ITBS20130055U1 - VENDING MACHINE - Google Patents

Description

VENDING MACHINE

DESCRIPTION

Field of the found

The present invention falls within the field of automatic dispensers for products such as, for example, food items, drinks, cigarettes, etc., of the type normally used in offices, public buildings, waiting rooms, etc.

State of the art

Different types of vending machines are known. The differences between the different types largely depend on the nature of the distributed product and on the functioning of the distributors as regards the payment method made available to users.

A first distinction can be made between vending machines that dispense pre-packaged products, such as snacks, biscuits, chocolate bars, fruit juices, soft drinks, and vending machines that dispense freshly prepared products, such as coffee, tea, cappuccino, etc., starting with powdered ingredients and water.

Pre-packaged vending machines generally have

- shelves on which an operator loads the products, mostly in separate rows,

- a motorized dispensing unit that pushes or picks up a single package from a row and releases it into a compartment accessible by the user, and

- a refrigeration unit that keeps the products at the storage temperature.

Generally, vending machines for freshly prepared products have:

- containers of powdered or leafy products, such as coffee or tea,

- a dispensing unit, which in turn comprises an infusion chamber, means for feeding water to the infusion chamber, a boiler to heat the water, motorized means or means that use gravity to take predefined quantities of powder product and feeding it to the brewing chamber, and a unit that prepares a container, for example a glass, in correspondence with a dispensing compartment accessible to the user and configured to intercept the flow of product leaving the brewing chamber and fill the container .

It is important to note that the electronic components of vending machines are common to both types and typically include, combined in a substantially modular configuration:

a user interface with numeric or alphanumeric keypad, a push-button panel, or with a touchscreen, which allows the selection of the desired product, - a power supply unit,

- a payment unit which in turn includes a coin mechanism and / or a banknote or magnetic card / key reader, and

- an electronic unit for managing all the previous components according to predefined programs, e

- optionally, a remote communication interface, e

- optionally, anti-burglary security systems, which have the task of generating an alarm signal if the vending machine is subject to acts of vandalism, burglary, etc.

The coin mechanisms allow to recognize the coins inserted by the user, and to add the relative value to reach the desired sum, which constitutes the useful credit for the purchase and delivery of a product from the distributor. The coin mechanisms discriminate against non-compliant coins and can also provide for the disbursement of a change.

Similarly, the banknote readers allow to recognize the compliant banknotes inserted by the user, and eventually to dispense a change, always in banknotes.

Magnetic or chip card readers allow the reading of credit or debit cards. In this circumstance the electronic management unit is connected to a telephone line or a GSM network for access to the banking circuit, so that the transaction can be completed.

The readers of magnetic keys or keys with chips or other magnetic or chip cards, of the 'scaled' type, allow the recognition of specific keys or cards made available to users by the vending machine operator.

When present, the communication interface allows access to a GSM / GPRS network for connection to remote management centers, for sending statistics on the use of the vending machine, or notifications of breakdowns or malfunctions, etc.

All the components, interfaces and units of the vending machines are functionally connected to each other and / or to the electronic management unit. Currently, the communication protocols most used by manufacturers to allow dialogue between these components are the 'mul ti drop bus' (MDB) and 'executive' protocols because they have proved to be particularly suitable for interfacing the electronic management unit with the unit. of payment.

The MDB protocol is a standard 8-bit serial communication protocol, originally developed by the company CoinCo Ine., USA; the executive protocol is also known as 'protocol A' and was developed by Mars Electronic International MEI, USA.

In recent years, vending machines have been adapted to allow the user to use their own mobile electronic device to complete the payment, such as a smartphone, tablet, etc.

For example, the US company LikeUs Network provides a communication interface that can be associated with the electronic management unit of the vending machines, to allow wireless communication between the distributor and external payment companies such as PayPal, Google Wallet, etc. .. This solution allows customers to choose the desired product from those available in the distributor, and use their mobile device to access the current account with these companies and approve the payment of the price indicated by the distributor for the chosen product. The transaction is completed online and confirmed by the electronic management unit, and the distributor dispenses the product.

The Italian company GPD S.r.l. sells under the trade name 'Vemoso' a software that can be installed on smartphones that uses a remote database and provides for the recognition of the vending machine by scanning a QR code printed on the vending machine itself. The software shows the user the list of products available in the distributor identified and inserted in the database; the user can choose the desired product and the transaction is completed online, with a payment system of the type described above, for example with a PayPal account. Remotely a signal is transmitted to the distributor that dispenses the product purchased by the user.

US patent 8,191,779 describes a remote control system for automatic cash-less vending machines, ie vending machines which only provide for electronic payments, and not by means of coins or banknotes. It is a system mainly oriented to the US market, where the use of credit / debit cards is widespread. The system is based on the implementation of a remote control center connected to the distributors by means of the GSM cellular telephone network.

Considering the latest updates introduced, the logic with which current vending machines are built typically provides that the electronic management unit is configured as a 'master' unit and the various units and interfaces and electronic components connected to it, and from it controlled, are configured as 'slave' units.

This solution causes inevitable drawbacks, all related to the fact that the master unit cannot manage two slave units of the same type, for example two payment units, one for coins / banknotes and the other for remote electronic payment.

In other words, vending machines are not currently able to manage orders both locally and remotely and payments both locally and remotely, in the sense that they only provide one of these methods for placing the order and paying for it.

In particular, the Vemoso system allows exclusively electronic payments and is not adaptable to the co-management of traditional payment units with banknotes, coins, cards. Therefore this system cannot be installed as a retrofit in existing vending machines. Manufacturers who choose to adopt this system are aware of the fact that their vending machines can only be cash-less.

The system provided by Like US Network provides that the user can use their smartphone to increase the credit available in the vending machine by a selected amount. The choice of the product by the user, or the order, must in any case be made through the user interface, for example a keypad or a push-button panel of the vending machine. Therefore the ordering takes place locally, and in particular it is manual by the user, and the payment is remotely, via smartphone.

Also in the solution described in US 8,191,779, the proposed system does not provide for the integration of traditional payment methods with coins, banknotes and cards with methods based on remote payments with mobile devices.

Summary of the finding

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an automatic vending machine that solves the drawbacks of traditional solutions in a simple and effective way, allowing integration between traditional payment systems based on a physical user interface and new electronic payment systems. remotely.

Therefore, in one of its first aspects, the present invention relates to an automatic distributor of pre-packaged or bulk, liquid or solid products, according to claim 1.

In particular, the vending machine comprises a payment unit, preferably with coins and / or banknotes and / or magnetic or chip cards / keys, a product dispensing unit, a user interface for choosing the product to be purchased, a communication interface with a remote server enabled for electronic payment and an electronic unit for managing the previous units and interfaces.

The logic with which the distributor is built provides that the electronic management unit is the master unit and the units and interfaces controlled by it are each a slave.

The electronic management unit comprises program means. For example, the unit is a microprocessor electronic board in which a software implemented by the manufacturer resides.

To avoid a conflict between two concurrent slave units, which would not be manageable by the master electronic unit, the latter is advantageously programmed for:

a) temporarily inhibit the use of the payment unit in the circumstance in which the user of the vending machine connects to the remote server to pay for the selected product, i.e. chooses electronic payment, or alternatively

b) notify the remote server not to accept payments for the selected product in the circumstance in which the user begins to pay for the selected product using coins and / or banknotes and / or magnetic or chip cards / keys, i.e. using the physical payment, or alternatively

c) process the information made available by the payment unit and the remote server by means of the communication interface and operate the product dispensing unit on the basis of said processing in ways that include transferring information, such as for example the residual credit present or the insertion of new credit, from the payment unit to the remote server.

The proposed solution allows to integrate once and for all the payment methods hitherto individually available in the automatic vending machines according to the known art. Manufacturers of the vending machine according to the present invention are not forced to favor one payment method to the detriment of another, with the advantage that the vending machine can be sold with the same structure both in states that prefer electronic payment, such as the USA, and in those who prefer traditional payment with coins and banknotes, such as Italy.

Preferably the user interface is of the physical, traditional type, and comprises one or more components including a touch screen, a keyboard, a push-button panel. Alternatively or in combination with these components, the user interface is of the virtual type, i.e. it is a software comprising a graphical interface that can be reached and used on a user's mobile device, for example a smartphone or tablet, or even on a fixed device, for example a user's PC.

Remote payment can be made, for example, by connecting with a mobile device (phone, tablet, computer) to the distributor manager's website and using your own account with the manager, or a credit card or PayPal account, etc., to conclude the transaction. Possibly a QR code placed on the distributor, appropriately acquired with the mobile device, is used to identify the distributor in the manager's database. As an alternative to the QR code, it is possible to use a traditional barcode, or an alphanumeric code or an NFC tag (acronym for 'near field communication').

The operation of the virtual user interface can be, for example, the following. A QR code, or a bar or alphanumeric code or an NFC tag, is associated with the vending machine and can be scanned with a smartphone; the user scans and the smartphone automatically activates the software that provides the graphic interface for choosing the product or automatically connects to the distributor manager's site, or to a remote server, on which the interface is available graphics.

Whatever the modality in which the product is selected by the user, the electronic management unit is programmed to carry out one of phase a) or phase b) or phase c) at each new request for disbursement.

The proposed solution also allows you to manage the case in which the user tries to pay part of the amount requested for the selected product with electronic payment, remotely, and part with coins and banknotes. In fact, the management unit processes the information received from the payment unit and the remote server (via the communication interface) and transfers the information from the local payment unit to the remote server, for example by updating the credit.

Therefore the electronic management unit is programmed to control the delivery of the selected product in response to the completion of the payment by the user or directly through the payment unit, or indirectly with remote payment, or with mixed payment in partly electronically, remotely, and partly via the payment unit; in the second and third circumstances the electronic management unit waits for a corresponding signal from the remote server.

In one embodiment, the communication interface is connected to a remote server for managing a network of vending machines.

In general, the remote management server and the remote payment server may or may not be the same.

The electronic management unit is preferably programmed to exchange information with the remote management server, for example information that may have a statistical value for the manager. For example, the information may include one or more of the type of product selected, the credit made available by the user through the payment unit or on the remote server, the successful purchase of the product, the successful delivery of the product, a user ID if available, the price of the product, the price of all products available in the distributor, etc.

Short list of figures

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will be better highlighted by examining the following detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment, illustrated by way of non-limiting example, with the support of the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic view of an automatic vending machine according to the present invention in a first configuration of use;

Figure 2 is a schematic view of the same automatic vending machine in a second configuration of use;

Figure 3 is a logic diagram of the structure of the vending machine shown in Figure 1;

- figure 4 is a block diagram relating to the operation of the automatic vending machine shown in figure 1;

- figure 5 is a block diagram relating to the operation of the automatic vending machine shown in figure 1.

Detailed description of the invention

With reference to Figures 1 and 2, an automatic vending machine 1 according to the present invention is shown, used for the sale of pre-packaged snacks and cans.

In the example shown in figure 1, user 3 uses his own smartphone phone 4, equipped with a camera, to acquire an image of the QR code visible from the front on the vending machine 1. Scanning the QR code activates a special software pre-installed on the smartphone that automatically makes the data connection to a remote server 2, which in turn exchanges information with the distributor 1, for example by means of a wifi or GSM connection. User 3 can select the desired product by means of a keypad 6 or, alternatively, directly with the software installed on his smartphone.

The payment of the product takes place completely electronically. User 3 actually completes a transaction on remote server 2 using his own account at the same server 2, for example an account opened by the operator of the distributor 1, or using payment systems such as PayPal or Google Wallet, or external payment systems .

Once the transaction is completed and recorded, the remote server 2 sends a corresponding message to the management unit of the distributor 1, which commands the dispensing of the product. This is made available in compartment 7 accessible to the user.

The arrows in the figure indicate that communications between user 3 and server 2 and between server 2 and distributor 1 are bi-directional.

Figure 2 shows the case in which the user makes a purchase in the traditional way using coins 5. The choice of the product takes place via the keypad 6 and the payment via the appropriate payment unit 8. The communications of vending machine 1 with the server remote 2 provide for the transmission of information relating to the purchased product and the chosen payment method, for statistical purposes or for updating the availability of the products loaded in the distributor 1.

In this same mode the user 3 can use coins 5, banknotes or cards to define a credit in the dispenser 1, without the credit being used, but only so that the credit is registered on the remote server 2 for subsequent purchases.

Figure 3 is a logic diagram showing the structure of the vending machine 1.

The vending machine has an electronic CPU management unit, typically a printed circuit board and microchip, equipped with resident software.

The CPU communicates with, and directly controls, the push-button panel, any display associated with it, the product dispensing unit, the traditional payment unit 8 with coins, tokens, banknotes, etc., the communication interface with remote server 2, a possible interface of the safety systems and auxiliary systems and the interface of the refrigeration unit.

Clearly, the technician in the field will understand that this is just an example. The components of the dispenser 1 can be different depending on whether the dispensed products are pre-packaged, as in the examples described, or in bulk, for example coffee, tea, chocolate, cappuccino, etc. freshly prepared from powdered ingredients and hot water.

All devices are electrically powered from the outside. For this purpose there is a power supply stage which can include one or more transformers, fuses, buffer batteries, etc.

The bidirectional arrows indicate that communications are being made to and from the CPU by the various units and interfaces.

In particular, the logic with which the distributor is built provides that the CPU unit is configured as a master and all the controlled units are configured as slaves. In this configuration, very common in automatic vending machines, the payment unit 8 and the communication interface with the remote server 2 are concurrent when the latter is used for electronic payment. In this circumstance, the CPU of a traditional distributor would not be able to resolve the conflict and for this reason it does not offer the possibility to choose between the two payment methods. In traditional distributors, the user has only one of the two modes available.

Figure 4 is a block diagram explaining the operation of the dispenser in detail.

The user acquires an identification data of the automatic vending machine 1 according to the present invention, for example by recognizing with his own smartphone a bar code or a QR code visible on the vending machine. The code is prepared by the operator of a network of distributors 1.

Software is installed on the user's smartphone, for example an application designed for the electronic commerce of goods and services supplied through vending machines; alternatively, the smartphone can be connected to a web application via a browser. The application interfaces with a software platform residing on a remote server 2. The user has his own access credentials to the platform; the credentials can be entered at the moment by the user or can be stored in his smartphone. In any case, the user accesses his account on the platform.

The user enters the code of the product he wishes to purchase and the software connects to the remote server 2, communicating the identification of the distributor 1 and the selected product code.

Once server 2 recognizes the product code entered by the user, the sale price of the selected product is compared with the credit available on the user's account.

If the credit is sufficient, server 2 sends a signal to the CPU unit of dispenser 1 to confirm that the product must be dispensed. When this happens, the transaction is completed successfully and server 2 updates the remaining credit available in the user's account and all useful information is displayed on the smartphone.

If the credit is not sufficient, server 2 sends a corresponding message to the user's smartphone and invites him to increase the available credit, for example by means of an electronic transaction with a credit card or using PayPal or other popular payment systems; alternatively, the user can activate a procedure to increase the available credit by inserting coins or banknotes into the payment unit of the vending machine on which he placed the order. Once the credit has been sufficiently increased, server 2 authorizes the CPU to dispense the product.

If the user uses his own desktop PC, access to the platform is via a web browser. This alternative is convenient if you think of vending machines set up in buildings where there are offices and PC stations.

Figure 5 is a block diagram explaining how the CPU works. Once distributor 1 has been turned on and the power supply is stable, the CPU performs a system diagnosis to verify that all slave units are in order and functioning. In particular, if some component does not work, the CPU sends an information message to the remote server 2 and the message 'out of order' is shown on the display of the vending machine.

In the normal cycle of waiting for sale and management of devices, the CPU continues to control its own devices and waits for a purchase event to occur.

The purchase cases that can occur are the following.

Case 1): Server 2 sends a "product dispensing" communication to the CPU. If there are no impediments, the vending machine 1 performs the dispensing and sends the sales communication made to server 2. In the event of impediments, for example due to temperature out of control, blocking of the dispensing unit, etc., the CPU communicates to server 2 the non-delivery and declares the 'out of service' for that line of sale, or for that type of product chosen by the user. If, on the other hand, there are no impediments, during the dispensing phase the physical payment unit 8 (coin acceptor and banknote reader) is inhibited. The rehabilitation of the physical payment unit 8 will take place at the end of the delivery of the product.

Case 2): server 2 sends the machine a communication that it is not possible due to lack of credit and an invitation to the user to insert the missing credit.

Vending machine 1 shows the message "Insert euro XX.XX" on its display. Upon reaching the residual credit, the product will be disbursed and server 2 will be notified of the disbursement. In this phase the unit 8 remains enabled.

Case 3): the user can insert coins, banknotes, etc. in unit 8 of the vending machine awaiting sale and make the purchase in the traditional way.

Case 4): the user can increase his electronic credit on server 2, by selecting a special "acquire credit from vending machine" button on his smartphone in order to transfer the credit inserted in unit 8 of the vending machine to his virtual credit on server 2 .

Claims (5)

CLAIMS 1. An automatic vending machine (1) for pre-packaged or bulk, liquid or solid products, comprising a coin and / or banknote payment unit (8) and / or magnetic or chip cards / keys, a products, a user interface for choosing the product to be purchased, a communication interface with a remote server (2) enabled for electronic payment and an electronic unit (CPU) for managing the previous units and interfaces according to a master configuration slave, in which the electronic management unit (CPU) is master and the controlled units and interfaces are each a slave, in which the electronic management unit (CPU) comprises program means, characterized in that the electronic unit management (CPU) is programmed for: a) temporarily inhibit the use of the payment unit (8), or alternatively b) notify the remote server (2) not to accept payments, or alternatively c) process the information made available by the payment unit (8) and by the remote server (2) by means of the communication interface and operate the product dispensing unit on the basis of said processing in ways that include transferring information, such as for example the remaining credit or the insertion of a new credit, from the payment unit (8) to the remote server (2), depending on whether the user of the vending machine (1) decides to pay for the selected product respectively by connecting to the remote server (2), or alternatively using coins and / or banknotes and / or cards / magnetic or chip keys, or alternatively using a mixed payment method between the two previous ones. 2. Automatic vending machine (1) according to claim 1, in which the user interface is of the physical type and comprises one or more of a touch screen, a keyboard, a push-button panel (6), and / or of the virtual type or is a '' graphic interface accessible through a user's mobile device, for example a smartphone or tablet, or through a fixed user's device, for example a PC. Automatic vending machine (1) according to any one of claims 1-2, in which the electronic management unit (CPU) is programmed to execute either phase a) or phase b) or phase c) at each new request for delivery by a user. Automatic vending machine (1) according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the communication interface is connected to a remote server (2) for managing a network of vending machines, which may or may not coincide with the remote server (2) enabled for electronic payment, and the electronic management unit (CPU) is programmed to exchange information with the remote management server (2). Automatic vending machine (1) according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the electronic management unit (CPU) is programmed to control the dispensing of the selected product in response to the completion of the payment by the user directly for means of the payment unit (8) or indirectly with remote or mixed payment, and in the second and third circumstances the electronic management unit (CPU) waits for a relative signal from the remote server (2).