JP2000123239A - Commodity receiving/paying-out device of automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make easily and smoothly performable a back loading work by providing a pusher or the like, which can be opened/closed between a protruding position protruded to a commodity passage and a saving position saved from the commodity passage to be opened on the side of the saving position by pressure from the back at the protruding position. SOLUTION: This device is provided with the pusher or the like, which can be opened/closed between the protruding position protruded to the commodity passage and the saving position saved from the commodity passage to be opened on the side of the saving position by the pressure from the back at the protruding position. Concerning this device, back loading is enabled in the state of housing a commodity rack inside the main body of vending machine and the state of pulling it out. At the time of performing back loading in the housing state, by manually turning a roller 18 of the commodity rack, the pusher is moved to the rear end part of the commodity passage and afterwards when a S is pushed forward from a complement port 11c of the commodity rack, a main body 22 of pusher is pushed by the commodity S and turned from the protruding position to the saving position side against the energizing force of a torsion coil spring 22d.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a so-called showcase type vending machine in which a product to be actually sold can be viewed from the front. The present invention relates to a product storage and dispensing device for a dispensing vending machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a product storage and dispensing device for a vending machine of this type, there has been known a vending machine provided with a number of product racks which are horizontally arranged in a vending machine main body and which can be pulled out forward from the vending machine main body. ing. Each merchandise rack includes a merchandise path extending in the front-rear direction and accommodating a large number of merchandise arranged side by side, and a payout mechanism called a pusher for dispensing the merchandise arranged in the merchandise path. The pusher is configured to be movable between the front and rear ends of the product passage. At the time of sale, the product is paid out from the payout at the front end of the product passage by pressing the product at the last position in the product passage forward. . The goods paid out by the pusher are conveyed to a sales outlet.

[0003] In this product storage and dispensing apparatus, during loading, the product rack is pulled out from the vending machine main body to replenish the product in the product passage. When refilling the product, the newly refilled product must be placed behind the cooled last product in order to sell the cooled (or heated) product already stored in the product aisle first. From the position to the back side, and finally stored to the storage limit. In a normal vending machine, a so-called front-loading type product storage and dispensing apparatus that loads from the front side of the vending machine body as described above is employed. This is due to the fact that vending machines are often installed with their backs close to walls or the like, and only front loading is possible.

[0004]

As described above, in the conventional merchandise storage and dispensing apparatus, a newly replenished merchandise must be stored at the back (rear side) of the merchandise passage. When there is a space in the rear, a so-called back-loading type, in which loading is performed from the back side, is more advantageous in terms of workability than a front-loading type. In recent years, showcase-type vending machines have been increasingly installed in convenience stores and unmanned stores, and in these installation locations, there is often room for space behind the vending machines. In addition, there is a demand for a back loading type product storage and dispensing apparatus. However, in the conventional merchandise storage and dispensing apparatus, when changing to the back-loading type, the pusher is arranged in the merchandise aisle. Is in the way and cannot perform the loading operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and a back loading operation is easily and smoothly performed in a merchandise storing and dispensing apparatus of a vending machine which allows a user to see merchandise to be actually sold from the front. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vending machine product storage and dispensing device which can perform the above.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vending machine product storage and dispensing apparatus, comprising: a vending machine main body having a transparent front panel; It has a product passage extending in the front-rear direction for side-by-side storage, a product rack configured to be accessible from the rear of the vending machine main body, and a product rack provided movably in the product passage in the front-rear direction, and A pusher for dispensing products stored in a product passage forward from the product passage by pushing the product forward, and can be opened and closed between a projecting position protruding into the product passage and a retracting position retracting from the product passage. A pusher that opens to the retreat position side by a pressing force from the rear when in the protruding position, urging means for urging the pusher to the protruding position side, and a pusher urged by the urging means. The to a stopper means for locking the protruding position, a support means for supporting so as not to move with respect to the pressing force of the pusher from the front in the projecting position, characterized in that it comprises a.

According to the merchandise storage and dispensing device of the vending machine, the pusher is normally locked at the projecting position by the urging force of the urging means and the stopper means. When the product is pushed forward at the time of sale, the pusher pays out the product from the product passage while being held at the protruding position by the reaction force acting rearward from the product being supported by the support means. . In order to perform loading from this state, first, the pusher is moved to the rear end of the product passage by hand, for example, and then the product is pushed forward from the rear side of the product passage in the product rack. When pressed, it opens from the projecting position to the retracted position side against the urging force of the urging means, and retracts from the product passage. As described above, the pusher can be retracted from the product passage only by pushing the product forward with the pusher moved to the rear end of the product passage.
Therefore, when performing the back loading, the loading operation can be easily and smoothly performed because the pusher does not become an obstacle to the loading operation. When the product pushed forward passes the pusher, the pusher returns to the projecting position by the urging force of the urging means. Thus, a selling operation can be performed at the time of sale.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the merchandise storage and dispensing apparatus of the first aspect, the vending machine further comprises a pusher driving means for moving the pusher to the rear end of the merchandise path. Features.

According to the merchandise storage and dispensing device of the vending machine, the pusher can be easily moved to the rear end of the merchandise passage by the pusher driving means.

[0010] The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2.
Wherein the pusher is configured to be rotatable between a protruding position and a retracted position, and the product rack is configured to be able to be pulled out rearward by a predetermined length or more. It is characterized by.

According to the merchandise storage and dispensing device of the vending machine, the product is loaded into the product passage from the rear by being pushed by the product and rotating the pusher from the protruding position to the retracted position. The need for a space for the to rotate causes a dead space between the pusher and the last stored product. therefore,
If the length of the product rack that can be pulled out from the vending machine main body is set to a predetermined length or more that allows products to be stored in this dead space from above after the product rack is pulled out,
Products can be stored in the dead space. Thereby, the product can be efficiently stored in the product path of the product rack up to the storage limit.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vending machine product storage and dispensing apparatus, comprising: a vending machine main body having a transparent front panel; and a front-back vending machine provided in the vending machine main body for storing a plurality of products arranged in the front-rear direction. A product rack that is accessible from the rear of the vending machine main body, and that can be pulled out more than a predetermined length at the rear, and that is movable in the front-rear direction within the product aisle. And a pusher for freely dispensing the product stored in the product aisle at the time of sale and pushing the product forward from the product aisle.

According to the merchandise storage and dispensing apparatus of the vending machine, when loading, first, the merchandise rack is pulled out to the rear more than a predetermined length. At this time, the predetermined length for pulling out the product rack is set to be longer than a length at which the pusher is moved to the rear end of the product passage, and the product can be stored from above at the front side of the pusher with the product rack pulled out. By doing so, products can be stored in the product path. In this way, just move the pusher to the rear end of the product passage and pull out the product rack from the vending machine body,
By preventing the pusher from hindering the loading operation, back loading can be performed easily and smoothly regardless of whether the pusher is openable or not. In this case, if the predetermined length for pulling out the product rack is set to a minimum, the vending machine can be installed in a place where the back space is narrow.

[0014]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG.
A merchandise storage and dispensing device for a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1 to 3 show a vending machine 2 in which a product storage and dispensing device 1 according to one embodiment is incorporated. The vending machine 2 stores a large number of items S such as canned beverages and PET bottled beverages in a horizontal box-shaped vending machine main body 3 in a front-rear direction, and stores the products S in a transparent sliding front surface. Door (front panel) 3
This is a so-called showcase type that can be seen through a. The vending machine 2 includes the vending machine body 3 described above,
The apparatus includes a product storage and dispensing device 1 for storing and dispensing the product S at the time of sale, and a product unloading device 4 for receiving and discharging the product S paid out from the product storage and dispensing device 1 at the time of sale.

The vending machine main body 3 is formed by assembling a plurality of outer wall panels 3b in a box shape, and has two sliding doors 3a, 3a attached to an open front surface thereof. Each sliding door 3a is normally closed and locked, and is opened as needed at the time of maintenance or the like. Also, the back side of the vending machine body 3 is
A back door (not shown) is attached to the opening 3c. The back door is configured to open and close the opening 3c by sliding in the left-right direction. The back door is normally locked with the opening 3c closed, and is opened at the time of loading the product S, as described later. Is replenished.

At the upper part of the vending machine main body 3, a cooling device 5 for cooling the product S is provided.
On the right side of a, there is provided a product outlet 6, a card insertion slot 7a into which a prepaid card is inserted, a control panel 7 to which a card reader, a ten-key type product selection button (none are shown), and the like are attached. Have been. The control panel 7 has a built-in control device including a microcomputer (not shown).

The product unloading device 4 includes a bucket 4a. The bucket 4a is provided in front of the product storage and dispensing device 1 so as to be movable in the vertical and horizontal directions. A pusher drive mechanism (not shown) is attached to the bucket 4a. At the time of sale, the control device drives the pusher 20 by the pusher drive mechanism as described later, thereby causing the product storage and payout device 1 to pay out the product S. Then, the commodity S paid out by the bucket 4a is received and transported to the commodity outlet 6.

Next, the structure of the product storage and dispensing apparatus 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, the product storage and dispensing apparatus 1 has a rack frame 1 assembled in a vending machine main body 3.
And a number of product racks 11 mounted horizontally on the rack frame 10. The rack frame 10 has vertical frame members 10a, 10a, 10a arranged at equal intervals at three places on the left and right. The upper and lower portions of these vertical frame members 10a are connected by upper and lower horizontal frame members (not shown), and a side wall panel (not shown) is attached to the vertical frame members 10a. , Two left and right product storage rooms 10b, 10b are defined. Left storage room 1
0b, the upper and lower 10-stage product racks 11 are placed in the right storage room 1
In 0b, upper and lower nine levels of product racks 11 are stored side by side. As shown in FIG. 2, these product racks 11 are stored such that their front and rear ends are flush with each other.

As shown in FIG. 4, a commodity rack 11 has a rectangular shelf plate 12 and a plurality of partition walls 13 attached to the shelf plate 12, which partition the shelf plate 12 in the left-right direction.
And A merchandise passage 11a extending in the front-rear direction is defined between each of the two partition walls 13, 13 and between the right side wall 12b of the shelf 12 and the partition wall 13. Partition wall 13
Can change the mounting position with respect to the shelf 12 in the left-right direction, thereby changing the width of the product passage 11a. The front end of the product passage 11a opens forward and the product S
A payout port 11b for paying out the product S is formed.
c is formed. That is, this product rack 11
The product S is of a back-loading type in which the product S is replenished from the rear of the product passage 11a, and the same type of product S is stored in each product passage 11a.

The shelf plate 12 is manufactured by bending a steel plate, and has a rectangular bottom wall 12a and the bottom wall 1a.
Left and right side walls 12b, 12b are respectively bent upward from the left and right ends of 2a. Left and right side walls 12
Left and right guide mechanisms (not shown) are provided on the outer surfaces of b and 12b, respectively.
Each is slidably engaged with the rack frame 10. Thereby, the product rack 11 is connected to the vending machine main body 3.
It can be pulled out almost entirely in front and behind.

A lock mechanism (not shown) is provided below the bottom wall 12a, and the commodity rack 11 is always locked to the rack frame 10 by this lock mechanism. The lock mechanism can be switched between a locked state and an unlocked state by manual operation, and the product rack 11 can be pulled out of the vending machine main body 3 by manually releasing the lock at the time of loading or the like.

At the front end of the product rack 11, a product stopper (not shown) for opening and closing the payout port 11b of the product path 11a is provided. This product stopper is provided when the product rack 11 is stored in the vending machine main body 3.
The payout port 11b is always opened and the payout port 11b is closed at the same time as the unlocking operation of the lock mechanism is performed.

As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG.
Is a box-shaped partition wall body 14 long in the front-rear direction, and front and rear adapters 1 attached to front and rear ends of the partition wall body 14.
5, 16 and a pusher 20 attached to the partition wall body 14 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction. The partition wall body 14 has the same substantially rectangular vertically long cross-sectional shape in the front-rear direction, and is manufactured by extruding an aluminum alloy.

A guide groove 14a extending in the front-rear direction is formed in the upper part of the right side surface of the partition wall main body 14. The upper and lower edges of the opening of the guide groove 14a protrude vertically in the right side surface. Upper and lower engaging projections 14b, 14b extend in parallel in the front-rear direction and in parallel with each other. A groove 14c having a rectangular cross section is formed in the center of the right side surface and extends in the front-rear direction parallel to the guide groove 14a. A timing belt 17 extending in the front-rear direction is provided in the groove 14c.
Is stored.

The front adapter 15 is a vertically long synthetic resin molded product, and is attached to the front end of the partition wall body 14. The front adapter 15 has a gear 15a made of synthetic resin.
Are provided rotatably about a horizontal axis extending in the left-right direction, and the gear 15a is formed integrally with a pulley (not shown). The pulley of the gear 15a is constituted by a toothed pulley that meshes with the teeth of the timing belt 17,
When the gear 15a is driven clockwise by the above-described pusher driving mechanism, the pulley also rotates integrally therewith, and the timing belt 17 rotates clockwise.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the rear adapter 16 is also a vertically long synthetic resin molded product, and is attached to the rear end of the partition wall main body 14. The rear adapter 16 is provided with a pulley 16a, and the pulley 16a is attached to the holder 16b so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis extending in the left-right direction. The above-described timing belt 17 is stretched between the pulley 16a and the pulley of the gear 15a. The holder 16b is urged rearward by two upper and lower coil springs 16c, 16c built in the rear adapter 16. Thus, the holder 1
6b is urged rearward by the coil spring 16c, so that the timing belt 17 is held in a stretched state. Further, a roller (pusher driving means) 18 that rotates coaxially with the pulley 16a is attached to the rear adapter 16, and the timing belt 17 can be rotated by rotating the roller 18 by hand.

On the other hand, the pusher 20 presses the stored commodities S in the commodity passage 11a forward at the time of sale and pays them out from the payout port 11b. As shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, the pusher 20 includes a support (support means) 21, a pusher body 22 attached to the support 21 and pressing the product S in the product passage 11 a, and a front and rear portion of the support 21. Front and rear 2 mounted on the upper side rotatably
And two guide rollers 23.

The support 21 is made of a rectangular metal plate, is disposed vertically along the right side of the partition wall body 14, and has a lower portion connected to a horizontal lower portion of the timing belt 17. I have. By this connection, the pusher 20 moves forward with the clockwise rotation of the timing belt 17 as described above. As shown in FIG. 8B, the partition wall main body 14 is provided on the left side of the support 21.
(Stopper means) 21 projecting into groove 14c of
a is formed.

The pusher body 22 is manufactured by processing a metal plate, and includes a pressing portion 22a formed in a vertically long rectangle for pressing the product S, and a pressing portion 22a.
a connecting portion 22 extending from the left end portion of FIG.
b. The left end of the connecting portion 22b is shown in FIG.
The support 21 is rotatable about a vertical axis between a projecting position shown in FIG. 8A and a retracted position shown by a solid line in FIG.
It is attached to the central part of.

A projection 22c is formed at the left end of the connecting portion 22b and projects into the groove 14c of the partition wall body 14. The projection 22c rotates the pusher body 22 from the retracted position to the projected position. Then, the support 21 is locked by the stopper 21a. A torsion coil spring (biasing means) 22d is provided at a connection portion between the connection portion 22b and the support 21, and the torsion coil spring 2d is provided.
By 2d, the pusher body 22 is always urged counterclockwise in FIG. By this urging force, the pusher main body 22 has its projection 22 c
In the state locked by 1a, it is always held at the protruding position. When the pusher body 22 is at this protruding position,
The partition wall stands upright and is perpendicular to the partition wall body 14.

The front and rear guide rollers 23 are respectively attached to the support 21 so as to be rotatable about a horizontal axis extending in the left-right direction. These guide rollers 2
The reference numerals 3 and 23 are provided close to the left surface of the support 21 so that their rotation axes are horizontally aligned with each other. At the center of the outer peripheral surface of each guide roller 23, a U-shaped groove 23a is formed over the entire periphery. This U-shaped groove 23a
Are engaged with the upper and lower engaging projections 14b, 14b of the guide groove 14a of the partition wall main body 14 described above.
3 is accommodated in the guide groove 14a. As a result, the guide roller 23 is disengaged from the engagement protrusions 14b and 14
b, and can roll in the front-rear direction.

The pusher 20 is constructed as described above. When the product is sold, the pusher 20 has a bucket 4a.
The pusher drive mechanism drives the gear 15a to rotate the timing belt 17 clockwise in FIG. 7, whereby the pusher 20 moves forward and pays out the product S in the product passage 11a from the payout port 11b forward. .

With respect to the operation of the commodity storage and dispensing apparatus 1 configured as described above, first, the operation of dispensing the commodity S from the commodity passage 11a will be described. At the time of selling standby, the pusher body 22 of the pusher 20 is in the protruding position and is in contact with the product S from the rear as shown in FIG.
Then, at the time of sale, when the product purchaser inserts the prepaid card into the card insertion slot 7a, selects the product S and presses the product selection button, the control device determines the selected product S and drives the product unloading device 4. Thereby, the bucket 4a is
The product is moved to a position facing the payout opening 11b of the product passage 11a storing the selected product S, and stopped at that position.

Next, the pusher drive mechanism is driven, and the gear 1
By rotating 5a clockwise, the timing belt 17 is rotated clockwise. With the rotation of the timing belt 17, the pusher 20 moves forward,
The products S arranged in the product path 11a are pressed forward. At this time, the protrusion 22c of the pusher body 22 is
By being locked to the first stopper 21a, the pusher body 22 supports the reaction force received from the product S.
1 and presses the product S forward in an upright posture. As a result, the product S is paid out from the payout port 11b of the product passage 11a into the bucket 4a. Bucket 4
a, after receiving the paid-out goods S, moves to the goods outlet 6, and pays out the goods S into the goods outlet 6,
The selling operation ends.

When the selling operation is performed as described above and the number of the products S in the product passage 11a decreases, the back loading is performed. In the commodity storing and dispensing apparatus 1, it is possible to perform backloading in a storage state where the commodity rack 11 is stored in the vending machine main body 3 and in a withdrawn state where the merchandise rack 11 is pulled out from the vending machine main body 3. The back loading in the stored state will be described. First, the back door is unlocked and slid so that the opening 3c on the back side of the vending machine main body 3 is opened. Next, the pusher 20 is moved to the rear end of the product passage 11a by manually rotating the roller 18 counterclockwise in FIG. In this case, since the timing belt 17 is stretched between the pulley 16a and the pulley of the gear 15a, the pusher 20 can be easily moved rearward only by turning the roller 18 with a small force.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 8 (b), the product S is pushed forward from the refill port 11c of the product passage 11a.
At this time, the pusher body 22 at the projecting position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG.
While resisting the urging force of d, it turns to the retreat position side shown by the solid line in FIG. And the product S is the pusher body 2
When the pusher body 22 moves forward from the position 2, the pusher body 22 rotates counterclockwise and returns to the protruding position. At the time of this return, the protrusion 22c of the pusher main body 22 is locked by the stopper 21a of the support 21, so that the pusher main body 22 is held at the projecting position. By repeating the above-described operation of pushing the product S, the refill product S can be stored almost completely in the product path 11a. Thereafter, the pusher 20 is moved forward to move the product S at the last position.
Contact. Further, the back door is slid to close the opening 3c on the back side of the vending machine main body 3, and the back door is locked. Thus, the loading operation is completed.

As described above, the refill port 1 of the product passage 11a
When the product S is pushed forward from 1c, the pusher main body 22 needs a space for rotating between the protruding position and the retracted position, as shown in FIG. A dead space is generated between the replenishment product S at the position and the pusher main body 22. In this case, depending on the size of the product S, the product S may be able to be stored in the dead space from above, and when storing the product S in the dead space, the product rack 11 may be pulled out backward and may be back-loaded. I do. First, the lock of the product rack 11 is released by manually operating the lock mechanism. As a result, the product rack 11 can be pulled out, so that the product rack 11 is pulled out more backward than a length that can store the product S in the dead space of the product path 11a. In this case, since the product stopper closes the payout port 11b of the product passage 11a at the same time as the unlocking of the product rack 11, even if the product rack 11 is pulled out, the payout port 1 is closed.
The product S does not fall off from 1b. Next, the refill product S is stored in the dead space in the product passage 11a from above, the product rack 11 is returned into the vending machine main body 3, and the product rack 11 is locked to the rack frame 10. Further, the back door is slid so that the vending machine body 3
The opening 3c on the back side of is closed. Thus, the loading operation is completed.

As described in detail above, according to the commodity storage and dispensing apparatus 1 of the present invention, the storage state of the commodity rack 11 stored in the vending machine main body 3 and the withdrawn state of the vending machine main body 3 drawn out. Can be used for back loading. When the back loading is performed in the stored state, the pusher 20 is moved to the rear end of the product passage 11a by rotating the roller 18 of the product rack 11 by hand.
When the product S is pushed forward from the replenishing port 11c of the product passage 11a, the pusher body 22 is pushed by the product S, and rotates from the projecting position to the retracted position while resisting the urging force of the torsion coil spring 22d. As described above, the pusher body 22 can be retracted from the product passage 11a only by pushing the product S forward, so that the pusher 20 does not become an obstacle to the loading operation, and thus the backloading can be performed easily and smoothly. Can be.

Further, the pusher 20 can be easily moved to the rear end of the product passage 11a simply by turning the roller 18 by hand. In addition to this, at the time of loading, the product S is placed between the stored product S at the last position and the pusher body 22.
Even if there is a dead space large enough to accommodate
The product S can be stored in the dead space in a pulled-out state in which the product rack 11 is pulled out backward by a length that can be stored in the dead space, and the storage efficiency can be improved. Of course, if there is room in the back space of the vending machine 2, it is also possible to store the product S by pulling out the product rack 11 greatly backwards from the beginning. Furthermore, since the product rack 11 can be pulled out forward,
Front loading can be performed if necessary.

In the above embodiment, the pusher 20 is rotated between the projecting position and the retracted position. However, the present invention is not limited to this. You may comprise so that it may move in the front-back direction in the goods path 11a as it is. Further, the pusher main body 22 is configured to rotate between the projecting position and the retracted position around the vertical axis, but is not limited to this, and may be configured to rotate around an obliquely rotating axis. Any configuration is possible as long as it can be opened and closed between a protruding position protruding into the passage 11a and a retreat position retracting from the product passage 11a. Further, the description has been given of the case where the product rack 11 is stored horizontally in the vending machine main body 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the product rack 11 is stored in the vending machine main body 3 in a front-down or back-down posture. Is also good.

[0041]

As described above, according to the present invention, a back loading operation can be easily and smoothly performed in a merchandise storing and dispensing apparatus of a vending machine which allows a user to see merchandise to be actually sold from the front. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an external appearance of a vending machine to which a product storage and dispensing device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the vending machine.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the merchandise storage and dispensing apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a product rack.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a partition wall.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the pusher.

FIG. 7 is a side perspective view of the pusher.

FIGS. 8A and 8B show the case where the pusher is in the protruding position and FIG.
It is a top view showing each case where it has rotated from the protruding position to the retracted position.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Commodity storage and dispensing apparatus 2 Vending machine 3 Vending machine main body 3a Sliding door (front panel) 11 Commodity rack 11a Commodity passage 18 Roller (pusher driving means) 20 Pusher 21 Support (support means) 21a Stopper (stopper means) 22d Torsion coil Spring (biasing means) S Product

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A vending machine main body having a transparent front panel, and a merchandise passage provided in the vending machine main body and extending in a front-rear direction for storing a plurality of products arranged in the front-rear direction. A product rack configured to be accessible from the rear of the vending machine main body, and provided in the product passage so as to be movable in the front-rear direction, and at the time of sale, pushing a product stored in the product passage forward. A pusher for dispensing from the product passage, configured to be openable and closable between a projecting position projecting into the product passage and a retreat position retracting from the product passage, and when in the projecting position, A pusher that opens to the retreat position side by a pressing force from the rear, an urging unit that urges the pusher to the projecting position side, and a pusher that is urged by the urging unit to the projecting position. And a support means for supporting the pusher at the protruding position so as not to move in response to a pressing force from the front. apparatus. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a pusher driving means for moving the pusher to a rear end of the product path. 3. The pusher is rotatable between the projecting position and the retracted position, and the product rack is
The merchandise storage and dispensing device of a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the merchandise storage and dispensing device is configured to be able to be pulled out rearward by a predetermined length or more. 4. A vending machine main body having a transparent front panel, and a merchandise passage provided in the vending machine main body and extending in the front-rear direction for storing a plurality of products arranged in the front-rear direction. A product rack that is accessible from the rear of the vending machine main body and that is configured to be able to be pulled out rearward by a predetermined length or more, and that the product rack is movably provided in the product path in the front-rear direction, A product storage and dispensing device for a vending machine, comprising: a pusher for discharging a product stored in a passage from the product passage by pushing the product forward.