JP2002245538A - Cup feeder and cup type drink providing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cup feeder 16 that can reduce restrictions on other constitution. SOLUTION: Cups 15 are stored in a cup storage part 20, piling up the cups 15 in a direction intersecting a vertical direction. A cup discharging means 22 discharges the cups 15 one by one from one end in the cup piling direction of the cup storage part 20. The cup feeder 16 is arranged on the upper side of the cup type drink providing device. As a result, space below the cup feeder 16 can be freely used, and restrictions on other constitution can be reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cup supplying apparatus for storing cups in a stacked state and supplying the cups one by one, and a cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus using the cup supplying apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus for dispensing and dispensing beverages into cups, for example, Japanese Utility Model 6-4
As described in Japanese Patent No. 2311, the housing has a main body and a door that opens and closes the front surface of the main body, and the door has an outlet for taking out a cup into which the beverage has been poured, In the main body, a cup station is disposed inside the opening of the door body, and a cup supply device for storing cups at a position near the front of the main body above the cup station and supplying the cups one by one to the cup station is disposed. Behind the cup supply device, a beverage ingredient supply section for storing and supplying the beverage ingredient and a stirring and mixing section for stirring and mixing the beverage ingredient supplied from the beverage ingredient with a diluent such as hot water or water are provided. A pipe is provided to guide the beverage stirred and mixed in the stirring and mixing section from the stirring and mixing section to the cup station into the cup of the cup station.

[0003] The cup supply device stores the cups vertically stacked in a cup storage section, discharges the cups one by one from the lower part of the cup storage section, and supplies the cups to a cup station through a chute.

[0004]

However, in a conventional cup supply apparatus for storing cups in a vertically stacked manner, the cups discharged from the lower part of the cup storage section are surely connected to the cup station without being clogged in the chute. It is necessary to dispose the cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus using the cup dispensing apparatus in the cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus using the cup dispensing apparatus, in order to supply the beverage to the cup station. There is a restriction on the position and the like, and there is a problem with the restriction.

That is, since the cup supply device is disposed at a position closer to the front of the main body, the cup supply device is used for maintenance such as supply of a raw material to a beverage supply portion disposed behind the cup supply device and cleaning of the stirring and mixing section. Need to be evacuated. When retracting the cup supply device to the door side, the cup supply device cannot be fully evacuated unless the door is opened widely. If not, there is a problem that maintenance workability is poor. Moreover, since the beverage ingredient supply unit and the stirring and mixing unit are located on the back side in the main body,
There is a problem that it is difficult to perform maintenance work such as replenishment of the beverage material supply unit to the beverage material supply unit and attachment / detachment for cleaning the stirring / mixing unit.

Further, when the cup storage amount is increased, the vertical length of the cup storage section is long, the lower position of the cup storage section for discharging the cup is lowered, and accordingly the height of the cup stage needs to be lowered. If the height of the cup stage is lowered, the user must bend at the time of removing the cup, and there is a problem that it is difficult to remove the cup.

Further, since the stirring and mixing section is located at the back side of the inside of the main body, it is necessary to guide the beverage stirred and mixed in the stirring and mixing section to the front cup station by a long pipe, and the stirring and mixing section moves from the stirring and mixing section to the beverage. Is poor until the beverage does not drip from the end of the pipe after draining to the pipe is completed,
There is a problem that takes time to dispense.

[0008] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cup supply device capable of reducing restrictions on other components, and a cup-type beverage supply device using the cup supply device. And

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup supply device for accommodating cups, wherein the cup overlap direction is a direction intersecting the vertical direction of the cups. And a cup discharging means for discharging the cups one by one from one end in the cup stacking direction.

Then, the cups are stored with the cup stacking direction in which the cups are stacked in the cup storage section crossing the vertical direction, and the cup is discharged from one end of the cup storage section in the cup stacking direction by the cup discharging means. By discharging the cups one by one, if the cup supply device is arranged on the upper side of the cup-type beverage supply device using the cup supply device, for example, the space below the cup supply device can be freely used, and restrictions on other configurations are restricted. Is reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup supplying apparatus, wherein the cup discharging means comprises:
Moving means for moving the cup from the other end in the cup stacking direction of the cup stored in the cup storage portion toward the one end,
The moving means has cutting means for cutting out cups moved to one end of the cup storage portion one by one, and blowing means for blowing air to the cup cut out by the cutting means and discharging the cup.

Then, the cup discharging means moves the cup from the other end in the cup stacking direction of the cup housed in the cup housing by the moving means to one end side, and the cutting means moves the cup housing by the moving means. The cup moved to one end is cut out one by one, and air is blown and discharged to the cup cut out by the cutting means by the blowing means, so that the cup overlapping direction is directed in a direction intersecting the vertical direction. The cups are discharged one by one.

[0013] According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup-type beverage providing apparatus.
3. The housing, the cup supply device according to claim 1, which is disposed on an upper side in the housing, a cup receiving portion for receiving a cup supplied from the cup supply device, and a cup receiving portion received by the cup receiving portion. Beverage providing means for providing a beverage in the cup.

Further, by disposing the cup supply device according to the first or second aspect on the upper side in the housing, the space below the cup supply device can be freely used, and restrictions on other components are reduced.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup-type beverage providing apparatus.
4. The cup-type beverage dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the housing has a main body having an open front surface and a door body for opening and closing the front surface of the main body, and the cup storage portion of the cup supply device has a cup stacked inside the main body. It is arranged with the direction facing the front-back direction of the main body.

Further, by disposing the cup stacking direction of the cup storage portion in the main body in the front-rear direction of the main body,
Cups can be easily replenished from the front of the body with the door open.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup-type beverage providing apparatus.
5. The cup-type beverage providing device according to claim 3, wherein the beverage providing means is disposed below the cup storage portion of the cup supplying device and at a position closer to the front of the housing, and stores and supplies the beverage material. It has a supply unit.

[0018] By arranging the beverage raw material supply section for storing and supplying the beverage raw material below the cup storage section and at a position closer to the front of the housing, the supply and cleaning of the beverage raw material to the beverage raw material supply section can be performed. Maintenance becomes easier.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup-type beverage providing apparatus.
6. The cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the beverage dispensing means is arranged below the beverage ingredient supply unit and at a position closer to the front of the housing, and agitates the beverage ingredient supplied from the beverage ingredient supply unit with the diluent. It has a stirring and mixing section for mixing.

The stirring and mixing section for stirring and mixing the beverage ingredient supplied from the beverage ingredient supply section with the diluting liquid is arranged below the beverage ingredient supply section and at a position closer to the front of the housing. Maintenance such as cleaning is easy, and the stirring and mixing section is usually located close to the cup receiving section, which is located near the front of the housing to remove the cup. The piping for guiding the drink to the cup of the cup receiving section is shortened, the liquid is easily drained, and the extraction time is shortened.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cup-type beverage providing apparatus.
7. The cup-type beverage dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein a chute for guiding a cup discharged from a cup storage portion of the cup supply device to a cup receiving portion, and air is blown on the cup discharged into the chute. And a cup feeding means for feeding the cup to a cup receiving section.

Then, by blowing air to the cup discharged into the chute from the cup housing by the cup feeding means, the cup can be reliably fed to the cup receiving portion through the chute.

[0023]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, the cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus comprises:
For example, a cup-type beverage vending machine that pours out a beverage into a cup and sells it, comprising a box-shaped main body 11 having an open front, and a housing 13 having a door body 12 that opens and closes the front of the main body 11. I have.

In the main body 11, a cup supplying device 16 for supplying the cups 15 one by one, a cup receiving portion 17 for receiving the cup 15 supplied from the cup supplying device 16, and the cup receiving portion 17 receiving the cup 15 are provided. Beverage providing means 18 for providing a beverage in the cup 15 is provided.

The cup supply device 16 has a cup storage section 20 arranged on the upper side in the main body 11. The cup storage units 20 are respectively formed on substantially horizontal storage shelves 21 arranged in a plurality of stages in the vertical direction, and in a state where a plurality of cups 15 are stacked, the cup stacking direction intersects the vertical direction. So that the cup stacking direction is substantially horizontal and faces the front-back direction of the main body 11 and the bottom surface of the cup 15 faces forward.
Are stacked in a plurality of rows in the width direction of the main body 11.

A cup row 15a in which a plurality of cups 15 are stacked at one end in the left-right width direction of the cup storage section 20 of each stage, that is, the left end.
The cups 15 are set to discharge the cups 15 one by one. The cup storage section 20 of each stage is provided with a cup feeding means (not shown) for sequentially feeding the cup row 15a on the storage shelf 21 to the cup discharge position every time the cup 15 is lost at the cup discharge position.

At the cup discharge position of each cup storage section 20,
A cup discharging means 22 for discharging the cups 15 located at the front end, which is one end of the cup row 15a disposed at the cup discharging position, one by one forward is provided.

The cup discharging means 22 is provided in the cup housing 20.
Moving means 23 for moving the cup 15 from the rear side to the front side in the cup stacking direction of the cup 15 stored in the cup. The moving means 23 has a push plate 24 movably arranged in the front-rear direction at the cup discharge position, and the push plate 24 is moved in the front-rear direction by the drive of the feed motor 25.
The forward movement of 24 pushes the cup row 15a forward.

At the front end of the cup discharge position, a well-known coupling called a coupling for receiving the cup 15 moved to the front end of the cup storage section 20 by the moving means 23 and cutting out the frontmost one cup 15 when the cup is discharged. A cut-out means 26 having a configuration is provided. As shown in FIG. 2, the cutting means 26 has an annular rotating ring 27a through which the cup 15 can be inserted.
And a plurality of cutting pieces 27b that perform a cutting operation in conjunction with the rotation of the rotating ring 27a.
A plurality of cut-out pieces 27b are held through the peripheral edge of the opening of the frontmost cup 15, and when the cup is ejected, the rotating ring 27a
The rotation of releases the holding of one foremost end cup 15 while holding the cup 15 on the rear side from the foremost end with the plurality of cut-out pieces 27b, and moves the one foremost end cup 15 forward. cut.

An air blowing means 28 for blowing air to the cup 15 cut out by the cutting means 26 and discharging the air to the front is connected to the cutting means 26. This blower means 28 has a blower 29 for sending air, and the air sent from the blower 29 is guided to the cutout means 26 through the duct 30,
It is guided between the cup 15 held by the cutting means 26 and the released frontmost cup 15 through the blowing passage 31 in the cutting means 26, and the frontmost cup 15 is discharged forward by air pressure. Is done. This blowing means 28 is provided in each cup storage section 20.
Are shared by the respective cup discharge means 22.

At the front position and the left position in the main body 11, the cups 15 discharged forward by the respective cup discharging means 22 from the front end of the cup discharging position of each cup storage section 20 are guided to the cup receiving section 17. A chute 32 is provided. The chute 32 is formed with an inlet portion 33 for receiving the cup 15 discharged forward from the cutting means 26, and a direction changing portion 34 for changing the direction of the cup 15 received by the inlet portion 33 so that the bottom surface thereof faces downward. A chute 35 is formed to guide the cup 15 changed in direction by the direction changing section 34 to the cup receiving section 17 below.

The entrance portion 33 of the chute 32 and the direction changing portion 34
Is blown into the cup 15 discharged from the cup storage section 20 into the chute 32, and the cup 15 is
A cup feeding means 36 for taking in the inside, changing the direction, and sending it to the cup receiving section 17 is connected. The cup feeding means 36 has the same configuration as the blowing means 28, and has a duct
Air is guided into the chute 32 through a seat-side duct 37 branched from 30.

The cup receiving section 17 has a cup stage 40 on which the cup 15 guided by the chute 32 is placed. Above the cup stage 40, the cup receiving section 17 receives both sides of the cup 15 guided by the chute 32 and receives the cup. A catch 41 for guiding the stage 40 is provided so as to be openable and closable.

The beverage providing means 18 stores, for example, boiling water as a diluting liquid in a hot water tank and supplies a predetermined amount of hot water at the time of providing the beverage, for example, a powdered beverage raw material. A beverage ingredient supply unit 44 that feeds out and supplies a predetermined amount of beverage ingredient at the time of providing the beverage, and a beverage ingredient supply unit 44 that is disposed below the beverage ingredient supply unit 44 and
And a stirring and mixing section 45 for stirring and mixing the beverage raw material supplied from the container and the hot water supplied from the diluting liquid supply section 43. The beverage raw material supply unit 44 and the stirring and mixing unit 45 are arranged below the cup storage unit 20 of the cup supply device 16 and at a position near the front of the main body 11, and are provided in a number corresponding to the type of beverage to be provided and sold. The main body 11 is provided side by side in the left-right width direction. The beverage stirred and mixed in each stirring and mixing section 45 is poured out into the cup 15 of the cup receiving section 17 through the discharging nozzle 46.

Although not shown, the door 12 has a plurality of selection buttons for selecting the type of beverage, an operation unit for inputting money, and a cup which is positioned in front of the cup receiving unit 17 and into which the beverage is poured. An outlet for taking out 15 is provided.

The operation of providing and selling a beverage by the cup-type beverage vending machine will be described.

As shown in the timing chart of FIG.
At the point in time when more money than the amount that can be sold for beverages is inserted through the operation unit of the door body 12, the feed motor 25 is driven to move the cup 15 at the cup discharge position toward the cutting-out means 26 in front, and the blower 29 is driven to introduce air into the cutting means 26 and the chute 32.

When the selection button of the door 12 is pressed to start the selling operation, the cup discharging operation is started, and the cutting means 26 is operated to release the holding of the cup 15 at the forefront end of the cup storage unit 20. Then, the cup 15 released and held by the air guided to the cutting means 26 is discharged to the chute 32, and the cup 15 is taken into the chute 32 by the air guided to the chute 32 and changed direction, The cup 15 is fed into the cup receiving section 17 through the chute section 35 of the chute 32.

When the operation of the cutting means 26 is completed, the feed motor 25 is stopped, and after a predetermined time has passed, the blower
Stop 29.

At the same time as the selection button is pressed to start the selling operation, the beverage providing operation by the beverage providing means 18 is started. A predetermined amount of beverage material is fed from the beverage material supply unit 44 and supplied to the stirring and mixing unit 45, and a predetermined amount of hot water is supplied from the diluent supply unit 43 to the stirring and mixing unit 45. And agitate and mix, and pour out the agitated and mixed beverage
Pour into the cup 15 being supplied to the cup receiving section 17 through 46. When the dispensing is completed, the operation of the beverage providing means 18 ends.

The selling operation is controlled by control means (not shown) provided in the cup-type beverage vending machine.

As described above, according to the cup supply device 16, the cup 15 is stored in the cup storage section 20 with the cup stacking direction in which the cup 15 is stacked crossing the vertical direction. Since the cups 15 are discharged one by one by the cup discharge means 22 from one end in the cup stacking direction of 20, the cup supply device 16 is arranged on the upper side of the cup-type beverage supply device, so that the space below the cup supply device 16 can be reduced. Can be used freely and restrictions on other configurations can be reduced.

The cup discharging means 22 moves the cup 15 from the rear side to the front side in the cup stacking direction of the cup 15 housed in the cup housing part 20 by the moving means 23, and the cutting means 26
The cups 15 moved to the front side of the cup storage section 20 by the moving means 23 are cut out one by one, and air is blown to the cups 15 cut out by the cutting means 26 by the blowing means 28 to discharge the cups. The cups 15 can be reliably discharged one by one even if the cups 15 are directed in a direction intersecting the direction.

Air is blown by the cup feeding means 36 to the cup 15 discharged into the chute 32 from the cup storage section 20, so that the cup 15 is passed through the chute 32 to the cup receiving section 17.
F can be sent reliably.

In the main body 11, since the cup stacking direction of the cup accommodating portion 20 is arranged in the front-back direction of the main body 11, the door 12
The cup 15 can be easily replenished from the front of the main body 11 with the opening.

Since the beverage raw material supply unit 44 for storing and supplying the beverage raw material is disposed below the cup storage unit 20 and at a position closer to the front of the housing 13, the cup storage unit 20 is not obstructed, and Maintenance such as replenishment and cleaning of the beverage ingredients to the part 44 can be facilitated.

The stirring and mixing section 45 for stirring and mixing the beverage raw material supplied from the beverage raw material supply section 44 with the diluent is connected to the beverage raw material supply section.
Since it is arranged below 44 and at a position near the front of the casing 13, the cup storage unit 20 does not interfere, and maintenance such as cleaning of the stirring and mixing unit 45 can be easily performed.
In order to take out the beverage, the stirring and mixing section 45 can be arranged at a position close to the cup receiving section 17 located at the front position of the housing 11, and the beverage mixed and mixed by the stirring and mixing section 45 can be placed in the cup receiving section.
The pouring nozzle 46 leading to the 17 cups 15 can be shortened, the drainage is good, and the extraction time can be shortened.

The cup 15 stored in the cup storage section 20
The direction intersecting the vertical direction, which is the cup stacking direction, can be the widest below the cup supply device 16 as long as it is substantially horizontal, but it may be, for example, a diagonally downwardly descending front end side. However, the space below the cup supply device 16 can be used freely, and restrictions on other components can be reduced as compared with the case where the cup overlapping direction is the vertical direction.

The cup 15 stored in the cup storage section 20
The cup stacking direction is not limited to the front-back direction of the
It may be directed to the left and right width direction of the cup 11, in this case, if configured so that the cup stacking direction of the cup 15 can be loaded from the front of the cup storage unit 20 with the cup overlapping direction directed to the left and right width direction of the main body 11,
The loadability of the cup 15 is not impaired.

The cup discharging means 22 can reliably discharge the cups 15 one by one by using air even in a direction in which the cup overlapping direction of the cups 15 intersects the vertical direction. May be discharged.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus in which the cup receiving portion 17 is located at a fixed position. The present invention can also be applied to a cup-type beverage dispenser that moves to the station position, and the same operation and effect can be obtained.

[0053]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cup is stored with the cup stacking direction in which the cups are stacked in the cup storage section crossing the vertical direction.
Since the cups are discharged one by one from one end of the cup storage section in the cup stacking direction by the cup discharging means, if the cup supply device is arranged on the upper side of, for example, a cup-type beverage supply device using the cup supply device, the cup supply The space below the device can be freely used, and restrictions on other configurations can be reduced.

According to the cup supply device of the second aspect,
In addition to the effect of the cup supply device according to claim 1, the cup discharging means moves the cup from the other end in the cup stacking direction of the cup stored in the cup storage portion by the moving means to one end, and cuts the cup. The cup moved to one end of the cup storage portion by the moving means by the discharging means is cut out one by one, and air is blown and discharged to the cup cut out by the cutting means by the blowing means, so that the cup overlapping direction is in the vertical direction. The cups can be discharged one by one even if they face in the crossing direction.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the cup supply device according to the first or second aspect is disposed on the upper side in the housing, the space below the cup supply device can be freely used. Restrictions on other configurations can be reduced.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the third aspect, the cup stacking direction of the cup accommodating portion in the main body extends in the front-rear direction of the main body. The cup can be easily refilled from the front of the main body with the door opened because it is arranged facing.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the third aspect of the present invention, a beverage material supply unit for storing and supplying beverage ingredients is provided. Since it is arranged below the section and at a position closer to the front of the housing, maintenance such as replenishment and cleaning of the beverage ingredient supply section to the beverage ingredient supply section can be facilitated.

According to the cup-type beverage providing device of the sixth aspect, in addition to the effect of the cup-type beverage providing device of the fifth aspect, the beverage raw material supplied from the beverage raw material supply section is stirred and mixed with the diluent. Since the stirring and mixing section is arranged below the beverage material supply section and at a position near the front of the housing, maintenance such as cleaning of the stirring and mixing section can be easily performed, and usually, the front of the housing to take out the cup. The stirring and mixing section can be arranged closer to the cup receiving section located at the position, the pipe for guiding the beverage mixed and stirred by the stirring and mixing section to the cup of the cup receiving section can be shortened, the liquid drainage is good, and the extraction time is good. Can be shortened.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the third aspect of the present invention, the cup discharged from the cup housing into the chute is provided with a cup. Since the air is blown by the feeding means, the cup can be reliably fed into the cup receiving portion through the chute.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a cup supply device and a cup-type beverage providing device according to the present invention, wherein (a) is a schematic side view, and (b) is a schematic front view without a door.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a cup discharge portion of the cup supply device.

FIG. 3 is a timing chart at the time of selling the beverage.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 Main body 12 Door body 13 Housing 15 Cup 16 Cup supply device 17 Cup receiving unit 18 Beverage providing means 20 Cup storing unit 22 Cup discharging means 23 Moving means 26 Cutout means 28 Blowing means 32 Chute 36 Cup feeding means 44 Drinking material supply Part 45 Stir-mixing part

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A cup storage portion for storing cups with the cup stacking direction in which the cups are stacked crossing each other in a direction intersecting the vertical direction, and the cups are discharged one by one from one end of the cup storage portion in the cup stacking direction. A cup supply device comprising: a cup discharging means. 2. A cup discharging means for moving a cup housed in a cup housing from one end to the other end of the cup in the cup stacking direction, the moving means moving the cup to one end of the cup housing. 2. The cup supply device according to claim 1, further comprising a cutting unit for cutting out the cups to be cut one by one, and a blowing unit for blowing air to the cups cut by the cutting unit to discharge the cup. 3. A housing, a cup supply device according to claim 1 disposed on an upper side in the housing, a cup receiving portion for receiving a cup supplied from the cup supply device, and a cup reception device And a beverage providing means for providing a beverage in the cup received by the section. 4. A housing having a main body having an open front surface and a door body for opening and closing the front surface of the main body, wherein a cup storage portion of the cup supply device has a cup overlapping direction in the main body in a front-rear direction of the main body. The cup-type beverage dispensing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the apparatus is provided facing the cup. 5. The beverage supply means is provided below the cup storage portion of the cup supply device and at a position closer to the front of the housing, and includes a beverage material supply portion for storing and supplying the beverage material. The cup-type beverage providing device according to claim 3 or 4, wherein 6. The beverage providing means includes a stirring / mixing unit disposed below the beverage material supply unit and at a position near the front of the housing, and agitating and mixing the beverage material supplied from the beverage material supply unit with the diluent. The cup-type beverage providing device according to claim 5, wherein 7. A chute for guiding a cup discharged from a cup storage section of a cup supply device to a cup receiving section, and cup feeding means for blowing air to the cup discharged into the chute and feeding the cup to the cup receiving section. The cup-type beverage providing device according to any one of claims 3 to 6, further comprising: