JP2002216228A - Vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce cost and trouble of drive means in a vending machine for cigarettes by increasing the housing number of cigarettes and decreasing the number of the drive means of a discharge device for discharging cigarettes. SOLUTION: This vending machine is provided with a plurality of stages of commodity housing parts 8 for stacking and ho using cigarettes 1 in the vertical direction, and the discharge device 18 having a pusher 19 for pressing the cigarette 1 and discharging it from a discharge port 9 provided on the lower end side of the commodity hosing part 8, and the drive means 21 for driving the pusher 19. The discharge device 18 is vertically movably supported to discharge the cigarettes 1 with the commodity housing parts 8 by use of one discharge device 18.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vending machine configured to discharge merchandise such as cigarettes stacked vertically and stored sequentially from the lowest order merchandise.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a vending machine for cigarettes,
Inside the vending machine case, there is provided a product storage unit for storing cigarettes in a vertically stacked manner. The product storage units are arranged in a plurality of rows in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 12, the product storage units are arranged in a plurality of rows vertically, as shown in FIG. In FIG. 12, a discharge port 62 for discharging the lowermost tobacco 61 is provided on the rear surface on the lower end side of each product storage section 60, and each product storage section 6
At the lower end of the pusher 6, a pusher 6 for pushing the cigarette 61 backward is provided.
And a drive motor 64 for driving the pusher 63 is provided. The tobacco 61 is stacked on the discharge device 65, and the pusher 63 discharges the tobacco 61 one by one from the lowest tobacco 61 one by one. Are sequentially discharged.

[0003]

In the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, the discharging device 65 is composed of a driving motor 64 and a pusher 63.
Is provided in the vertical direction, and when the discharge device 65 is disposed at the lower end of the product storage section 60, the number of cigarettes 61 accommodated by the space of the discharge device 65 is reduced. There is a problem of reduction. This problem is significant in the vending machine as a whole since the number of the product storage units 60 is large in a vending machine corresponding to various kinds, such as a vending machine for cigarettes 61.

[0004] In addition, for each product storage section 60, a discharge device 6 is provided.
When the number of drive motors 64 is increased, the number of drive motors 64 and the number of wirings increase, which leads to an increase in cost. In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a vending machine that can increase the amount of commodities that can be stored in a product storage unit.

[0005]

The technical means taken by the present invention to achieve the above object is to provide a product storage section for stacking and storing products in a plurality of vertical stages, and to push the product to move the product. In a vending machine provided with a pusher that discharges from a discharge port provided at a lower end side of a storage unit and a driving unit that drives the pusher, a single discharge device discharges products in a plurality of product storage units. In order to achieve this, the discharge device is movably supported.

Another technical means is to provide a pusher which pushes the product and discharges it from an outlet provided at the lower end side of the product storage portion by providing a plurality of product storage sections for stacking and storing the products in the vertical direction. And a vending machine having a discharging device having a driving means for driving the pusher, wherein the discharging device is vertically movably supported in order to discharge the products in a plurality of product storage units by one discharging device. It is characterized by. Further, another technical means includes a plurality of rows of product storage units for stacking and storing products in the left-right direction, and includes a row in which a plurality of rows of product storage units are vertically arranged in one row. In a vending machine having a pusher for pushing a product and discharging the product from a discharge port provided at a lower end side of a product storage unit and a driving unit for driving the pusher, a plurality of products are provided by one discharging device. A discharge device is supported movably in the left-right direction and the up-down direction in order to discharge the product in the product storage unit.

Another technical means is that a plurality of product storage sections for stacking and storing products are provided in the left-right direction, and a pusher for pushing the products and discharging the products from a discharge port provided at the lower end side of the product storage section. And a vending machine having a discharge device having a driving means for driving the pusher, wherein the discharge device is supported so as to be movable in the left-right direction in order to discharge products in a plurality of product storage units by one discharge device. It is characterized by. Further, another technical means includes a product storage portion for stacking and storing products, and at a lower end side of the product storage portion,
In a vending machine having a discharge port for moving a lowermost product in a horizontal direction and discharging the same, the vending machine includes a pusher for pushing the product so as to discharge the product from the discharge port, and a driving unit for driving the pusher. The discharge device is disposed on the product storage section on the side opposite to the discharge port in the horizontal direction.

Further, it is preferable that the pusher is configured to be bendable, and that the pusher is changed from a vertical direction to a horizontal direction so as to be moved in a direction for discharging the product.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 8 show an embodiment, FIG. 7 is a front view of a vending machine 2 for box-shaped products such as cigarettes 1, and FIG. 8 is a front view of the vending machine 2 in an open state. The respective schematic views are shown. The vending machine 2 includes a vending machine case 5 including a main body case 3 having an open front surface (front surface) and a door 4 for opening and closing the front surface of the main body case 3 so as to be openable and closable.

A sample display shelf 6 and the like are provided at an upper portion on the front side of the door 4, and an outlet 7 for taking out the purchased cigarette 1 is provided at a lower portion. Also, body case 3
Inside and inside the door 4, a plurality of product storage units 8 are provided in the left and right direction to store the cigarettes 1 stacked vertically. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 11 rows are arranged in the left and right direction on the body case 3 side, and 9 rows are arranged in the left and right direction on the door 4 side. The three rows on the left side of the main body case 3 are vertically provided in three levels, and the four rows in the middle part of the main body case 3 are provided in two levels in the vertical direction. For the rightmost column of
A plurality of brands of cigarettes 1 can be stored in the vertical direction, and the other rows are one product storage section 8 in the vertical direction.

FIG. 1 shows a side view of a product storage section 8 provided at the right end of the main body case 3 in which the product storage sections 8 are provided in five rows in one row in the vertical direction. Product storage section 8
The left and right sides are closed by a side wall 10 made of a plate or the like for guiding the tobacco 1 in the vertical direction, and the back side is closed by a back wall 11 made of a plate or the like for guiding the tobacco 1 in the vertical direction. At the same time, the front side is open vertically so as to store the cigarette 1 in the product storage section 8.

The product storage section 8 provided on the door 4 side
, The back side is open to accommodate the cigarette 1, and the front side is closed. The bottom of the product storage section 8 is constituted by a mounting table 12, and the cigarettes 1 are stacked and stored on the mounting table 12 (above the mounting table 12 is a storage space for the cigarette 1).
Further, an outlet 9 for discharging the cigarettes 1 stored in a stack in the product storage unit 8 is provided at the lower rear side of the product storage unit 8 (lower front side at the door 4 side), and is provided in the horizontal direction. It is formed in the shape of an opening at the back (lateral direction perpendicular to the vertical direction).

A guide member 13 for guiding the discharged cigarette 1 downward to a position corresponding to the outlet 7 is provided on the back side (the front side on the door 4 side) of the product storage section 8. A chute 14 is provided in the guide member 13 so as to correspond to each outlet 9. Note that shoot 1
A passage through which the tobacco 1 can pass is formed between the lower end of the chute 4 and the upper end of the chute 14 below the lower end. Further, the front side of the product storage unit 8 is open to accommodate the cigarette 1, but because of the open state, the stacked cigarettes 1 may collapse to the front side. .

For this reason, the vending machine 2 for cigarettes 1 is provided with a guide means on the open side of the product storage section 8. In the present embodiment, the guide means includes a linear member 15 such as a wire and a spring 1 for applying tension to the linear member 15.
6 between the vertically adjacent mounting tables 12 and between the top mounting table 12 and a wall or the like constituting the upper end side of the first-stage product storage unit 8. Have been. The front side of the product storage unit 8 (the rear side on the door 4 side),
On the side opposite to the discharge port 9 in the horizontal direction, a discharge device 18 that horizontally moves the lowest-order tobacco 1 among the stacked cigarettes 1 and discharges the tobacco 1 from the discharge port 9 is arranged.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the discharging device 18 is not disposed at the lower end side of the product storage portion 8,
By arranging it on the opposite side of the discharge port 9 in the horizontal direction, the thickness of the member constituting the bottom of the product storage section 8 (that is, the mounting table 12) can be reduced in the vertical direction, and thereby, the tobacco in the product storage section 8 can be reduced. The storage space of the cigarette 1 can be increased in the vertical direction, and the number of cigarettes 1 to be stored can be increased. As shown in FIG. 2, the discharging device 18 pushes the lowermost tobacco 1 from the front in the horizontal direction to move the tobacco 1 rearward in the horizontal direction.
, A driving means 21 such as a motor for driving the transfer body 20, and a case-like support body 22 for supporting them.
The unit is formed by incorporating the transfer body 20 and the driving means 21 into the support body 22.

The pusher 19 is formed of a bendable member (an elastic body or a plate member having a bendable structure such as a shutter used for a garage or a storage).
The cigarette 1 is pushed out by moving so as to change the direction from the vertical direction to the horizontal direction. The guide mechanism 23 for guiding the pusher 19 includes, for example,
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the guide rail 24 includes a guide rail 24 fixed to the support 22 and a slide member 25 provided on the pusher 19 and fitted to the guide rail 24.

The guide rail 24 is arranged vertically from the upper side to the lower side, and is bent rearward at the lower end side. The guide rail 24 has a guide groove 26 in the longitudinal direction. The slide member 25 is formed to have substantially the same length as the pusher 19, and is disposed between the pusher 19 and the guide rail 24. One side is fixed to the pusher 19, and the other side is a guide groove 26 of the guide rail 24. Is fitted to the longitudinal direction so as to be movable.

The slide member 25 is provided with a pusher 19.
(For example, it is formed of an elastic body, or is formed into a plurality of pieces in the longitudinal direction). In addition, the transfer body 20
The pusher 19 is constituted by a gear that meshes with an engagement portion 27 formed of a hole or a recess formed at an appropriate interval in the longitudinal direction, and is interlocked (or directly) connected to the output shaft of the drive means 21 via a transmission mechanism. ing. In the above configuration, the transfer body 20 is driven from the non-extrusion position (the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 2), which is vertically arranged on the front side (or the back side) of the product storage unit 8. 3, the pusher 19 moves downward, and the bent portion 2 on the lower end side of the guide rail 24.
After being bent at 4A, the direction is changed to the rear in the horizontal direction, and then the pusher 19 slides on the mounting table 12 and moves rearward to push out the cigarette 1.

After the tobacco 1 is pushed out, the transfer body 20 is driven to rotate in the reverse direction, and the pusher 19 returns to its original position. In addition,
The mechanism for guiding or moving the pusher 19 in a bendable manner is not limited to the above-described configuration, and a mechanism having another configuration can be adopted. In addition, the pusher 19 is formed of a rack located in the front-rear direction on the front side of the lowermost cigarette 1, and the transfer body is formed of a pinion that meshes with the rack, and the rack is rotated in the horizontal direction by rotating the pinion. By moving the cigarette 1 backward, the cigarette 1 may be discharged. However, such a structure requires a relatively large space in front of the product storage unit 8 by the length of the rack, Although the problem that the front and rear thickness of the vending machine case 5 becomes large occurs, as in the present embodiment, the pusher 19 is configured so that the direction is changed from the vertical direction to the horizontal direction. Even if the vending machine case 9 is arranged on the opposite side in the horizontal direction, the vending machine case 5 does not become so thick in the front-rear direction that the vending machine case 5 can be prevented from being enlarged.

The discharge device 18 may be provided in each of the product storage sections 8, but this has the effect that the tobacco storage space of the product storage section 8 expands in the vertical direction. Since it does not change, cost increase and the number of troubles of the driving means 21 are not improved. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the discharging device 18
The transport mechanism 28 is configured to be movable in the vertical direction, and the single discharging device 18 is configured to discharge the cigarettes 1 from a plurality (five in the example in the figure) of the product storage units 8. I have.

By allowing one discharging device 18 to discharge cigarettes 1 from a plurality of product storage sections 8,
The number of driving means 21 and the like can be reduced,
By reducing the number of troubles, the cost can be reduced, and the number of troubles of the driving means 21 can be reduced. 5 and 6 show an example of the structure of the transfer mechanism 28. FIG. 5 and 6, the transfer mechanism 28 includes a guide rail 29 that is disposed on the side of the discharge device 18 and that is disposed in the vertical direction, and an elevating body 30 that is vertically movably guided by the guide rail 29. And an elevating means 31 for elevating the elevating body 30.

The guide rails 29 are formed in a U-shaped cross section, are provided in a pair at the front and rear, and are fixed to a side wall of the main body case 3 or a support wall 32 fixed to the main body case 3 side. The elevating body 30 is provided with a rail groove 29A of the guide rail 29.
A roller 33 (or a slider or the like) that fits in the vertical direction is attached to the lifting device 30, and the discharge device 18 (support 22 of the discharging device 18) is attached to the elevating body 30. Also,
The lifting / lowering means 31 includes a pair of upper and lower pulleys 34, 35, an endless belt 36 mounted over the upper and lower pulleys 34, 35, and a driving means including a motor for driving one pulley 35 to be able to rotate forward and reverse. 37.

The lifting / lowering unit 30 is fixed to the belt 36, and the output shaft of the driving means 37 and the rotation support shaft of one of the pulleys 35 are linked and connected by a power transmission mechanism 38.
In the transfer mechanism 28 having the above-described configuration, the driving unit 37 is operated to move the belt 36 in the longitudinal direction, so that the lifting / lowering body 30 moves up and down, and accordingly, the discharging device 18 moves up and down. It has become. In the above-described configuration, in the case of the product storage units 8 in the vertical direction of the rightmost row of the main body case 3, the lower part of the sample of the display shelf 6 corresponding to any of the product storage units 8 is pushed. When the button 39 is pressed, the discharge device 18 is operated by a signal from the control unit to cause the discharging device 18 to store the tobacco 1 of the brand corresponding to the sample.
And the lowermost cigarette 1 in the product storage section 8 is pushed out by the pusher 19 and discharged.

In the example shown in the figure, for the rows of the product storage units 8 other than the five vertical product storage units 8 in the rightmost row of the main body case 3, the same discharge device as the conventional one is used. Although the one provided at the lower end side is illustrated, the discharge device 18 described above may be employed in other rows of the product storage units 8. In this case, the vertical one row is constituted by one product storage section 8 (the second to fourth from the right of the main body case 3).
For the second and door 4 side product storage sections 8), the discharge device 18 does not need to be configured to move upward.

FIGS. 9 and 10 show a transfer mechanism 28 according to another embodiment. The transfer mechanism 28 enables the discharge device 18 to be transferred not only in the vertical direction but also in the horizontal direction.
The cigarette 1 can be discharged from all the product storage sections 8 provided on the main body case 3 side. 9 and 10, the transfer mechanism 28 includes upper and lower horizontal guides 40A and 40B arranged in the left and right direction, a movable body 41 supported by the lower horizontal guide body 40B so as to be movable in the left and right directions, and A vertical guide body 42 erected on a movable body 41;
2 and an elevating body 43 supported movably in the vertical direction.

The upper and lower horizontal guides 40A and 40B are fixed to the body case 3 side, and the lower horizontal guides 40B
A horizontal screw shaft 44 having a left-right axis is supported rotatably around the axis.
A motor 45 is provided for rotating the motor 45 about an axis in the left-right direction. Further, the movable body 41 is provided with an engagement portion 46 that is screwed to the horizontal screw shaft 44, and the motor 45 rotates the horizontal screw shaft 44 forward and reverse around the axis, so that
The movable body 41 is configured to move in the left-right direction.

The lower end of the vertical guide body 42 is fixed to the movable body 41, and the upper end of the vertical guide body 42 is fitted in a guide groove 55 formed in the upper horizontal guide body 40A so as to be movable in the left-right direction. A slider is provided, and the upper part of the vertical guide body 42 is supported by the upper horizontal guide body 40A so as to be movable in the left-right direction. A vertical screw shaft 47 having a vertical axis is rotatably supported on the vertical guide body 42 around the axis, and the vertical screw shaft 47 is rotated about the vertical axis. Motor 48 is provided.

The vertical screw shaft 47 is attached to the elevating body 43.
The vertical screw shaft 47 is rotated forward and reverse around the axis by a motor 48, so that the elevating body 43 moves in the vertical direction. A discharge device 18 having the same structure as that described above is fixed to the elevating body 43. The movable body 41 is moved in the left-right direction, and the elevating body 43 is moved in the up-down direction. The discharging device 18 can be moved to a position where the cigarette 1 can be discharged from all the product storage sections 8 on the main body case 3 side.

FIG. 11 shows a transfer mechanism 28 according to another embodiment. The transfer mechanism 28 includes the discharging device 18
Can be transported in the left-right direction. For example, the cigarette 1 can be discharged from the product storage section 8 which is arranged in the left-right direction and the lower end position is set at the same height by one discharging device 18. (In the example shown in FIG. 8, all the product storage sections 8 provided on the door 4 side, or one product storage section 8
), And the tobacco 1 can be discharged from the lower product storage section 8 in a row in which a plurality of product storage sections 8 are provided in the vertical direction.)

The transfer mechanism 28 has a guide body 50 arranged in the left-right direction, and a movable body 51 supported by the guide body 50 so as to be movable in the left-right direction. A screw shaft 52 having a left-right axis is supported on the guide body 50 so as to be rotatable around the axis, and a motor 53 for rotating the screw shaft 52 about the left-right axis is provided. Have been. The movable body 51 is provided with an engagement portion 54 that is screwed to the screw shaft 52.
The movable body 51 is configured to move in the left-right direction by rotating the movable body 51 forward and backward around the axis.

A discharge device 18 having the same structure as that described above is fixed to the movable body 51. By moving the movable body 51 in the left-right direction, the discharge device 18 can be moved in the left-right direction. Thus, the discharge device 18 can be moved to a position where the cigarette 1 can be discharged from the product storage units 8 arranged side by side in the left-right direction. Further, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, for example,
The transfer mechanism 28 may be configured to move the discharge device 18 in an inclined direction in which the transfer device 28 moves to one of the up and down directions as it goes to one of the left and right directions (for example, the discharge device 18 is configured as shown in FIG. 8).
Is moved from the lower end of the uppermost product storage section 8 on the left end to the lower end of the middle product storage section 8 adjacent to the right of the storage section 8).

[0032]

According to the present invention, it is possible to discharge products from a plurality of product storage units by one discharging device, so that the number of products that can be stored in the product storage unit can be increased and the pusher can be used. The number of driving means to be driven can be reduced, whereby the cost can be reduced and trouble of the driving means can be reduced. In a vending machine provided with a product storage section for stacking and storing products, and a discharge port at the lower end side of the product storage section for horizontally moving and discharging the lowest order product, the product is discharged. By disposing a discharge device including a pusher for pushing the product to be discharged from the outlet and a driving means for driving the pusher on the product storage portion on the opposite side of the discharge port in the horizontal direction, the product storage portion is provided. The vertical thickness of the member constituting the bottom can be reduced, and the number of stored products can be increased accordingly.

In the case where the discharge device is arranged on the side opposite to the discharge port of the product storage section in the horizontal direction, if the pusher is moved only in the horizontal direction and the product is pushed out, the discharge device may have The thickness in the horizontal direction is increased, and a large horizontal space is required on the product storage section on the side opposite to the discharge port in the horizontal direction.However, the pusher is configured to be flexible, and this pusher is By changing the direction and moving the product in the direction of discharging the product, the horizontal thickness of the discharging device does not become too large, and a large horizontal space is provided on the opposite side of the discharging port in the horizontal direction. This has the effect of not being required.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD of FIG.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side sectional view of a discharge device, a product storage unit, and the like.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the discharging device.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a transfer mechanism, a discharge device, and a product storage unit.

FIG. 6 is a view taken along line CC of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a front view of the vending machine.

FIG. 8 is a view of the vending machine with the door opened, as viewed from the front side.

FIG. 9 is a front view of a transfer mechanism according to another embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a transfer mechanism according to another embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a front view of a transfer mechanism according to another embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a side view of a conventional product storage section.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cigarette (commodity) 8 Commodity storage part 9 Discharge port 18 Discharge device 19 Pusher 21 Drive means

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A pusher for vertically stacking and storing a plurality of product storage sections for storing products, and for driving the products by discharging the products from a discharge port provided at a lower end side of the product storage section. A vending machine provided with a discharge device having a driving means, wherein the discharge device is movably supported so as to discharge products in a plurality of product storage units by one discharge device. 2. A pusher for vertically stacking and storing a plurality of product storage sections for storing and storing products, and driving the pusher to discharge the products from a discharge port provided at a lower end side of the product storage section. A vending machine provided with a discharging device having a driving means, wherein the discharging device is supported so as to be vertically movable in order to discharge products in a plurality of product storage units by one discharging device. . 3. A product storage section for stacking and storing commodities is provided in a plurality of rows in the left-right direction, and a row in which a plurality of product storage sections are provided in one row in a vertical direction is provided, and the product is pushed. A vending machine having a pusher that discharges from a discharge port provided at the lower end side of the product storage unit and a driving device that drives the pusher, a vending machine having a plurality of product storage units by one discharge device. A vending machine characterized in that a discharge device is movably supported in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction in order to discharge a product. 4. A pusher which is provided with a plurality of rows of product storage sections for stacking and storing products in the left-right direction, pushes the products and discharges the products from a discharge port provided at a lower end side of the product storage section, and drives the pushers. A vending machine provided with a discharge device having a driving means, wherein the discharge device is supported so as to be movable left and right in order to discharge products in a plurality of product storage units by one discharge device. . 5. A vending machine having a commodity storage section for stacking and storing commodities, and having, at a lower end side of the commodity storage section, a discharge port for horizontally moving a lowermost commodity and discharging the same. A discharge device including a pusher for pushing the product to discharge the product from the discharge port and a driving unit for driving the pusher is arranged on the product storage unit on the side opposite to the discharge port in the horizontal direction. Vending machine. 6. The vending machine according to claim 5, wherein the vending machine is configured to change the direction of the pusher from a vertical direction to a horizontal direction and to move the pusher in a direction for discharging the product.