving articles of merchandise to be dispensed, means mounting said drum in said cabinet for rotation around a generally horizontal axis to present a drum upper front quadrant extending over a plurality of compartments of each of said groups, an opening in said cabinet extending over said drum upper front quadrant from a first location in the front of the cabinet below the cabinet top and adjacent to the lower terminus of said drum upper front quadrant to a second location in the top of the cabinet spaced rearwardly of the cabinet front and adjacent to the upper terminus of said drum upper front quadrant, a plurality of elongated transparent doors, means mounting said doors on said cabinet in side-by-side relationship over said opening and respectively registering with said groups of compartments, each of said doors spanning said drum upper front quadrant so that a potential customer has a view of articles in a plurality of compartments in each group and of the articles next to be dispensed, said mounting means mounting said doors for movement from closed positions at which the lower edges thereof register with the edge of said front at the bottom of said opening to prevent access to the compartments of the associated group to open positions at which a compartment of the associated group is accessible, means for rotating said drum selectively to position said groups of compartments in registry with said doors, means normally locking said doors in their closed positions, money responsive means for releasing said doors, and means in the upper portion of said cabinet behind said second location and below said top for controlling the movement of said doors to limit the open position to one at which only one compartment of the associated group is accessible.
12. A snack vendor as in claim 11 in which said doors are arcuate in a direction along the lengths thereof
13. A snack vendor as in claim 11 in which each of said doors has an end extending beyond said second location, said control means comprising a plurality of lock bars associated respectively with said doors, means mounting each of said bars for movement between a locking position at which an end is in the path of movement of the associated door end to its open position and a released position at which the bar end permits movement of the associated door to open position, said money-responsive means selectively moving said locking bars to said released positions.
14. A snack vendor as in claim 13 in which said control means includes respective latches for holding bars which have been moved to released position, a reset slide, means mounting said reset slide for movement from a home position to an operative position at which it resets said latches, said drum rotating means comprising transport means adapted to be energized to rotate said drum around its axis, means including an externally accessible manually operable element on said cabinet adapted to be actuated to energize said transport means and a mechanical coupling between said manually operable element and said reset slide for moving said reset slide in response to operation of said element.
15. A snack vendor as in claim 11 in which said control means includes respective locking means normally preventing movement of said doors to open position, and means including money responsive means for releasing said locking means.
16. A snack vendor as in claim 15 including means for latching a released locking means in released condition.
17. A snack vendor as in claim 16 including actuatable means for rotating said drum, and means responsive to said actuatable means for disabling said latching means.
18. A snack vendor as in claim 4 in which said lock bar mounting means comprises means mounting each of said bars for pivotal movement around an axis extending generally transversely of the paths of movement of said doors.
19. A merchandiser as in claim 13 in which said lock bar mounting means comprises means mounting each of said bars for pivotal movement around an axis extending generally transversely of the paths of movement of said doors.
20. A merchandiser as in claim 19 including means mounting said latches for pivotal movement around an axis generally perpendicular to said lock bar axis.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US76293885A | 1985-08-06 | 1985-08-06 | |
| US762,938 | 1985-08-06 |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1262888A true CA1262888A (en) | 1989-11-14 |
Family
ID=25066461
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000505804A Expired CA1262888A (en) | 1985-08-06 | 1986-04-03 | Countertop snack vendor |
Country Status (6)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| JP (1) | JPS6234296A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA1262888A (en) |
| DE (1) | DE3621636C2 (en) |
| FR (1) | FR2586126B1 (en) |
| GB (1) | GB2178733B (en) |
| IT (1) | IT1197025B (en) |
Families Citing this family (6)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATE196282T1 (en) * | 1993-01-04 | 2000-09-15 | Thomas J Shaw | AUTOMATIC PILL DISPENSING DEVICE |
| US5529208A (en) * | 1994-12-30 | 1996-06-25 | Technik Mfg., Inc. | Jar ticket dispensing apparatus and method |
| GB9724753D0 (en) | 1997-11-25 | 1998-01-21 | Select It U | Vending machine |
| JP3383631B2 (en) | 2000-01-27 | 2003-03-04 | 株式会社トミー | Article discharge device |
| US9245093B2 (en) | 2013-03-15 | 2016-01-26 | Thomas J Shaw | Pill dispensing system and apparatus |
| FR3073507A1 (en) * | 2017-11-10 | 2019-05-17 | I-Meds Healthcare | DEVICE CHARGER / DISTRIBUTOR OF OBJECTS IN A STORAGE TANK OF SUCH OBJECTS, USES OF SUCH A DEVICE, AND LOADING AND DISTRIBUTING METHOD |
Family Cites Families (9)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US1913917A (en) * | 1931-05-01 | 1933-06-13 | Frederick C Crowe | Vending machine |
| GB398975A (en) * | 1932-03-04 | 1933-09-28 | Gustave Mornand | An improved coin freed machine for the sale of sweetmeats, sandwiches, newspapers and the like |
| US2766905A (en) * | 1952-10-23 | 1956-10-16 | Heinig Hughes | Dispensing device |
| DE1574262A1 (en) * | 1967-12-09 | 1971-11-25 | Hermann Scherrieble | Vending machine (compartment machine) |
| JPS4925352B1 (en) * | 1969-08-06 | 1974-06-29 | ||
| IT1046543B (en) * | 1973-08-27 | 1980-07-31 | F A S Di Adriani A | MACHINE FOR THE AUTOMATIC DISTRIBUTION OF FROZEN PRODUCTS AT THE CHOICE OF THE USER WITH HORIZONTAL ROTATING DRUM |
| US4033442A (en) * | 1976-04-30 | 1977-07-05 | Fawn Engineering Co. | Locking and releasing mechanism for a vending machine |
| GB2104050B (en) * | 1981-08-07 | 1985-03-27 | Ahlstroem A | A vending machine |
| DK147150C (en) * | 1981-11-03 | 1984-11-05 | Wittenborgs Automatfab | Vending machine with at least one drum |
-
1986
- 1986-04-03 CA CA000505804A patent/CA1262888A/en not_active Expired
- 1986-04-30 GB GB08610569A patent/GB2178733B/en not_active Expired
- 1986-06-27 DE DE3621636A patent/DE3621636C2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1986-07-30 IT IT21321/86A patent/IT1197025B/en active
- 1986-08-06 FR FR868611393A patent/FR2586126B1/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1986-08-06 JP JP61183534A patent/JPS6234296A/en active Pending
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB8610569D0 (en) | 1986-06-04 |
| IT8621321A0 (en) | 1986-07-30 |
| DE3621636A1 (en) | 1987-02-12 |
| GB2178733B (en) | 1988-12-29 |
| JPS6234296A (en) | 1987-02-14 |
| FR2586126A1 (en) | 1987-02-13 |
| FR2586126B1 (en) | 1990-11-09 |
| IT1197025B (en) | 1988-11-25 |
| DE3621636C2 (en) | 1995-07-13 |
| GB2178733A (en) | 1987-02-18 |
| IT8621321A1 (en) | 1988-01-30 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKLA | Lapsed |