JP2003196727A - Merchandise carrying and ejecting device for automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a merchandise carrying and ejecting device for an automatic vending machine capable of selling merchandise with various diameters with small driving force even without adjusting merchandise path width and preventing merchandise jamming and the ejection of many pieces of merchandise by stably and surely holding the merchandise and accelerating the projecting speed of an upper pedal. <P>SOLUTION: This merchandise carrying and ejecting device 1 is provided with a lower pedal 5 for holding the first merchandise G from the bottom, the upper pedal 4 for holding the second merchandise, a solenoid 17 for controlling the opening/closing of the respective pedals 4 and 5, and a link member 19, can carry and eject merchandise with different diameters without changing the width of the merchandise path 10 and controls the ejection of the merchandise by alternately projecting the respective pedals 4 and 5 toward the merchandise path 10. The upper pedal 4 is provided with a torsion coil spring 8 for accelerating its projecting speed toward the merchandise path 10. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a merchandise unloading device for a vending machine capable of selling commodities of various diameters with a small driving force without adjusting the width of the merchandise passage. , For more details,
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a product discharging device for a vending machine, which can stably and surely hold a product, and can prevent the product from being jammed or multiple products by increasing a projecting speed of an upper pedal. 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are provided various types of vending machine merchandise unloading devices. These vending machine merchandise unloading devices include a lower pedal for holding a lowermost product and an upper part thereof. And an upper pedal for holding the second product from the bottom when the product is carried out. The upper pedal is disposed at the lower part of the product path, and the pedals are alternately rotated and protruded toward the product path to control the product discharge. Is known. [0003] In other words, these product carrying devices regulate the size of the product passage depending on the presence or absence of the protrusion of the pedal (the amount of protrusion is always constant). May be provided in advance in the product passage with a member that regulates the width of the passage, or
This has been dealt with by providing a dedicated product unloading device that fits the size of the product. [0004] However, as is well-known, containers for canned beverages and PET bottled beverages are distributed in various shapes and outer diameters. If the product is to be sold in the same location of the product aisle, the width of the product aisle must be adjusted according to the product diameter, which is troublesome, and depending on the shape of the container, it is not suitable for the mechanism of the product unloading device and cannot be sold. There was a problem that a case could arise. On the other hand, in order to sell products having different shapes and outer diameters without adjusting the product passage width, it is necessary to set the product passage width in advance in accordance with the product having the largest diameter. In order to sell a small-diameter product in the product path corresponding to the product, it is necessary to increase the protrusion amount of the product holding pedal described above. In order to drive the pedal against the product load applied to the pedal having the increased protrusion,
Although a driving device such as a solenoid having a large driving force should be provided, it cannot be provided because it is contrary to the recent demand for a thinner device, and there is a problem that the driving force becomes insufficient. [0007] Further, since the commodities are sequentially stacked and stored in a serpentine-type merchandise storage rack in a sideways posture, for example, a PET bottle product with a low container strength (a product with a thin container thickness) is stored. In the sales standby state, the lower the product located in the sales standby state, the larger the product load is applied, and the first product or the like from the bottom held by the lower pedal is easily crushed. As a result, the standby position in the height direction of the second product from the bottom is lower than the original position, so that the lower pedal is unlocked at the time of sale and the lower pedal is opened, and the first pedal from the bottom is opened. When the product falls, the second product from the bottom (the next sale product) falls before the upper pedal can be held (before being locked at the maximum protruding position).
At this time, since the lower pedal is also in a state before being locked, there is a problem that if a product standing or the like occurs, many products are output. In particular, in the case of a plastic bottle product having a square cross section, the diameter in the diagonal direction is the maximum diameter, and the dimensional difference from the minimum diameter portion is large, so that the product posture (the longitudinal direction of the product) is always appropriate. It is difficult to store the product in a position centered on the direction), and if the product cannot be properly positioned due to a shift in the sales timing, the upper pedal cannot be protruded in time. There was also a problem that the product could be jammed. [0010] The present invention has been made in view of the above, and it is possible to sell products of various diameters with a small driving force without adjusting the width of the product passage, and to increase the projecting speed of the upper pedal. It is an object of the present invention to provide a product unloading device for a vending machine, which can stably and surely hold the product and prevent clogging of the product and multiple products. [0011] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a product unloading device for a vending machine according to the present invention comprises:
A lower pedal rotatably supported by the opening of the substrate and holding the first product from the bottom by projecting from the opening toward the product passage; and a rotatably supported by the opening of the substrate. An upper pedal that holds the second product from the bottom by projecting from the opening to the product passage side, and link means that reciprocates by a drive device to control opening and closing of the upper pedal and the lower pedal. An automatic vending machine which is formed so that products having different diameters can be carried out without changing the product passage width, and wherein the pedals are alternately protruded toward the product passage side to control the carrying out of the product. In the commodity discharging device of the machine, the upper pedal is provided with a biasing means for increasing a projecting speed to a commodity passage side. For example, in the case of the prior art which does not include means for increasing the projecting speed of the upper pedal, the following problem has occurred. That is, in the case of a product having low strength of the container and easily crushed, the crushing lowers the height position of the second product from the bottom during standby for sale, and a product having a large corner portion of the container and the surface of the container are liable to slip. Since it is difficult to control the attitude of the product, the protruding operation of the upper pedal may be hindered by the product, so that the protruding timing of the upper pedal may be delayed. In such a case, when the lower pedal is unlocked, the second product from the bottom reaches the upper pedal before the upper pedal is locked, and the upper pedal is pushed back to the opening side, and Clogging and multiple bottles were easy to occur. On the other hand, according to the present invention, the urging means (for example, a torsion coil spring) increases the protruding speed of the upper pedal toward the product passage, so that the second product from the bottom which falls at the time of sale is dropped. Is reliably held with sufficient time by the protruding upper pedal. Therefore, it is possible to sell products of various diameters with a small driving force without adjusting the width of the product passage, stably and surely hold the products, and effectively prevent clogging and multiple occurrence of the products. . DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a vending machine product unloading device according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited by the embodiment. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of a product unloading device according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a standby state for sale.
FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are cross-sectional views of main parts showing a state in which the locked state of the lower pedal is released, FIGS. 3 and 4 are cross-sectional views of main parts showing that the upper pedal projects following the position of the product, and FIG. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which a first product is carried out and a second product from the bottom is held, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which a lower pedal has returned. An opening 3 is provided in the substrate 2 of the product unloading device 1, and the upper pedal 4 and the lower pedal 5 for controlling product unloading are provided in the opening 3 by the substrate 2 and a pair of bearing members. It is rotatably provided by pins 6 and 7 which are pivotally supported by the reference numeral 12. At the upper edge of the opening 3 of the substrate 2, there is provided a guide projection 2a for controlling the attitude of the product G by approaching it to a product exit passage plate 100 described later. The product exit passage plate 100 is arranged to face the product unloading device 1 so as to have a passage width that can accommodate a large-diameter product G. Projection portion 10 of product exit passage plate 100
Numeral 1 is provided to control the product G to a position where the product G is easily moved toward the upper pedal 4 and held. The upper pedal 4 supports the second product G from the bottom when the lower pedal 5 is closed and the first product G from the bottom is dropped and carried out. (Polyacetal). A link member 19 is provided on the board 2 so as to be reciprocally movable in order to open and close the upper pedal 4 and the lower pedal 5, and has an upper end provided with a solenoid 17 through a plunger 18.
The lower end is connected to the substrate 2 by a spring (not shown) and is urged downward. In the link member 19,
A long hole 19a and a hole 19b are provided, and the upper pedal 4
A pin 22 for opening and closing and a pin 24 for opening and closing the lower pedal 5 are inserted. Both ends of the pins 22 and 24 are slidably supported by the elongated holes 12 a and 12 b of the bearing member 12. The upper pedal 4 is urged by a torsion coil spring 8 mounted on the pin 6 to open toward the passage. The lower end of the torsion coil spring 8 is wound around the pin 7, and the upper end is in contact with the upper pedal 4. In the sales standby state, the upper pedal 4 is pushed by the torsion coil spring 8 to a position (predetermined angle) where the upper pedal 4 hits the first product G from below (see FIG. 1). This is because the product G is pressed too much against the product exit passage plate 100 side,
The angle and biasing force are set so as not to cause product clogging. The provision of such a torsion coil spring 8 in the upper pedal 4 increases the projecting speed of the upper pedal 4 and secures the projecting space of the upper pedal 4 (when the first product G from the bottom is sold, This is to prevent the sale product G from dropping before the upper pedal 4 projects and to block the projecting space of the upper pedal 4), and to surely hold the next sale product G. Also, at the time of sales standby, the upper pedal 4
Is pushed out by a predetermined angle, so that the upper pedal 4
It has been confirmed that the driving force of the solenoid 17 at the time of projecting can be reduced. The slide groove 4d of the stopper piece 4b provided on the back surface of the upper pedal 4 has a pin 22 which slides up and down when the link member 19 reciprocates up and down. The upper pedal 4 is opened and closed by contact with the upper pedal 4d. The stopper surface 4e comes into contact with the pin 22 when the upper pedal 4 is at the maximum opening degree, receives a product load applied to the upper pedal 4, and locks the position of the upper pedal 4 at the maximum opening degree. The cover 30 is provided on the base plate 2 so as to be rotatable around the upper end portion, and the lower end portion is in contact with the upper pedal 4 so that the cover 30 rotates following the operation of the upper pedal 4. It has become. In other words, the second product G from the bottom is controlled in contact with the upper pedal 4 to ensure stable product holding by the upper pedal 4. Next, the lower pedal 5 will be described. The lower pedal 5 holds the first commodity G from the bottom in the commodity passage 10 in the open state, and has a bearing base 11 made of resin (for example, polyacetal) on the back surface of the metal plate.
It is configured with. The lower pedal 5 is urged in the opening direction by a torsion coil spring (not shown) mounted on the pin 7. Deformed groove 1 provided in bearing base 11 of lower pedal 5
4 is to slide an end of a pin 25 of a rotation stopper 20 described later, and to regulate an operation range of the pin 25 so that the lower pedal 5 and the rotation stopper 20 are interlocked via the pin 25. It was formed. That is, this irregular groove 1
4 is a small-diameter groove 14a for determining the lock position of the pin 25.
And a large-diameter groove 14b that defines an operation range other than the lock position of the pin 25. Further, on the upper surface of the lower pedal 5 and on the pin 7 side, the position of the product G held by the lower pedal 5 during standby for sale is raised, and the posture of the second product G from the bottom is sold. A protruding portion 5a is provided which is controlled so as to be easily held by the upper pedal 4 at times. That is, by providing the projection 5a, the portion of the first commodity G from the bottom on the substrate 2 side is slightly lifted. As a result, the height position of the second product G from the bottom placed on the first product G from the bottom is located slightly above, so that the second product G from the bottom at the time of sale. The time required for G to fall and reach the upper pedal 4 can be made longer than when the projection 5a is not provided. Therefore, the upper pedal 4 can protrude with a margin before the second bottom commodity G comes into contact with the bottom pedal 4 and can securely hold the commodity. In addition, the protrusion 5a also functions as a rib of the lower pedal 5, and contributes to an improvement in the strength of the lower pedal 5. The reason why the projection 5a is provided on the upper surface of the lower pedal 5 and on the pin 7 side is that the posture of the product G on the lower pedal 5 is inclined toward the product exit passage plate 100, so that This is to make it easy to secure the projecting space of the pedal 4 and to surely hold the next sale product G. The top of the projection 5a is formed in a flat shape so that the product G does not bite into the projection 5a due to the product load. Next, the rotation stopper 20 will be described. The rotation stopper 20 locks the lower pedal 5 at the maximum opening so that the lower pedal 5 can receive the product load, and the lock is released when the product is sold, and the lower pedal 5 is moved into the opening 3 by the product load. By utilizing the force at the time of being pushed back and sliding the link member 19 upward via the pin 24, the solenoid 17 pulls the link member 19 to assist the driving force when the upper pedal 4 is opened. Things. The rotation stopper 20 is mounted on the bearing base 1.
Together with 1, the lower pedal 5 is formed so as to be able to be supported almost horizontally (the tip of the lower pedal 5 is slightly inclined downward) at the maximum opening degree. This is because the position of the second product G from the bottom in the height direction has a difference depending on the diameter of the stacked products G, and this difference is made as small as possible even when selling products G having different diameters. And the upper pedal 4
This is to ensure the holding in the. The lower end of the rotation stopper 20 is rotatably supported by a pin 23 held by the substrate 2 and the bearing member 12, and a torsion coil spring (not shown) mounted on the pin 23. It is urged to open. Further, a pin 25 for locking the lower pedal 5 at the maximum opening is provided at the upper end of the rotation stopper 20. Both ends of the pin 25 are arranged in the deformed groove 14 of the bearing base 11 of the lower pedal 5, and when the lower pedal 5 is locked at the maximum opening, the pin 25 is moved to the small-diameter groove 14a of the deformed groove 14. At other times, the irregular groove 1
4 are located in the large-diameter groove portion 14b. The lock groove 20c of the rotation stopper 20
Is provided to lock the rotation of the rotation stopper 20 by engaging the pin 24. When the lower pedal 5 is locked, that is, when the pin 24 is engaged with the lock groove 20c, the pin 25 is engaged with the small-diameter groove 14a. The inclined sliding surface 20 of the rotation stopper 20
“d” is formed so that the pin 24 slides when the rotation stopper 20 rotates. That is, the link member 19 is pulled by the solenoid 17 when the product is sold, and the pin 24
Is released from the lock groove 20c, the lock of the lower pedal 5 is released, and the lower pedal 5 is pushed back into the opening 3 by the product load. At this time, the rotation stopper 20 is also
Since the pin 24 is pushed back into the opening 3 around the center of rotation, the pin 24 slides upward by the inclined sliding surface 20d to move the link member 19 upward. Each of the above-mentioned members is formed and arranged so as not to interfere with the member of the counterpart when the product unloading device 1 having the same configuration is tied and installed. Next, the operation will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIGS. 7 to 11 show a case in which the lower pedal 5 is not provided with the projection 5a and the upper pedal 4 is pushed out to the product passage 10 side for comparison with the operation of the present invention shown in FIGS. 2 shows an operation example of the product unloading device 1 in which the torsion coil spring 8 is not provided. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a standby state for sale, FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing an unlocked state of a lower pedal, and FIGS. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which the upper pedal is pushed back to the opening side by the product with a quick fall timing.
It is principal part sectional drawing which shows the state which became an abnormal sale because neither the upper pedal nor the lower pedal was locked. Hereinafter, the operation examples will be described in comparison. In the sales standby state shown in FIG. 1, the upper pedal 4 is moved by the torsion coil spring 8 to the first commodity G from the bottom.
It is pushed out to the position where it comes into contact with. Also, since the projection 5a is provided on the upper surface of the lower pedal 5 and on the pin 7 side,
The posture of the product G on the lower pedal 5 is inclined toward the product exit passage plate 100, so that the projecting space of the upper pedal 4 is easily secured. Further, the upper pedal 4 easily comes into contact with the corner of the second product G from the bottom, and stable holding is possible (see FIG. 3). Next, when the solenoid 17 is energized, the solenoid 17 pulls the link member 19 via the plunger 18. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the pin 24 at the tip of the link member 19 comes off the lock groove 20 c of the rotation stopper 20. When this lock is released, the pin 25 at the upper end of the rotation stopper 20 is also disengaged from the small-diameter groove portion 14a of the irregular groove 14, and the lock of the open state of the lower pedal 5 is released, and the lower pedal 5 can be freely rotated to a predetermined rotation angle. It can rotate. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, when the lower pedal 5 is pushed back into the opening 3 by the load of the commodity G, the rotation stopper 20 also moves the opening 3 around the pin 23 as the rotation center. The pin 24 slides upward on the inclined sliding surface 20d to move the link member 19 upward, and the pin 25 moves along the inner surface of the large-diameter groove 14b. At this time, the pin 22 engaged with the sliding groove 4d of the upper pedal 4 is also pushed up, and the upper pedal 4 is opened in cooperation with the link member 55. Further, by providing the projection 5a on the lower pedal 5, the height position of the first commodity G and the second commodity G from the bottom placed thereon (see FIGS. 1 and 2). ), When this projection 5a is not provided (FIGS. 7 and 8)
Reference)). Therefore, when the lock of the lower pedal 5 is released (see FIGS. 2 and 3), the time from when the second commodity G falls from the bottom to when the lower commodity reaches the upper pedal 4 is increased. It is longer than the case where 5a is not provided (see FIGS. 8 and 9). That is, the second product G from the bottom is the upper pedal 4
Since the product reaches the holding position with a margin after the preparation for holding the product is completed, the product is reliably held. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the upper pedal 4 is pushed out toward the product passage 10 by the torsion coil spring 8 to increase the projecting speed.
Is securely held with a margin compared to the case shown in FIGS. 8 to 10 (the case where the torsion coil spring 8 for pushing out the upper pedal 4 is not provided). That is, in the cases shown in FIGS.
For products with low strength containers that are easily crushed, the height of the second product from the bottom during standby is low.
In the case of a product having a large container corner or a product having a slippery container surface, it is difficult to control the posture. Therefore, the protruding operation of the upper pedal 4 is hindered by the product G and the like. Timing may be delayed. In such a case, when the lower pedal 5 is unlocked, before the upper pedal 4 is locked by the pin 22,
The second product G from the bottom reaches the upper pedal 4,
The upper pedal 4 is pushed back to the opening 3 side, and product clogging and multiple products are likely to occur. According to the present invention, this can be reliably prevented. Then, as shown in FIGS.
Falls, and the lower pedal 5 is restored by the urging force of a not-shown torsion coil spring when the product load is not applied to the lower pedal 5. Further, in the state shown in FIG.
Is turned off, the link member 19 is pulled down by the urging force of a spring (not shown), and the lock of the upper pedal 4 by the pin 22 is released. (Refer to FIG. 1). In the illustrated example described above, a plastic bottle product having a rectangular shape is described as an example, but a product having another shape can be sold in the same manner as in the operation example. As described above, according to the merchandise unloading device 1 of the vending machine according to this embodiment, the merchandise G having various diameters can be sold with a small driving force without adjusting the width of the merchandise passage 10. By increasing the projecting speed of the upper pedal 4, the product G can be stably and reliably held, and the product G can be prevented from being clogged or multiple products are output. In the above embodiment, the torsion coil spring 8 is used as the urging means for the upper pedal 4. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other urging means may be used. As described above, according to the merchandise unloading device of the vending machine according to the present invention, the merchandise unloading device is rotatably supported by the opening of the substrate, and from the opening to the merchandise passage. A lower pedal that holds the first product from the bottom by projecting, and is rotatably supported by the opening in the board, and projects the product from the bottom to the product passage side to allow the second product from the bottom. An upper pedal to be held, and link means reciprocated by a drive unit to control opening and closing of the upper pedal and the lower pedal, so that products having different diameters can be carried out without changing the width of the product passage. In the vending machine product discharging device formed so that the pedals are alternately protruded toward the product passage to control the discharge of the product, the upper pedal increases the projecting speed toward the product passage. Since the urging means is provided, the second commodity from the bottom that falls during the sale is securely held with sufficient time by the protruding upper pedal. Therefore, it is possible to sell products of various diameters with a small driving force without adjusting the width of the product passage, stably and surely hold the products, and effectively prevent clogging and multiple outgoing of the products.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of a product unloading device according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a sales standby state. FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a main part showing a state in which a locked state of a lower pedal is released. FIG. 3 is an essential part cross-sectional view showing a state in which an upper pedal projects following a position of a product. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing how the upper pedal projects following the position of a product. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state where a first product from the bottom is carried out and a second product from the bottom is held. FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a main part showing a state in which the lower pedal has returned. FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a main part showing a sales standby state. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing the unlocked state of the lower pedal. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which the falling timing of the second product from the bottom is fast and the upper pedal is pushed back to the opening side by the product. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which the falling timing of the second product from the bottom is fast, and the upper pedal is pushed back to the opening by the product. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which both the upper pedal and the lower pedal are not locked and a sales abnormality has occurred. [Description of Signs] 1 Product unloading device 2 Substrate 2a Guide protrusion 3 Opening 4 Upper pedal 4b Stopper piece 4d Sliding groove 4e Stopper surface 5 Lower pedal 5a Projection 6, 7 Pin 8 Torsion coil spring G Product 10 Product passage DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Bearing stand 12 Bearing member 12a, 12b Long hole 14 Deformed groove 14a Small diameter groove 14b Large diameter groove 17 Solenoid 18 Plunger 19 Link member 19a Long hole 19b Hole 20 Rotation stopper 20c Lock groove 20d Inclined sliding surface 22, 23, 24 , 25 pin 30 cover 100 product exit passage plate 101 protrusion

   ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page    (72) Inventor Katsuhiko Fukuda             1-1, Tanabe-Nitta, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa             Fuji Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Naoyuki Tsuzaki             1-1, Tanabe-Nitta, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa             Fuji Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kenzo Hagino             1-1, Tanabe-Nitta, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa             Fuji Electric Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 3E046 BA03 CA11 DA01 EA08 EB02

Claims (1)

Claims: 1. An apparatus is rotatably supported by an opening of a substrate and protrudes from the opening toward a product passage.
A lower pedal that holds a second product; an upper pedal that is rotatably supported by an opening of the substrate and that holds a second product from the bottom by projecting from the opening toward the product path; Link means reciprocated by a drive device to control the opening and closing of the upper pedal and the lower pedal, and a product having different diameters can be carried out without changing the product passage width. In a product discharging device of a vending machine formed so as to alternately protrude to the product passage side to control the discharge of the product, the upper pedal includes an urging means for increasing a projecting speed to the product passage side. A product unloading device for a vending machine, characterized in that: