GB2146010A - Vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

In a vending machine of the "in-cup" type a plurality of stacks of cups are mounted in a carousel (17) with the lowermost cup (19) in each stack (18) resting on a displaceable member (20) which is pivoted at (28) and which slides on a supporting surface (22) beneath the carousel (17). At a dispensing station a section of the supporting surface (20) is movable to allow downward pivoting of the member 20 and downward dispensing of a cup (19) from the stack (18). <IMAGE>

Description

Vending machine This invention relates to an in-cup vending machine having a filled cup carousel acting as a cup magazine.

In such a machine a plurality of nested stacks of cups are supported by a rotatable carousel and the cups of any one stack each contain the powdered component (s) of one beverage of a range of beverages to be vended. In use the carousel rotates under control of the machine mechanism, until a desired stack is at a splitting position. The carousel then stops and a splitting mechanism detaches the lowermost cup from that stack and the cup is then transferred to a filling position wherein water (hot or cold) is added to reconstitute the desired beverage. The stacks are vertically slidable in a series of vertical slides of the carousel, and during rotation of the carousel must be supported.Conventionally such support is effected by a plane sliding surface, such as a flat plate coated with a low friction plastics material, over the majority of the periphery of the carousel and at the splitting position are supported by rails which engage beneath the rim of the lowermost and/or next-to-lowermost cup. This arrangment has some disadvantages. Firstly, because the base of each cup may carry beverage powder picked up from the cup beneath in which it is nested, the sliding surface can become contaminated with such powder. Because this surface is immediately beneath the carousel it is difficult to clean. Further, the powder has an abrasive action and a cup at the bottom of an infrequently used stack, such as a soup stack during the summer months, will slide on such surface so many times during operation of the machine that it becomes worn.This wear may cause its rim to be displaced downwards thus making its position incompatible with the rails at the splitter, causing malfunction. In extreme cases the base of the cup can be worn through so that if and when it is dispensed leaking occurs to the detriment of the user. Further, cups whose bases are contaminated with powder from the sliding surface are disliked by machine users.

The cups at the bottom of such an unused stack may also have their rims worn by the rails of the splitter during travel therethrough to such an exent as to cause malfunction.

It is an object of the invention, therefore; to provide an "in-cup" vending machine wherein the above disadvantages are obviated or minimised.

Accordingly the invention provides an "in-cup" vending machine having a carousel providing a plurality of vertical nested-cup slides on its periphery and having a cup dispensing station or splitter at which a cup can be separated from the rest of a selected stack above it, characterised in that the stacks in the splitter are supported by a structure providing a horizontal, circular support surface beneath the paths of the stacks in the carousel, such structure being fixed over the majority of the periphery of the path and having a section at the splitter which can be displaced to allow dispensing of a cup, the carousel being provided, beneath each stack, with a displaceable member which provides a support for the lowermost cup and the stack above it and which slides on the support during rotation of the carousel and is displaced at the splitter to allow downward dispensing of a cup from a selected stack.

Thus, the wear during rotation of the carousel is taken by the displaceable members which can be of metal and thus more resistant to wear than paper or plastics cups which are unaffected by the usual support surface or the splitter rails. The displaceable members can be easily cleaned if they become contaminated with powder.

Preferably the support is a circular rail. The displaceable section can be mounted to be pivotable downwards out of the path of a cup to be dispensed at the splitter. The displaceable members on the carousel can be flaps each pivotable about a horizontal, for example radial axis at a leading edge of the lower end of each carousel slide and resting by gravity on the rail. When the splitter section of the rail is displaced for dispensing of a cup at the splitter the flap associated with the selected stack pivots about its axis under its own weight. A gap can be provided between the downstream end of the displaceable section of the support rail and the beginning of the fixed section of the support rail sufficient to allow flap pivoting when the displaceable section has been displaced but to prevent any substantial downward movement of the flap during selection rotation of the carousel.

The invention will be described further, by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a front elevation of a preferred vending machine of the invention; Figure 2 is a partial elevation of the base of one stack; Figure 3 is a plan view of the parts shown in Figure 2; and Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the support at and adjacent the splitter.

A preferred vending machine 10 of the invention has a casing 11, front doors 12 and 13 and selector buttons 14 on a central pillar 15. Inside an upper left compartment 16 is a carousel 17 supporting stacks 18 of cups 19, the cups 19 in each stack 18 all containing the same powdered beverage ingredient. Each stack 18 has a pivoted member in the form of a flap 20 which has a depending channel 21 which slides on a support rail 22. At a splitter assembly whose location is indicated at 23 at a splitter 39 (Figure 4) can dispense individual cups into a chute 24 to travel to a filling and dispense station 25 where they are filled with water from a spout 26.

Referring now to Figures 2 and 3, each stack 18 is slidably accommodated in a compartment between vertical slides 27. The base of each compartment has the displaceable flap 20, which is of stainless steel, pivoted on a horizontal radial limb 28 of an L-shaped bracket 29 which is welded to a slide 27. Channel 21 in flap 20 rests on a fixed circular section rail 22 which constitutes a support.

Referring now to Figure 4, the rail 22 is circular in cross-section and supported by struts 31. Rail 22 is also circular in plan to be disposed beneath the path of stacks 18 as they rotate with the carousel 17. At the splitter assembly 39 the rail 22 has a displaceable section 32 which is supported by arms 33 connected to an axle 34 acted on by a member 35 to pivot it when desired. A gap 36 is arranged between the downstream end of the section 32 and the upstream end 37 of the fixed section 38 of rail 22 to allow flaps 20 to pivot downwards, under gravity, out of the path of a cup 19 as it is dispensed by the splitter assembly 39. During selection travel of the carousel the flaps dip slightly as they pass gap 36.

It will be appreciated that sliding wear is taken by the rail 22 and flaps 20 and the cups are protected.

The splitter 39 comprises a pair of upright sheet metal channel guides 40 each mounting at the top thereof a fixed plate 41, 42 whose edge is curved complementary to the path of travel of the inner or outer edge of a cup in the carousel. Slidably arranged inside each guide 40 is a splitter 43 having an upper movable plate 43, 44 complementary to adjacent plate 41, 42. Splitters 43 are upwardly biassed by compression springs 45 and can be moved downwardly be actuators (not shown) engaging outwardly extending pegs 46. As the carousel rotates the rim 19a of a lowermost cup 19 passes below the adjacent pairs of plates (41, 43), (44, 45) and the rim (not shown) of a cup thereabove passes above such pairs. When the carousel stops for a cup to be dispensed, splitters 43 move downwardly and plates 43, 44 push the cup 19 downwardly out of frictional engagement with the cup above it into the chute beneath for further processing.

As a variation, the support rail, instead of being exactly circular, can be oval, or of some other configuration which disposes it beneath the annular path swept by the flaps. In this way wear on the flaps can be equalized over their full widths and not concentrated centrally thereof.

Claims (13)

1. An "in-cup" vending machine having a carousel providing a plurality of vertical nested-cup slides on its periphery and having a cup dispensing station at which a cup can be separated from the rest of a selected stack above it, characterised in that the stacks are supported by a structure providing a horizontal, generally circular support surface beneath the paths of the stacks in the carousel, such structure being fixed over the majority of the periphery of the path and having a section at the dispensing station which can be displaced to allow dispensing of a cup, the carousel being provided, beneath each stack, with a displaceable member which provides a support for the lowermost cup and the stack above it and which slides on the support during rotation of the carousel and can be displaced at the dispensing station to allow downward dispensing of a cup from a selected stack.

2. A vending machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein the support is a rail.

3. A machine as claimed in claim 2 wherein the rail is circular in plan.

4. A machine as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein the rail is circular in cross-section.

5. A machine as claimed in claim 2, 3 or 4 wherein the displaceable section is displaceable downwardly.

6. A machine as claimed in claim 5, wherein the displaceable section is mounted for pivotal movement about a distant axis.

7. A machine as claimed in claim 6, wherein said distant axis is parallel to a tangent to the rail.

8. A machine as claimed in any preceding claim wherein each displaceable member is in the form of a flap.

9. A machine as claimed in claim 8, wherein the flap is pivoted about a radial axis, considered relative to the carousel.

10. A machine as claimed in claim 9, wherein the axis is at the leading edge of its flap, considered in relation to the direction or carousel rotation.

11. A machine as claimed in claim 8, 9 or 10 wherein each flap comprises a pair of co-planar portions with an integral channel portion between them, the channel lying below the co-planar portions to form a rail engaging part.

12. A machine as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a splitter assembly is arranged at the dispensing station and comprises a pair of vertically movable splitters one within and one without the path of cup travel and adapted to perform cup-splitting movement as desired.

13. A vending machine substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.