CN203455894U - Commodity storage device - Google Patents

Description

Commodity storage device

technical field

The utility model relates to a commodity storage device, which has a commodity shelf for storing fixed-shaped commodities such as boxed commodities or irregular commodities such as bagged commodities and discharging the stored commodities.

Background technique

Product storage devices are installed in automatic vending machines that store and sell fixed-shaped (fixed-shape) products such as boxed products or indeterminate (non-fixed-shape) products such as bagged products. Commodity racks (commodity shelves) for storing and discharging products. For example, the product rack is such that it can be seen from the outside of the vending machine, and by inputting the rack number of the product rack that stores the product to be purchased, the product to be purchased is determined and discharged, and transported to the vending machine. The product ejection port on the front surface of the automatic vending machine.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a product storage device having a structure in which a motor is provided on the back side (the deep side) of the product shelf, and the helical body that constrains the product between the pitches of the helix is driven by the motor. By rotating, the product is conveyed to the near side (near side) and discharged.

prior art literature

patent documents

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2012-14480

Utility model content

Problems to be solved by the utility model

However, in the technical solution of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, when a product is stored and discharged by a pair of left and right spiral bodies, it is necessary to use a single motor and a plurality of driven gears to rotate the two spiral bodies respectively. At this time, since the motor meshes with the driven gear, the distance between the two helicoids is fixed, and the distance between the two helicoids cannot be changed even when products that are long in the left and right directions are sold. Therefore, a product that is long in the left-right direction is supported by the spiral body only near the center in the width direction, and both sides in the width direction become unstable, and the product may not be stored or discharged stably. In addition, the rotation direction of the screw body under the action of the motor is also fixed, so when changing the configuration of the commodity shelf or changing the type of goods, the rotation direction of the screw body cannot be flexibly changed as needed, and there is a problem of low versatility. question.

The utility model is implemented in consideration of the above-mentioned existing technical problems, and its purpose is to provide a product storage device that can easily change the distance between a pair of left and right conveying mechanisms such as spiral bodies, and the rotational driving force transmitted from the motor to the conveying mechanisms such as spiral bodies The rotating direction can easily cope with the storage and discharge of various products.

Technical solution to the problem

The product storage device of the present invention includes a product shelf that arranges and stores products along the conveying direction, and discharges the products from the head side to the outside one by one by sending out the stored products sequentially in the above-mentioned conveying direction, and is characterized in that the above-mentioned The product rack includes: a drive unit provided on the upstream side of the product conveyance path, which has a motor and a rotating body that receives the rotational driving force of the motor and rotates in the housing; and a conveying mechanism that is connected to the rotating body of the drive unit, Actuated by the rotational driving force from the rotating body, the commodities are conveyed in the above-mentioned conveying direction, and the above-mentioned rotating body is respectively provided with mounting parts for attaching and detachably attaching the above-mentioned conveying mechanism at both ends of the (rotating) axis direction, and one is installed. part is exposed to one side of the above-mentioned casing, and the other mounting part is exposed to the other surface of the above-mentioned casing opposite to the above-mentioned one side, and any one of the above-mentioned mounting parts is connected to the above-mentioned conveying mechanism by changing the installation direction of the above-mentioned drive unit .

By adopting such a structure, mounting parts for connecting with the conveying mechanism are respectively provided at both ends of the rotating body of the drive unit in the direction of the (rotation) axis, so that the drive unit can be connected to the conveying mechanism on both the front and rear sides of the casing. link to use. Therefore, it is not necessary to change the wiring or switch the switch to rotate the motor in the forward and reverse directions to realize the forward and reverse rotation of the conveying mechanism such as the screw, but to realize the forward and reverse rotation by a structural method. Therefore, depending on the type or shape of the goods to be stored, the rotation direction of the rotational driving force transmitted from the drive unit to the conveying mechanism can be easily changed when the product rack is used for a single rack or for a double rack. , can easily cope with the storage of various products.

The product rack includes a base member on which the conveying mechanism can be placed, and a mounting groove is provided on the base member, and a desired surface of the one surface and the other surface can face the conveying mechanism. The drive unit described above is detachably mounted, and thus, the mounting direction of the drive unit can be easily changed.

A plurality of the above-mentioned product racks are arranged side by side so that the above-mentioned conveying directions are parallel to each other, and the above-mentioned conveying mechanisms respectively provided on the adjacent two commodity racks can be used for conveying one product, so, for example, a single product can be easily distributed. The spiral body mechanism of the shelf is changed to a double shelf. In this case, by rotating one drive unit in the opposite direction, the setting can be appropriately changed so that the operating directions of the conveyance mechanisms can be made in different directions.

As the conveying mechanism, at least a screw mechanism and a conveyor belt mechanism can be selectively mounted on the above-mentioned base member, wherein the screw mechanism rotates the screw to convey the goods constrained between the screw pitches in the conveying direction, and the conveyor belt The mechanism conveys the products in the conveying direction on the conveying surface of the conveying belt by moving the conveying belt.

As the conveying mechanism, at least a screw mechanism that conveys commodities constrained between the screw pitches in the conveying direction by rotating the screw is used. A connecting portion for attaching and detaching the mounting portion of the body in a non-rotatable state, one of the mounting portion and the connecting portion is formed with a plurality of grooves along the circumferential direction, and the other is formed with one or more protrusions along the circumferential direction. The above-mentioned rotating body and the above-mentioned coupling member can be attached at a plurality of angular positions by engaging the groove portion and the protruding portion with each other. Thus, the screw mechanism can be mounted on the drive unit in a state where the angular position of the front end of the screw body coincides with a desired angular position, and the front end of the screw body can be easily set to the shape of the commodity to be stored, The best angular position for size etc. Therefore, it is not necessary to perform the work of adjusting the position of the front end of the screw (feed amount control) for the drive motor after mounting.

In the case of using two adjacent product racks for conveying one product, among the two product racks, the above-mentioned driving unit and the screw mechanism of one product rack are installed on the mounting part exposed to the above-mentioned one surface, and the other product rack In the above-mentioned drive unit, the screw mechanism is mounted on the mounting portion exposed to the other surface, so that the goods can be stored and conveyed smoothly, which is preferable.

Utility Model Effect

According to the present invention, the drive unit can be used on both the front side and the back side by providing the mounting parts for connecting with the conveying mechanism at both axial ends of the rotating body of the drive unit. Therefore, it is not necessary to change the wiring or switch the switch to rotate the motor in the forward and reverse directions to realize the forward and reverse rotation of the conveying mechanism such as the screw, but to realize the forward and reverse rotation by a structural method. Therefore, for example, when using the product rack as a single rack or as a double rack, the rotation of the rotational driving force transmitted from the drive unit to the conveying mechanism can be easily changed according to the type or shape of the product to be stored. Direction, can easily cope with the storage of various products.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is a front view of an automatic vending machine provided with a commodity storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing an internal structure of the automatic vending machine shown in Fig. 1 with its outer door opened.

3 is a partially omitted perspective view of a structural example of a bucket conveyance mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining delivery of products from the product rack to the bucket conveyor mechanism.

5 is a perspective view of a product rack in a state where a screw mechanism is attached as a conveying mechanism.

Fig. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the product rack shown in Fig. 5 in a state where the screw mechanism is removed from the base member.

7 is a perspective view of a product rack in a state where a conveyor belt mechanism is attached as a conveyance mechanism.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the conveyor belt mechanism shown in Fig. 7 .

Fig. 9 is a plan view schematically showing a product storage device provided with a plurality of product racks.

Fig. 10 is an enlarged perspective view of the periphery of the root end of the screw mechanism.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of the link attached to the root end of the spiral body viewed from the front side.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the link shown in Fig. 11 viewed from the rear side.

Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing a longitudinal section of the coupling shown in Fig. 11 cut along the transport direction.

Fig. 14 is an exploded perspective view with parts omitted showing the state where the drive unit is mounted in the mounting groove of the base member, and Fig. 14(A) shows that the drive unit is mounted on the base in the first posture with the front side as the front side 14(B) is a diagram showing a state in which the drive unit is mounted in the mounting groove of the base member in the second posture with the rear side as the front side.

15 is a front view of the drive unit in a state where a front cover forming the front of the housing is removed.

Fig. 16 is a perspective view of the rotating body viewed from the front side.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of the rotating body shown in Fig. 16 viewed from the rear side.

Fig. 18 is a perspective view of a state in which the connecting member of the screw mechanism and the rotating body of the drive unit are installed together.

Fig. 19 is an enlarged perspective view of the periphery of the root end of the belt mechanism.

Fig. 20 is a longitudinal sectional view cut along the conveyance direction around the root end of the belt mechanism.

Fig. 21 is a perspective view showing the connecting gear viewed from the front side.

Fig. 22 is a perspective view of the connecting gear shown in Fig. 21 viewed from the rear side.

Fig. 23 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing a vertical cross section of the connecting gear shown in Fig. 21 cut along the transport direction.

Fig. 24 is a perspective view showing a tension roller and a movable base supporting the tension roller.

Fig. 25 is a partially omitted perspective view for explaining the configuration of the sold-out detection mechanism.

Fig. 26 is a perspective view showing a swing member and a coupling member included in the sold-out detection mechanism.

Fig. 27 is a perspective view showing a swing member viewed from the back side.

Fig. 28 is a plan explanatory view illustrating the sold-out detection operation of the sold-out detection mechanism based on the relationship between the sold-out detection operation of the sold-out detection mechanism and the automatic movement detection operation of the rotating body, and Fig. 28(A) is 28(B) is a diagram showing a state in which a product is detected to be sold out, and FIG. 28(C) is a diagram showing a state in which automatic movement of the rotating body is detected by a detection switch.

FIG. 29 is a timing chart showing the relationship between the rotation amount of the rotating body by the motor and the detection switch.

Detailed ways

From the perspective of the relationship between the product storage device and the automatic vending machine having the device, suitable embodiments of the product storage device of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

1. Explanation of the structure of the vending machine

First, before describing the product storage device 10 of this embodiment, a configuration example of a vending machine 12 to which the product storage device 10 is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 . 1 is a front view of an automatic vending machine 12 having a product storage device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing its internal structure with the outer door 13 of the automatic vending machine 12 shown in FIG. 1 opened.

The automatic vending machine 12 is a general-purpose automatic vending machine that stores and sells fixed-shaped products such as boxed products or irregular products such as bagged products. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the automatic vending machine 12 adopts a structure in which the inside of the main body can be observed from the outside, and has a box-shaped heat-insulating shell opened on the front surface, that is, a main body shell 14 . The main body casing 14 is formed by appropriately combining a plurality of steel plates.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the inside of the main body casing 14 is divided into a machine room 15 and a product storage room 16 . The mechanical room 15 occupies about one-third of the lower side of the main body shell 14, and is provided with structural components such as a power supply box 17, a main body accessory equipment box 18, an earth leakage circuit breaker 19, and a condenser 20. The product storage room 16 occupies about two-thirds of the upper side of the main body casing 14 and is provided with the product storage device 10 .

The front opening of the product storage chamber 16 is closed by an inner door 21 supported on the inner left edge of the main body casing 14 so as to be openable and closable. A transparent glass plate 22 is fitted into the inner door 21 , and the inside of the product storage chamber 16 can be observed through the transparent glass plate 22 . An inner door lock 23 is provided on the right side of the center of the inner door 21, and keeps the inner door 21 in a closed state except during replenishment of products and the like.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the front opening of the main body case 14 is closed by an outer door 13 supported on the left side edge of the main body case 14 so as to be openable and closable. About two-thirds of the upper side of the outer door is embedded with a transparent glass plate 24. From the outside of the vending machine 12, the transparent glass plate 24 embedded in the outer door 13 and the transparent glass plate 22 embedded in the inner door 21 can The inside of the product storage chamber 16 is observed.

An outer door lock 25 is provided at the center on the right side of the front surface of the outer door 13, and is locked while the outer door 13 is closed. An operation input unit 26 is provided above the exterior door lock 25 . The operation input unit 26 is provided with a numeric keypad, an integral display, an in-progress indicator, and a sold-out indicator. The numeric keypad is used for inputting the rack number of the product rack (product storage rack) 28 storing the product to be purchased, and includes, for example, numeric keys from 0 to 9, a confirmation key, and a correction key. The integrated display displays, for example, a digital display to display the rack number input from the numeric keypad, displays a selling indicator, a change cannot be given indicator, stop accepting banknotes, and display various information such as the amount of money put in.

The position below the outer door lock 25 is provided with a coin input opening 29 and a coin return lever 30 . The coin slot 29 is an opening for receiving coins, and coins dropped from the coin slot 29 are stored in a coin mechanism (coin handling device) 31 (see FIG. 2 ) provided on the back of the outer door 13 . The coin mechanism 31 sorts the number of various types of coins thrown in, sends them to the main controller (control device) 32 , and discharges various coins according to instructions from the main controller 32 . The coin return lever 30 is used to indicate the interruption of the transaction. When the coin return lever 30 is operated, the transaction is terminated, and change and the like are discharged from the coin return port 33 .

A banknote insertion port 34 is provided at a position above the operation input unit 26 . The banknote insertion port 34 is an opening for receiving banknotes, and the banknotes inserted through the banknote insertion port 34 are accommodated in a banknote validator (banknote processing device) 35 provided on the back of the outer door 13 . The banknote validator 35 sorts the number of inserted banknotes, sends it to the main controller 32, and discharges the banknotes in accordance with an instruction from the main controller 32 .

A product take-out port 36 is provided at a position on the lower side of the outer door 13 . The product take-out port 36 is an opening for taking out products discharged from the product rack 28 included in the product storage device 10 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , a bucket conveyor mechanism 38 is installed in the product storage room 16 to convey the products discharged from the product racks 28 arranged in multiple layers in the vertical direction and in multiple rows in the left and right directions to the product take-out port 36 .

FIG. 3 is a partially omitted perspective view showing a configuration example of the bucket conveying mechanism 38 , and shows its relationship with the product rack 28 . FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining delivery of products from the product rack 28 to the bucket conveyance mechanism 38 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , the bucket conveyance mechanism 38 receives products discharged from the product rack 28 and conveys them to the product take-out port 36 , and has a product storage tray 39 and a Y-axis conveyance unit 40 .

The product storage tray 39 receives products at a position facing the product rack 28 from which products are discharged (see FIG. 4 ), and delivers products at a position facing the product take-out port 36. The product storage tray 39 illustrated here can be installed from the left and right directions. All commodity racks 28 receive commodities (refer to FIG. 3 ). That is, the product storage tray 39 is configured to be movable only in the vertical direction, and not movable in the left-right direction. Side wall panels 39 a are attached to both side edge portions of the product storage tray 39 . The side wall plate 39a defines the storage area of the product storage tray 39, and is inclined such that the width of the storage area gradually decreases from the center toward the front side in the front-rear direction.

The Y-axis transport unit 40 moves the product storage tray 39 to a position facing the floor of the product shelf 28 that contains the discharged product, and moves the product storage tray 39 from this position to a position facing the product take-out port 36, so that the product The Y motor 40a which moves the tray 39 up and down is accommodated.

When the product rack 28 for discharging the product is determined, as shown in FIG. 3, the product storage tray 39 is moved to a position facing the layer containing the product rack 28. The product G discharged from the product rack 28 . Then, when the sensor (not shown) installed on the product storage tray 39 detects that the product G has been received normally, the product storage tray 39 moves to a position facing the product take-out port 36 and puts the product G into the product take-out port 36 .

2. Description of the structure of the product storage device

Next, with regard to the product storage device 10 of the present embodiment, first, the overall structure will be described, and then the specific structure of each component of the product storage device 10 will be sequentially described.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the product storage device 10 has product racks 28 arranged in multiple layers in the vertical direction and in multiple rows in the left-right direction. When the rack number is set, the products stored in the product rack 28 are discharged to the product storage tray 39 , and the product storage device 10 is driven and controlled by the main controller 32 .

Each product rack 28 stores the products inside in a state arranged from the front side to the back side, and the stored products are sequentially sent out from the back side to the front side, thereby discharging the products to the outside from the front side. A shelf for a variety of merchandise. Each commodity rack 28 includes a driving unit (motor unit) 50 and a conveying mechanism 52, wherein the driving unit 50 has a motor 44 inside the casing 46 and is arranged on the most upstream side (innermost) of the commodity conveying path 48; The drive unit 52 is operated by the drive unit 50 to convey the commodity along the conveyance direction A on the commodity conveyance path 48 .

Hereinafter, the downstream side in the conveyance direction A of the product rack 28 is also referred to as the front side or the front side (front end side), and the upstream side is referred to as the rear side or the rear side (root end side). That is, the direction from the front to the back of the vending machine 12 is referred to as from the front to the rear, and in the product rack 28, products are discharged in the transport direction A from the rear to the front.

In this product storage device 10, a screw mechanism (screw rack) 52a and a conveyor belt mechanism (conveyor rack) 52b can be selectively used as the conveying mechanism 52, wherein the screw mechanism 52a is formed of a thin metal rod as shown in FIG. The helical spiral body 54 accommodates products between the pitches of the spiral body 54, and the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the screw mechanism 52a is configured to be detachable from the upper surface (commodity conveying path 48) of a base member (base module) 58 extending along the conveying direction A, on which The surface is provided with a commodity conveyance path 48 having a slight depression in the center portion in the width direction. In substantially the same manner, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 , the belt conveyor mechanism 52 b is configured to be attachable and detachable to the upper surface of the base member 58 (commodity conveyance path 48 ) shared with the screw mechanism 52 a. The conveyor belt mechanism 52b is detachably fixed to the base member 58 by claw members made of synthetic resin.

The drive unit 50 provided in the deep part of the base member 58 is also configured to be detachable with respect to the screw mechanism 52a and the belt mechanism 52b, and the screw mechanism 52a and the belt mechanism 52b can share the same drive unit 50 . The drive unit 50 is formed in the deep part of the base member 58, and is configured to be attachable and detachable from the front and back of the rectangular concave mounting groove 58a opened above (see FIG. 14(A) and FIG. 14(B)). That is, in the conveyance mechanism 52, the screw mechanism 52a and the belt mechanism 52b can be easily attached, detached, and replaced with respect to the base member 58 and the drive unit 50 attached thereto. Of course, as the conveying mechanism 52 replaceable with respect to the base member 58, mechanisms other than the screw mechanism 52a and the conveyor belt mechanism 52b can also be applied, for example, the arranged cans can be packed by a movable plate arranged on the back of the last commodity. Various mechanisms such as a beverage conveying mechanism that beverages are released sequentially.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 9 , such product racks 28 are parallel to each other according to their conveying direction A in the storage area defined by the inner sides of the side walls 60 and 60 of the shelves in the upper and lower directions of the product storage room 16 . Configure multiple side by side in a left-right manner. For example, the product storage device 10 can be used in such a way that one product rack 28 is used to store and discharge one product (refer to the product rack 28A in FIG. 9 ), and two adjacent product racks 28, 28 are arranged at appropriate intervals, and the conveying mechanism 52 provided separately is used for the conveyance of a commodity, thereby using a group of 2 commodity racks for the storage and discharge of a commodity (refer to commodity rack 28B among Fig. 9 , 28C).

As shown in Figure 9, for a product rack 28A that uses one product rack 28 to store a product G1, its left and right sides are separated by a partition plate 62 (and side wall 60); for a product rack that uses two product racks 28 to store a product G2 , G3 commodity shelves (double shelves) 28B, 28C, the outer parts of the two commodity shelves 28 side by side are separated by the partition plate 62 (and the side wall 60), and its front surface and upper surface are open (can also refer to Fig. 2 ).

2.1 Description of the helicoid mechanism

Next, each component of the product storage device 10 will be described in order. First, a specific structure of the screw mechanism 52a will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 , the screw mechanism 52 a has a screw body 54 , and rotates under the rotational driving force from the drive unit 50 , so that the product G constrained between the pitches of the screw can be transported in the transport direction A. The inner end (root end) of the spiral body 54 is equipped with a connecting piece (connecting member) 64 for connecting the spiral body 54 to the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50 so that it is not rotatable but detachable relative to the rotating body 62 .

In addition, the spiral body 54 is provided with a detection member (sold-out detection member) 68 constituting a sold-out detection mechanism 66 which will be described later. The detection unit 68 is arranged behind the rearmost (endmost) commodity G among the commodities G arranged (for example, refer to the detection component 68 shown by the two-dot dash line in FIG. 5 ), and moves together with the conveyance of the commodity G, finally as As shown by the solid line in FIG. 5 , it moves to the frontmost of the merchandise rack 28 and pushes the connecting member 70 to move forward. The coupling member 70 is a long rod-shaped body provided on the side of the base member 58 so as to be slidable along the longitudinal direction thereof. By sliding, the swing member 72 provided on the drive unit 50 swings, and the detection member 68 etc. constitute the sold-out detection mechanism 66 together, and its detailed structure will be described later.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged perspective view of the periphery of the root end of the screw mechanism 52a. Fig. 11 is a perspective view of the connecting member 64 installed at the root end of the spiral body 54 from the front side, and Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the connecting member 64 shown in Fig. 11 from the rear side, and Fig. 13 shows that the connecting member 64 shown in Fig. A cross-sectional perspective view of a longitudinal section of the connecting element 64 cut along the conveying direction A.

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 13 , the coupling member 64 includes a hole portion 74 and an engaging portion 76 , wherein the hole portion 74 is formed in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction (rotation axis) O of the rotating body 62 for The linear part 54a formed by bending one end (root end) of the spiral body 54 inwardly is inserted, and the engaging part 76 can engage with the ring-shaped body (ring body) 54b on the root end side of the spiral body 54 that forms the helix, and can be locked from the inside. The annular body 54b is elastically pressed radially outward. Through the coupling portion 78 having the cylindrical portion 78a extending in the axial direction O, the coupling member 64 can be attached to and detached from the mounting portion 80 provided on the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50 in a non-rotatable state (locking and detachment). ). The link 64 is formed of, for example, synthetic resin.

The hole portion 74 is formed on the front end side of the cylindrical portion 78a, and the linear portion 54a of the spiral body 54 is positioned and supported by an arc-shaped concave portion 75 formed on the opposite side in the diameter direction of the cylindrical portion 78a, thereby preventing the spiral body from 54 is disengaged from the link 64 in the conveying direction A, and prevents positional deviation.

The engaging portion 76 supports the inner peripheral surface of the annular body 54b of the spiral body 54 by the outer peripheral surface 77a of the disc portion 77 protruding in the radially outer direction from the tip position of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 78a. The engaging part 76 includes a hooking part 76a, a pair of elastic parts 76b, 76b and a pair of supporting pieces 76c, 76c, wherein the above-mentioned hooking part 76a and a part of the inner surface of the annular body 54b of the spiral body 54 (in FIG. 10 For the lower part), the above-mentioned pair of elastic parts 76b, 76b are in the direction of expanding between them and the hooking part 76a, and a part of the inner surface is engaged with the other part of the inner surface of the ring body 54b that is engaged with the hooking part 76a. The pair of support pieces 76c, 76c support the rear surface side of the annular body 54b engaged with the hook portion 76a by being elastically pressed (two places on the left and right in the upper part in FIG. 10 ).

The hook portion 76 a is a hook portion having a substantially L-shaped cross section formed by bending a part of the disc portion 77 forward slightly and then bending in the radially outer direction. The elastic portion 76b is arranged on the opposite side of the hook portion 76a across the axial direction O of the disc portion 77, and is formed by cutting out a part of the disc portion 77 through the notch portion 77b, and facing the inner surface of the annular body 54b in the outer diameter direction. Elastic sheet that applies force.

Therefore, in the spiral body 54, the linear portion 54a is supported by the hole portion 74 and the recessed portion 75, and a part of the annular body 54b is hooked on the hook portion 76a and supported by the support piece 76c in the outer diameter direction by the elastic portion 76b. Elastic push, so that the spiral body 54 can be stably installed in a non-rotatable state with respect to the connecting member 64 without shaking, and the axis center positioning of the spiral body 54 can also be performed. In addition, since the engaging portion 76 is formed in a bilaterally symmetrical shape, it can be attached regardless of the winding direction of the spiral of the spiral body 54 .

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 13 , the coupling portion 78 includes the above-mentioned cylindrical portion 78 a extending coaxially with the axial direction O, and is located at a position on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 78 a that contacts the back surface of the disc portion 77 . A plurality of semi-cylindrical protrusions 78b formed along the circumferential direction, and a pair of upper and lower engagement protrusions 78c, 78c formed elastically deformable by cutting off the upper and lower portions on the rear side of the cylindrical portion 78a.

The engaging protruding portion 78c is a spring-like elastic portion that is curved inward in an arc shape from the base end side of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 78a, and further extends forward. A stop piece 78d protruding from the peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 78a in the radially outer direction is provided at the root end portion of each engaging protrusion portion 78c. When passing through the inner peripheral surface of the mounting portion 80 of the drive unit 50, the stopper 78d is elastically restored and caught on the root end edge of the mounting portion 80, preventing the detachment from the rotating body 62 of the connecting member 64 (see FIG. 18 ). .

As shown in FIG. 13 , each engaging protrusion 78c, 78c is elastically deformable by being formed into a substantially U-shape in a side sectional view, and is connected to each other at the base of a pin-shaped portion 78e extending along the axial direction O. . On the front end side of the pin-shaped portion 78e, a pair of left and right handle portions 78f, 78f are protrudingly formed (see FIG. 11 together).

Therefore, as can be seen from FIG. 13 , in the state where the coupling member 64 is mounted on the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50 , by moving the pair of upper and lower engagement protrusions 78 c , 78 c provided on the back side toward the inner diameter direction that is close to each other, Pressing or pulling the pair of left and right knobs 78f, 78f provided on the front side to the front side deforms them, so that the blocking piece 78d moves in the inner diameter direction, and the engagement state between the coupling member 64 and the rotating body 62 can be released. That is, the engagement protruding portion 78c and the handle portion 78f constitute a release operation portion 82 for releasing the mounting state between the coupling portion 78 of the coupling member 64 and the mounting portion 80 of the rotating body 64, and the release operation portion 82 is provided on the Both the rear side and the front side of the connecting portion 78 .

2.2 Description of the drive unit

Next, a specific structure of the drive unit 50 will be described.

FIG. 14 is a partially omitted exploded perspective view showing a state in which the drive unit 50 is mounted in the mounting groove 58 a of the base member 58 , and FIG. 14 (A) shows the drive unit 50 in the first posture with the front face 50 a on the front side. Figure 14(B) shows the state where the drive unit 50 is attached to the mounting groove 58a of the base member 58 in the second posture with the back surface 50b on the front side. A diagram of the state in . In addition, FIG. 15 is a front view of the drive unit 50 in a state where the front cover 46a forming the front surface 50a of the casing 46 is removed.

As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15 , the drive unit 50 includes a rectangular box-shaped housing 46 formed of a front cover 46 a forming a front 50 a and a rear cover 46 b forming a back 50 b. The motor 44 , The gear mechanism 84 , the rotary body 62 , and the detection switch (detector) 86 .

The motor 44 is connected to the power supply of the vending machine 12 through unillustrated wires extending to the outside of the housing 46 , and its rotation is controlled by the main controller 32 . A worm (helical gear) 44 a is fixed to its rotation shaft. The gear mechanism 84 is a transmission mechanism (reduction mechanism) for transmitting the rotation of the motor 44 to the rotary body 62, and is driven to rotate by a worm wheel (helical gear) 84a meshing with the worm 44a and through the worm wheel 84a, and to rotate the rotary body 62. Rotationally driven transmission gear 84b is formed. The detection switch 86 is a hinge lever type micro switch, and when the detection lever 86a is pressed and swings, the button 86b protruding from the side is pressed.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the rotating body 62 viewed from the front side, and FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the rotating body 62 shown in FIG. 16 viewed from the rear side.

As shown in FIGS. 15 to 17 , the rotating body 62 has a large-diameter gear portion 88 that meshes with a small-diameter gear (not shown) of the transmission gear 84 b, and is formed in a cylindrical shape with a diameter smaller than that of the gear portion 88 . Extended mounting portion 80 .

A pair of thin-plate-shaped cam portions 88a, 88b arranged at intervals of 180° in the circumferential direction are provided on the peripheral edge portion of the front surface of the gear portion 88 so as to protrude forward. As is clear from FIG. 15 , the cams 88a and 88b sequentially press the detection lever 86a of the detection switch 86 to swing every time the rotating body 62 rotates half a turn, thereby pressing the button 86b. That is, the cams 88a, 88b function as detection means (detection cams) for automatic movement detection of the rotating body 62, and when the button 86b is triggered twice by the cam parts 88a, 88b, the main controller 32 determines that the rotating body 62 has rotated once. . Instead of a pair of cam parts 88a and 88b, one may be provided, or three or more may be uniformly provided in the circumferential direction.

The attaching portion 80 functions to attach and detach the conveying mechanism 52 to the driving unit 50 and to transmit the rotational driving force from the motor 44 from the rotating body 62 to the conveying mechanism 52 . As shown in FIGS. 14 to 17 , the mounting portion 80 has a mounting portion 80 a exposed to the front surface 50 a of the drive unit 50 and a mounting portion 80 b exposed to the rear surface 50 b. That is, the rotating body 62 has a mounting portion 80a at one end in the axial direction O and a mounting portion 80b at the other end, so that the mounting portion 80 is exposed from the front side 50a and the back side 50b, respectively, so that the screw mechanism 52a can be attached and detached from both sides. The connection part 78 of the included connection tool 64 (or the connection part 92 of the connection gear 90 included in the belt mechanism 52b mentioned later, refer FIG. 20).

The mounting part 80 (80a, 80b) is configured so that the connecting part 78 of the connecting member 64 (or the connecting part 92 of the connecting gear 90) can be inserted and fitted on its inner peripheral surface, and the inner peripheral edge part of each mounting part 80a, 80b , a plurality of grooves 81 are formed along the circumferential direction. The groove portion 81 can be engaged with the protruding portion 78 b of the link 64 (connection gear 90 ) and the stop piece 78 d. A groove portion may be formed in the link 64 (connection gear 90 ), and a protruding portion or a catch may be formed in the rotating body 62 .

As described above, such a drive unit 50 can be attached and detached from the mounting groove 58a provided in the deep part of the base member 58 by changing the front and back, and can be set so that the housing 46 can be positioned as shown in FIG. The first posture (normal rotation posture) in which the front side 50 a of one surface is arranged facing the conveyance direction A, and the second posture in which the rear surface 50 b of the housing 46 as the other surface is arranged facing the conveyance direction A as shown in FIG. 14(B) Two posture (anti-rotation posture).

As can be seen from FIG. 14(A), in the first posture, the connecting portion 78 of the connecting member 64 included in the screw mechanism 52a (or the connecting portion 92 of the connecting gear 90 included in the conveyor belt mechanism 52b) is installed on the front side exposed to the front. 50a side of the rotating body 62 on the mounting portion 80a. On the other hand, as can be seen from FIG. 14(B), in the second posture, the connection portion 78 of the connection member 64 included in the screw mechanism 52a (or the connection portion 92 of the connection gear 90 included in the belt mechanism 52b) is attached. On the attachment part 80b of the rotating body 62 exposed to the back surface 50b side.

In this way, the drive unit 50 can be used from both the front side 50a and the back side 50b of the product rack 28 of the product storage device 10, whereby the rotation direction of the screw mechanism 52a by the rotating body 62 can be adjusted without using a device. The forward and reverse rotation of the motor 44 is realized by changing the line or switching the switch, etc., but the forward and reverse rotation is realized by a structural method. For example, in the first posture using the front surface 50a, the rotating body 62 rotates clockwise in the direction of θ1 (refer to FIG. Rotate in the θ2 direction (see FIG. 14(B)). That is, the drive unit 50 is configured as a reversible motor (reversible drive unit) that can use both surfaces thereof.

Therefore, in the case of constituting a double rack in which two merchandise racks 28 store and transport one merchandise G2, G3 as in merchandise racks 28B, 28C in FIG. The driving unit 50 and the driving unit 50 using the second posture of the back surface 50b of the driving unit 50 are combined in groups of two, and the direction of the spiral of the spiral body is reversed to each other, thereby canceling the spiral body 54 acting on the commodities G2 and G3 The rotational force can be used more stably to store and transport one commodity G2 and G3 using two commodity racks 28 .

And, each of the two product racks 28, 28 constituting such a double rack has the drive unit 50 as a drive source. Therefore, even if, for example, the pair of positioning rails 94, 94 extending in the left-right direction along each shelf of the product storage room 16 is appropriately changed in the case of changing the interval between the two product shelves 28, 28, since the two Since each of the product racks 28 and 28 has the drive unit 50 , it is possible to easily form a double rack having a desired width without adding a power transmission mechanism or the like between the two product racks 28 and 28 . In the merchandise rack 28B in Fig. 9, two merchandise racks 28, 28 are arranged at wide intervals to accommodate the wider merchandise G2, and two merchandise racks 28, 28 are arranged at reduced intervals in the merchandise rack 28C to accommodate Stores product G3 narrower than product G2.

2.3 Explanation of loading and unloading structure of screw mechanism and drive unit

Next, a specific attachment and detachment structure of the screw mechanism 52a and the drive unit 50 will be described.

18 is a perspective view of the state where the coupling 64 of the screw mechanism 52a and the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50 are installed together, and is an installation in which the coupling portion 78 of the coupling 64 is exposed on the front 50a side of the drive unit 50. A perspective view when viewed from the rear side in a state on the portion 80a.

In the product storage device 10 of this embodiment, the attachment and detachment structure of the screw mechanism 52a and the drive unit 50 shown in FIGS. In addition to the action constituted.

For example, when the coupling 64 is mounted on the mounting portion 80a on the front side 50a side of the drive unit 50, as shown in FIG. The part 80a side is inserted through the inner peripheral surface. In this way, each protruding portion 78b (see FIG. 12 ) of the connecting portion 78 is engaged with each groove portion 81 of the mounting portion 80a, so that the connecting portion 78 is in a non-rotatable state with respect to the mounting portion 80 at a desired angular position (rotational phase). )link. During this connection, the pair of flaps 78d, 78d protruding radially outward from the root end of the engaging protruding portion 78c of the connecting portion 78 is elastically contracted by being pressed in the radially inner direction by the inner peripheral surface of the mounting portion 80. deformed and inserted into the mounting portion 80, when passing through the mounting portion 80, the pair of retaining pieces 78d, 78d undergo elastic recovery deformation again (refer to FIG. ) 81 (refer to FIG. 18 ), thereby preventing the connecting portion 78 from detaching from the mounting portion 80 in the axial direction O and preventing wobbling.

On the other hand, when the coupling member 64 is removed from the mounting portion 80a on the front side 50a side of the drive unit 50, it is only necessary to release the engagement state between the groove portion 81 of the mounting portion 80b and the stop piece 78d of the coupling portion 78 (see FIG. 18) After that, just pull out the connecting piece 64 in the axial direction O (transportation direction A). That is, as shown in FIG. 18 , in a state where the link 64 and the mounting portion 80 are attached to each other, the release operation portion 82 on the back side or the front side of the link 64 is operated. When the release operation part 82 is operated from the back side, it can be clearly seen from Fig. 13 and Fig. 18 that the pair of engaging protrusions 78c, 78c of the connecting part 78 are deformed in a direction close to each other, and the blocking piece 78d is deformed. After detaching from the groove portion 81, the coupling member 64 may be pulled out from the mounting portion 80 to the front side. In addition, when the release operation part 82 is operated from the near side, it can be clearly seen from FIG. 78c and 78c are deformed toward each other, the catch piece 78d is removed from the groove part 81, and after that, the connecting member 64 is pulled out from the attaching part 80 toward the near side. In addition, in the structure of attaching and detaching the coupling member 64 to the attaching portion 80b on the rear surface 50b side of the drive unit 50, the procedure for the attaching portion 80a is substantially the same.

In this way, for the screw mechanism 52a and the drive unit 50, the protruding portion 78b provided on the connecting portion 78 of the connecting member 64 and the groove portion 81 provided on the mounting portion 80 of the rotating body 62 are engaged with each other, and the setting is further made. The catch piece 78d on the connecting portion 78 of the connecting member 64 and the groove portion (groove portion for blocking) 81 provided on the mounting portion 80 of the rotating body 62 engage with each other, so that they can be mounted to each other in a non-rotatable state. At a plurality of rotational angle positions corresponding to the number of grooves 81 , detachment in the axial direction can be reliably prevented.

Therefore, in this commodity storage device 10, the screw mechanism 52a can be mounted on the drive unit 50 in a state where the angular position of the front end of the screw body 54 coincides with a desired angular position, so that the front end of the screw body 54 can be easily adjusted structurally. Set to the optimum angle position suitable for the shape and size of the goods to be stored. Therefore, it is not necessary to drive the motor 44 after mounting to adjust the position of the tip of the screw body 54 (feed amount control). In addition, one or more protruding parts 78b may be provided, and one or more engaging protruding parts 78c (block pieces 78d ) may be provided. In addition, grooves may be provided on the coupling member 64 side, and protrusions may be provided on the rotating body 62 side. department.

In the product storage device 10, one end of the spiral body 54 is mounted on the connecting member 64 that can be attached to and detached from the mounting portion 80 of the rotating body 62, so that the spiral body 54 can be easily attached to and detached from the drive unit 50, so it can be easily replaced with The helicoid 54 etc. which differ in the pitch of a helix. Moreover, since the screw mechanism 52a can be easily removed from the drive unit 50, the versatility of the drive unit 50 and the base member 58 is high, and the above-mentioned drive unit 50 and the base member 58 can be easily combined with the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, etc. Other conveying mechanisms are used together.

In addition, as described above, in the link 64 , the release operation parts 82 are respectively provided on both ends of the shaft direction of the link 78 , and in the state where the link 64 is mounted on the rotating body 62 , it is possible to move from the rotating body 62 . Operation is performed on both ends of the shaft in the 62, so that high operability can be obtained, and the replacement work of the conveying mechanism 52 becomes easier.

2.4 Description of conveyor belt mechanism

Next, a specific structure of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 , the conveyor belt mechanism 52 b has a conveyor belt 56 that moves in response to rotational driving force from the drive unit 50 to convey the product G placed on the conveyance surface 56 a in the conveyance direction A. The conveyor belt 56 is stretched endlessly between a driving roller 96 provided upstream in the conveying direction A and a driven roller 98 provided downstream, and is moved by the rotational driving force of the driving roller 96 . That is, the position on the most upstream side in the conveying direction A of the conveyor belt 56 is supported by the drive roller 96 , and the position on the most downstream side is supported by the driven roller 98 .

Left and right side walls 100a, 100a are vertically provided on the root end side of the belt base 100 attached to the base member 58 so as to cover the commodity conveyance path 48 of the base member 58, and the drive roller 96 is pivotally supported by the left and right side walls. Between them, the driven roller 98 is pivotally supported between the left and right side walls on the front end side of the conveyor belt base 100 . A connecting gear 90 connected to the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50 is provided at the inner end (root end) of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, and the connecting gear 90 is non-rotatable but detachable with respect to the rotating body 62 .

Moreover, the detection member 102 which comprises the sold-out detection means 66 mentioned later is provided in the conveyance surface 56a of the conveyor mechanism 52b. The detection part 102 is arranged on the back of the rearmost (endmost) product G among the products G arranged (for example, refer to the detection part 102 shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 7 ), and is the same as the detection part 68 of the screw mechanism 52a , moves together with the delivery of the commodity G, and finally moves to the front of the commodity shelf 28 as shown by the solid line in FIG.

FIG. 19 is an enlarged perspective view of the base end periphery of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, and FIG. 20 is a longitudinal sectional view cut along the conveying direction A of the base end periphery of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b.

As shown in Figures 19 and 20, on the root end side of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, a connecting gear 90, a driven gear 104, a driving roller 96, a tension roller 106, and an auxiliary roller 108 are provided, wherein the above-mentioned connecting gear 90 includes a driving unit The connecting part 92 to which the rotating body 62 of 50 is non-rotatably connected, the above-mentioned driven gear 104 is driven to rotate by meshing with the connecting gear 90, and converts the direction of the rotational driving force of the rotating body 62 to be perpendicular to the axial direction O. direction, the driving roller 96 is connected concentrically on the side of the driven gear 104, the tension roller 106 is arranged in front of the driving roller 96 and located below, and applies tension to the conveyor belt 56, and the auxiliary roller 108 is used below the driving roller 96. The moving direction of the conveyor belt 56 curves upward.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the connecting gear 90 viewed from the front side, and FIG. 22 is a perspective view of the connecting gear 90 shown in FIG. 21 viewed from the rear side. FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing a vertical cross-section of the coupling gear 90 shown in FIG. 21 taken along the transport direction A. As shown in FIG. In addition, since the attachment and detachment structure of the connection gear 90 relative to the rotating body 62 is substantially the same as the attachment and detachment structure of the connection member 64 of the screw mechanism 52a, the same reference numerals are assigned to the parts that have the same or similar functions and effects as the connection member 64. , omitting detailed description.

As shown in FIGS. 21 to 23 , the coupling gear 90 includes a large-diameter bevel gear that meshes with the driven gear 104 , that is, a gear portion 110 , and a gear portion 110 that is smaller in diameter and concentric with the gear portion 110 . The cylindrical connecting portion 92 protruding inwardly on the same axis as the axial direction O of 62, through the connecting portion 92, can be provided in a non-rotatable state relative to the mounting portion 80 (80a, 80b) Locking and disengaging. That is, the connecting gear 90 is a driving gear that transmits the rotational driving force from the driving unit 50 (rotary body 62 ) to the driven gear 104 and the driving roller 96 .

The connecting portion 92 has substantially the same structure as the connecting portion 78 (refer to FIGS. 10 to 13 ) of the connecting member 64 constituting the screw mechanism 52a, and includes a cylindrical portion 78a. A plurality of semi-cylindrical protruding parts 78b formed in the circumferential direction in a connected manner, a pair of elastically deformable upper and lower engaging protruding parts 78c, 78c, a blocking piece 78d, a pin-shaped part 78e, and a pair of left and right handle parts 78f, 78f, the engaging protrusion 78c and the knob 78f constitute a release operation portion 82 for releasing the mounted state between the coupling portion 92 of the coupling gear 90 and the mounting portion 80 of the rotating body 64 .

In this way, the connecting gear 90 includes a connecting portion 92 having substantially the same structure as the connecting portion 78 of the connecting member 64 of the screw mechanism 52a, so the conveyor belt mechanism 52b and the drive unit 50 have the same characteristics as the above-mentioned screw mechanism 52a described in FIG. 18 . For the same loading and unloading structure, the installation and removal actions are also the same.

As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20 , the driven gear 104 has a bevel gear gear portion 104 a meshing with the gear portion 110 of the connecting gear 90 , and is pivotally supported between the left and right side walls 100 a, 100 a of the conveyor belt base 100 for driving. In the roller 96 , the driven gear 104 is fitted coaxially with one end side thereof so that the driven gear 104 is made non-rotatable with respect to the driving roller 96 . Therefore, when the connecting gear 90 is rotationally driven by the drive unit 50 with the axial direction O as the axis, the driven gear 104 is rotated with the axial direction O1 orthogonal to the axial direction O on the horizontal plane including the axial direction O. On the other hand, driven rotation causes the drive roller 96 to rotate around the axial direction O1. At this time, a plurality of positioning hole portions 56 b are formed on the conveyor belt 56 in parallel along the moving direction of the conveyor belt 56 and located on both ends in the width direction. Therefore, the positioning hole portion 56b is engaged with a plurality of positioning protrusions 96a formed in the circumferential direction on both ends in the width direction of the outer peripheral surface of the driving roller 96, so that the conveyor belt 56 does not slide on the outer peripheral surface of the driving roller 96, Can realize stable movement.

FIG. 24 is a perspective view showing the tension roller 106 and the movable base 112 supporting the tension roller 106 .

As shown in FIGS. 19 , 20 and 24 , the tension roller 106 is pivotally supported by a movable base 112 on the downstream side of the driving roller 96 in the conveying direction A and at a position below the driving roller 96 . At a position between the upper surface 100 b and the drive roller 96 , the conveyor belt 56 is pressed obliquely rearward and downward, thereby constituting a tension mechanism that applies a desired tension to the conveyor belt 56 .

The movable base 112 is provided on the inner surface of the upper surface 100b of the conveyor base 100 supporting the conveyor surface 56a of the conveyor 56 so as to be slidable back and forth in the conveyor direction A. As shown in FIG. The tension roller 106 is rotatably supported between a pair of left and right support arms 112 a , 112 a protruding obliquely rearward and upward from the root end side of the movable base 112 , and is slidable forward and backward by the movable base 112 . As can be seen from FIG. 20 , the tension roller 106 is provided at a position closer to the drive roller 96 on the root end side than the driven roller 98 on the front end side. Next, the tension roller 106 is disposed at a position where a part thereof overlaps the drive roller 96 . Thereby, the tension roller 106 can be provided near the deepest part which does not contribute to the storage of the product G on the conveyance surface 56a of the conveyor belt 56, and the product storage capacity of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b can be fully ensured.

The movable base 112 is formed so that the support arm 112a protrudes toward the root end side, and the cross section of the front-rear surface and the lower surface which are open is formed in the shape of a substantially "匚" shape. The movable base 112 has a long hole 112b in the front-rear direction formed at the rear of the center in the width direction, and a plurality of (four in FIG. 24 ) substantially L-shaped L holes 112c are formed around the long hole 112b. The long hole 112b is inserted through the protruding support piece 100c that can protrude vertically from the upper surface 100b of the conveyor belt base 100, and each L hole 112c is inserted through each protruding piece 100d that can protrude vertically from the upper surface 100b of the conveyor belt base 100 (refer to Figure 20 and Figure 24). Thereby, the movable base 112 can slide in the front-rear direction by being guided by the elongated hole 112b, the L hole 112c, the hole-portion protruding support piece 100c, and the protruding piece 100d.

Furthermore, the coil spring 114 is attached between the support piece 112d provided in the front-end|tip side of the movable base 112, and the protruding support piece 100c of the conveyor base 100 inserted in the long hole 112b. The coil spring 114 is a tension spring that urges the movable base 112 relatively rearward (opposite to the conveying direction A) with respect to the conveyor base 100 . By the urging force of the coil spring 114, the movable base 112 is attached to the conveyor belt base 100 in a state elastically biased backward, that is, the tension roller 106 is aligned between the upper surface 100b of the conveyor belt base 100 and the driving roller 96. The conveyance surface 56 a of the conveyor belt 56 is elastically pressed obliquely rearward and downward, and a desired tension is applied to the conveyor belt 56 .

As shown in FIG. 20 , the auxiliary roller 108 is provided below the driving roller 96 to make the conveyor belt 56 that has sent out the commodity G move inwardly on the lower surface side of the conveyor belt base 100 in parallel with the conveying direction A. Bending upward toward the drive roller 96 and returning, the auxiliary roller 108 is pivotally supported between the left and right side walls 100 a , 100 a of the belt base 100 . The auxiliary roller 108 may be arranged on the rear side, and the auxiliary roller 108 may be arranged at the most upstream position of the conveyor belt 56 .

In this way, in the conveyor belt mechanism 52b of the product storage device 10, the drive roller 96 provided on the upstream side in the conveyance direction A and driven to rotate by the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50, and the roller 96 provided in the conveyance direction A The conveyor belt 56 is stretched endlessly between the downstream driven rollers 98 , and a tension roller 106 for applying tension to the conveyor belt 56 is provided at a position closer to the driving roller 96 than the driven rollers 98 . That is, in the belt conveyor mechanism 52b, the drive roller 96 and the tension roller 106 are provided on the back side of the product rack 28 close to the driving unit 50, and the driven roller 96 and the tension roller 106 are provided on the front side of the product rack 28 that discharges the product G to the outside. Therefore, the roller 98 can stabilize the discharge position of the product G from the front side, and can discharge the product G to the outside in a stable manner. Moreover, the power transmission mechanism that transmits power from the drive unit 50 can be arranged only on the back side of the merchandise rack 28, so there is no need for a power transmission mechanism that transmits power from the back side to the front side, and a simple and compact structure can be realized. Necessary tension is applied to the conveyor belt 56, so that the product G can be conveyed more stably.

In addition, in the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, as shown in FIG. The tension roller 106 is arranged on a horizontal plane including the axial direction O of the rotating body 62, and the tension roller 106 is arranged on the downstream side of the driving roller 96 in the conveying direction A and at a position lower than the driving roller 96, and below the driving roller 96. An auxiliary roller 108 is provided to bend the conveyor belt 56 extending parallel to the conveyance direction A from the driven roller 98 upward toward the drive roller 96 , thereby moving the conveyor belt 56 in a substantially L-shape in a side view.

Therefore, power transmission from the rotating body 62 of the drive unit 50 to the driving roller 96 that moves the conveyor belt 56 can be performed only at a height position horizontal to the axial direction O of the rotating body 62 from the connecting gear 90 to the driven gear 104. The arrangement and gear meshing structure of the above-mentioned connecting gear 90, driven gear 104, and driving roller 96 can be simplified. In addition, by the driving roller 96, the tension roller 106, the conveyor belt base 100 and the auxiliary roller 108, the conveyor belt 56 is formed into a substantially L-shaped three-dimensional structure in side view on the base end side of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, and the conveyor surface 56a is arranged Below the axial direction O1 of the driving roller 96, the height position of the conveying surface 56a can be made as low as possible in the overall height of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, and the overall height direction can be controlled. The arrangement space of the goods G on the conveyance surface 56a is ensured to the maximum extent.

In other words, in the product rack 28 equipped with the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, although it is desired to set the conveying surface 56a of the conveyor belt 56 at a position as low as possible in order to secure the storage space for the product G to the maximum extent, correspondingly The position of the drive unit 50 is also lowered, and since the commodity rack 28 itself becomes larger downward, it is necessary to arrange the drive unit 50 above the belt mechanism 52b to some extent. Therefore, in the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, the position of the driving roller 96 is raised relative to the conveyor belt base 100, and the conveyor belt 56 is stretched under the L-shaped three-dimensional structure in the above-mentioned side view, so that the position of the conveyor surface 56a can be lowered, and the rotation speed can be simplified. The power transmission structure from the body 62 to the drive roller 96 controls the overall height of the merchandise rack 28.

2.5 Explanation of the sold-out testing agency

Next, a specific configuration of the sold-out detecting means 66 will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7 , the sold-out detection mechanism 66 is a mechanism that uses detection members 68 , 102 that move together with the commodity G under the action of the conveying mechanism 52 and that is provided from the base member 58 to the drive unit. The connecting part 70 of 50 performs an ON operation on the detection switch 86 (refer to FIG. 15 ), thereby detecting that the last commodity G is discharged, and there is no commodity G on the commodity shelf 28, that is, the commodity G is sold out. One situation. Among them, as the transport mechanism 52, in the case of using the screw mechanism 52a and the case of using the conveyor belt mechanism 52b, the detection member 68 and the detection member 102 are different in shape except that when the last product G is discharged, the coupling member 70 slides and moves. In addition, it is substantially the same structure, and the sold-out detection mechanism 66 is demonstrated below taking the case where the detection member 68 of the screw mechanism 52a is applied as an example.

25 is a partially omitted perspective view for explaining the configuration of the sold-out detection mechanism 66 , and FIG. 26 is a perspective view showing the swing member 72 and the coupling member 70 included in the sold-out detection mechanism 66 . In addition, FIG. 27 is a perspective view showing the swing member 72 viewed from the back side.

As shown in Fig. 5, Fig. 7, Fig. 25 and Fig. 26, the sold-out detection mechanism 66 includes a detection part 68 (102) arranged on the conveying mechanism 52, which extends along the conveying direction A on the side of the base part 58, and passes the detection The elongated bar-shaped coupling part 70 that slides through the part 68 ( 102 ), and the swing part 72 and the detection switch 86 provided in the driving unit 50 . That is, in the sold-out detection mechanism 66, the automatic detection mechanism 66 detects the number of rotations of the rotating body 62 of the driving unit 50, that is, the conveying operation (transporting state) of the commodity G by the spiral body 54 of the screw mechanism 52a or the conveyor belt 56 of the conveyor belt mechanism 52b. The detection switch 86 of the movement detection switch is also used as a switch for sold-out detection.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7 , the detecting member 68 ( 102 ) is installed behind the rearmost product G among the products G arranged on the product rack 28 , and can move in the transport direction A together with the product G. And, when the last product G is discharged from the product rack 28, the pressing portion 68a (102a) formed on the lower part of one side surface of the detection member 68 (102) pushes the connecting member 70 at the frontmost position of the product rack 28. The back side of the front end surface 70 a is pushed forward (near side) and slid.

As shown in FIG. 26, the coupling member 70 includes a front end surface 70a, and a first protruding piece 70b that protrudes horizontally toward the inner side of the base member 58 is provided behind the front end surface 70a, and is provided at approximately the center in the longitudinal direction and toward the rear of the base member 58. The second protruding piece 70c protruding horizontally inside the base member 58, the third protruding piece 70d provided on the root end side protruding horizontally toward the inside of the base member 58, and the third protruding piece 70d provided on the root end upwardly. After being bent, it protrudes backward and is formed into a substantially L-shaped pressing piece 70e in a side view.

The first protruding piece 70b, the second protruding piece 70c, and the third protruding piece 70d are engaged in a movable state with an unillustrated long sliding hole formed on the side opening of the base member 58 and extending along the conveyance direction A. close, guiding the sliding action of the coupling member 70. At this time, an unillustrated coil spring is mounted between the second protruding piece 70c and the base member 58 so that the coupling member 70 faces backward relative to the base member 58 (the direction opposite to the transport direction A). ) is applied force. An inclined surface 70f capable of slidingly contacting the inclined surface 72a of the swing member 72 is formed at the root end of the pressing piece 70e.

As shown in FIG. 14(A) and FIGS. 25 to 27 , the swing member 72 is a plate-shaped member formed in a substantially triangular shape in a front view, and the shaft pin 47 protruding from the front cover 46 a of the housing 46 is inserted through the The shaft hole 72b is formed near the upper apex of the triangle (see FIG. 14 ). Therefore, the swing member 72 can swing in the θ3 direction and the θ4 direction on the front surface 50 a of the drive unit 50 around the axial direction O2 of the pivot pin 47 (see FIG. 25 ).

The swing member 72 is provided with a coil spring 116 (refer to FIG. 14(A)) between the support piece 72c protruding from the lower part of the front surface and the pin 49 protruding from the front cover 46a. A force is applied in the θ4 direction (ON direction) away from the rotating body 62 (see also FIG. 28(B)). However, during a normal period (non-sold-out period) when the connecting member 70 is not forcibly slid forward by the detecting member 68 , the inclined surface 72 a formed on one side of the swinging member 72 is aligned with the inclined surface 70 f of the connected member 70 . The inclined surface 70 f is engaged with each other in the state of being pressed backward, and thus is held in a state of swinging close to the θ3 direction (OFF direction) of the rotating body 62 (see also FIG. 28(A) ).

As shown in FIGS. 25 and 27 , a pressing rod 72 d protrudes from the side of the swing member 72 to the inner side. The push lever 72d is used to press the detection lever 86a of the detection switch 86 by its side when the swing member 72 swings in the ON direction due to the force of the coil spring 116, thereby pressing the button 86b. arm.

Next, the sold-out detection operation by the sold-out detection means 66 will be described mainly with reference to FIG. 28 .

FIG. 28 is a plan explanatory view illustrating the sold-out detection operation of the product G by the sold-out detection mechanism 66 based on the relationship between the detection operation of the product G by the sold-out detection mechanism 66 and the automatic movement detection operation of the rotating body 62. FIG. 28 (A) is a diagram showing a state in which product G is not sold out, FIG. 28(B) is a diagram showing a state in which product G is detected to be sold out, and FIG. A diagram of the state of automatic movement.

First, as shown in FIG. 28(A), the inclination of the link member 70 is normal during the normal period (non-sold out period) during which the link member 70 is not slid forward by the detection member 68 (102) while the product G remains on the commodity shelf 28. The surface 70f is forced backward, and the inclined surface 72a of the swing member 72 is pressed backward by the inclined surface 70f of the coupling member 70, and the two are engaged with each other in this state (see also the solid line in FIG. 26 Arrow), therefore, it receives a pressing force in the direction of θ3 from the inclined surface 70f, and is held at a position swinging in the OFF direction against the biasing force of the coil spring 116 . In this state, the pressing lever 72d of the swinging member 72 is located at a position away from the detection lever 86a of the detection switch 86, or before reaching a position where the detection lever 86a can press the button 86b to turn the detection switch 86 on (ON). Since the position of the detection lever 86 a cannot be pressed, the detection switch 86 is turned off (OFF).

From this state, when the product G at the end of the product shelf 28 is discharged and the link member 70 is slid forward by the detection member 68 (102) (sold out), as shown in FIG. 28(B), the swing member 72 The engagement state between the inclined surface 72a of the coupling member 70 and the inclined surface 70f of the coupling member 70 is released, the pressing force from the inclined surface 70f to the direction of θ3 disappears, the inclined surface 72a is in sliding contact with the inclined surface 70f, and the swing member 72 is held by the coil spring. The force of 116 swings in the ON direction (θ4 direction). As a result, the pressing lever 72d of the swing member 72 presses the detection lever 86a of the detection switch 86 to swing inwardly, and the button 86b is pressed by the detection lever 86a, so the detection switch 86 is turned on (ON). ON) operation is detected by the main controller 32. Therefore, the main controller 32 determines that the rack number of the product G is sold out for the product rack 28 that is detected to be sold out, and notifies the purchaser by operating the sold out indicator light of the input unit 26 or the like.

In addition, for the product rack 28 that has been detected to be sold out, when the operator of the vending machine 12 replenishes the product G, the detection member 68 ( 102 ) is moved again to be set behind the last product G, so that the coupling member 70 and swing member 72 return to the state during the unsold out period shown in FIG. 28(A).

On the other hand, the detection switch 86 included in the sold-out detection mechanism 66 is also used to control the number of rotations of the rotating body 62, That is, the conveyance mechanism 52 controls conveyance of the commodity G (discharge control).

That is, as shown in FIG. 28(C), when the rotating body 62 is rotated by the motor 44, a pair of cam portions 88a, 88b provided on the peripheral portion of the rotating body 62 presses the detection switch 86 sequentially every half-turn of the rotating body 62. The detection lever 86a is swung, and the detection switch 86 is turned on (ON) by pressing the button 86b. Therefore, the main controller 32 drives the motor 44 according to a predetermined timing chart, and when the detection switch 86 is turned on (ON) twice each time, it is detected that the rotating body 62 has rotated once, based on the rotating body 62 to detect the number of revolutions, and control the conveying mechanism 52 to discharge the commodities G one by one.

Here, as can be seen from FIGS. 28(A) and 28(C), products G remain on the product rack 28 , and the swing member 72 is held in the swing direction θ3 (OFF direction) against the biasing force of the coil spring 116 . A sufficient gap is formed between the pressing lever 72 d of the swing member 72 and the detection lever 86 a (button 86 b ) of the detection switch 86 in the state of the position. That is, the cam portions 88a, 88b of the rotating body 62 pass through the gap and simultaneously press the detection lever 86a. Therefore, when the rotation speed of the rotating body 62 is detected by the cam portions 88a, 88b, the sold-out detection mechanism 66 includes The pressing lever 72d of the swing member 72 does not become an obstacle. That is, the cam portions 88a, 88b and the pressing lever 72d of the swing member 72 are arranged at positions where they do not interfere with each other.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 28(B), when the product G is sold out and the pressing lever 72d of the swinging member 72 performs an ON operation on the detection switch 86, if the cam portions 88a, 88b are positioned on the detection switch 86 In the position where the ON operation is performed, the two may interfere, resulting in failure to perform normal detection operations.

Therefore, the rotation control of the motor 44 (rotating body 62 ) by the main controller 32 as a control device will be described below with reference to FIG. 29 . 29 is a timing chart showing the relationship between the amount of rotation (rotation number) of the rotating body 62 by the action of the motor 44 and the detection switch 86, showing the relationship between the amount of rotation of the rotating body 62 and the ON operation of the detection switch 86. relation.

As shown in FIG. 29 , in the product storage device 10 of the present embodiment, the main controller 32 operates the ON operation of the detection switch 86 by, for example, detecting the cam portions 88 a and 88 b shown in d1 to d3 and detecting d3 to d5 . , to detect one rotation of the rotating body 62 shown at times t1 to t3 and times t3 to t5. For example, during time t1 to t2, the rotating body 62 makes a half rotation, and if the detection d1 indicates the ON operation of the cam portion 88a, the detection d2 indicates the ON operation of the cam portion 88b.

Here, as is clear from FIG. 29 , in the present embodiment, there is a switching timing between half-rotation and one-rotation of the rotating body 62 during the ON operation of the cam portions 88 a and 88 b. For example, when the motor 44 is stopped after a predetermined time T (for example, 500 milliseconds) has elapsed after the ON operation is performed by the cam portion 88b in the detection d3, one revolution of the rotating body 62 (also for a half revolution) Similarly), the time t3 of the switching time is completed later than the detection d3 by a predetermined time T. Here, since a pair of cam parts 88a and 88b are provided, the predetermined time T is set to be shorter than the range of half a rotation of the rotary body 62, for example, when there is only one cam part, it can be set to be shorter than the range of the rotary body 62. The range of one rotation of the cam portion can be set to be smaller than the range of 1/3 rotation of the rotating body 62 when there are three cam portions.

That is, in the product storage device 10 , the time-sequence control (over-rotation operation) for further rotating the rotating body 62 for a predetermined time T is performed during the intervals between the ON operations of the cam portions 88 a and 88 b. Therefore, for example, under the setting that the commodity G is discharged at the timing of the detection d3 when the detection switch 86 is turned on (ON) by the cam portion 88b, at the time between the detection d3 and the next detection d4 by the cam portion 88a , the conveying mechanism 52 is driven by the rotating body 62 which is still rotating. Therefore, when the product G discharged at the time of detection d3 is the last product, the detection member 68 (102) slides the coupling member 70 forward at the time between the detection d3 and the next detection d4, so by When the swing member 72 swings in the ON direction, the detection switch 86 is turned ON, and it is detected that the product G is sold out (see detection d0 indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 29 ). That is, in the product storage device 10, by performing such sequential control, it is possible to reliably prevent interference between the cam portions 88a, 88b and the pressing lever 72d, and to accurately and stably detect the amount of rotation of the rotating body 62 and whether the product G is sold out.

In this way, in this product storage device 10, there is provided a detection switch 86 that is turned on (ON) at least every time the rotating body 62 rotates once, thereby enabling detection of the conveying operation of the conveying mechanism 52 for the commodity G, and also A sold-out detection mechanism 66 is provided for turning on (ON) the detection switch 86 when the product G stored at the rearmost on the product conveyance path 48 is discharged to the outside. As a result, the automatic movement detection of the motor 44 and the sold-out detection of the product G can be performed using one detection switch 86, so that the cost of the product storage device 10 can be reduced and the sold-out of the product G can be reliably detected.

At this time, under the control of the main controller 32 as the control device, the sold-out detection mechanism 66 executes an over-rotation operation of further rotating the rotating body 62 for a predetermined time T at the timing during which the cam parts 88a and 88b are automatically moving and detecting. Therefore, the sold-out detection can be performed at the moment when the interference between the cam portions 88a, 88b of the rotating body 62 and the pressing lever 72d of the swing member 72 can be reliably prevented, so one detection switch 86 can be easily used for both automatic movement detection and Sold out detection.

In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Of course, it can change freely in the range which does not deviate from the summary.

Explanation of reference signs

Claims (6)

1. a commodity device, comprises commodity is arranged and taken in along throughput direction, by the commodity that this is taken in, sends successively and the goods shelf of commodity being discharged to outside one by one from file leader's side on described throughput direction, it is characterized in that:

Described goods shelf comprises:

Be arranged on the driver element of the upstream side of commodity transport path, it has the rotary body that motor rotates with accepting the rotary driving force of this motor in housing; With

Conveying mechanism, the rotary body of itself and described driver element links, by the rotary driving force from this rotary body, moves, transportation commodity on described throughput direction,

Described rotary body is respectively arranged with the installation portion that mode loading and unloading is installed described conveying mechanism at direction of principal axis two ends, and an installation portion is exposed to the one side of described housing, another installation portion is exposed to the another side of a side contrary with described one side of described housing, by changing the installation direction of described driver element, installation portion described in any and described conveying mechanism are linked.

2. commodity device as claimed in claim 1, is characterized in that:

Described goods shelf comprises the base component that can load described conveying mechanism,

On described base component, be provided with mounting groove, can under the face that makes a described face and expectation in described another face state relative with described conveying mechanism, in the mode that can load and unload, described driver element be installed.

3. commodity device as claimed in claim 2, is characterized in that:

Described goods shelf, so that described throughput direction mode parallel to each other left and right row arrangement are a plurality of, and can make the described conveying mechanism that arranges respectively on 2 goods shelfs of adjacency for the conveying of commodity.

4. commodity device as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, is characterized in that:

As described conveying mechanism, at least conveyor screw mechanism and conveyer mechanism can be installed on described base component selectively, wherein, described conveyor screw mechanism carries the commodity that are constrained between pitch by making conveyor screw rotation at described throughput direction, described conveyer mechanism by travelling belt is moved on the conveyor surface of this travelling belt at described throughput direction transportation commodity.

5. commodity device as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, is characterized in that:

As described conveying mechanism, at least use the conveyor screw mechanism commodity that are constrained between pitch being carried at described throughput direction by making conveyor screw rotation,

Described conveyor screw mechanism has connecting piece in described spirochetal one end, this connecting piece have can be with respect to the installation portion of described rotary body the linking part with non-rotatable state handling,

In described installation portion and described linking part, in one, along Zhou Fangxiang, be formed with a plurality of slot parts, in another one, along Zhou Fangxiang, be formed with one or more teats, by making this slot part and this teat engage with each other and can described rotary body and described connecting piece be installed with a plurality of angle positions.

6. commodity device as claimed in claim 5, is characterized in that:

In the situation that the conveying for commodity by 2 goods shelfs of adjacency, in these 2 goods shelfs, the described driver element of a goods shelf, conveyor screw mechanism is arranged on the installation portion that is exposed to a described face, the described driver element of another goods shelf, conveyor screw mechanism is arranged on the installation portion that is exposed to described another face.

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