JP2008134994A - Commodity storage apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To ensure visibility of commodities stored in a cabinet regardless of an installation environment. <P>SOLUTION: In an automatic vending machine having a glass door 40 arranged so as to cover the front opening 10a of a body cabinet 10 to allow commodities stored in the body cabinet 10 to be seen from the outside, the glass door 40 is provided with two glass plates 41, 42 and constituted so that each of these glass plates 41, 42 has a cylindrical curved shape projected to the outside. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement of a product storage device that has a translucent member that is arranged in a manner to cover a front opening of a main body cabinet and visually recognizes a product stored inside the main body cabinet.

  Some vending machines are configured so that a front surface of a main body cabinet storing products is covered with a light-transmitting member such as a glass plate. With this type of vending machine, products can be seen directly from the outside, so users can be more motivated to purchase and promote sales compared to vending machines that simply display product names and image images. You can expect.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-96446

  By the way, in the above-described vending machine, for example, when installed in an environment where there is a lot of external light, the external light is reflected by the translucent member arranged on the front surface, and the visibility of internal products may not be sufficiently secured. is there. Under such circumstances, it is no longer easy for the user to select a product, and there is a risk that the sales of the product will be greatly affected. The above-mentioned problems related to the visibility of internal products are not unique to vending machines, and may occur in common in general product storage devices in which the front surface of the main body cabinet storing products is covered with a translucent member. It is.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a product storage device that can ensure the visibility of a product stored inside regardless of the installation environment.

  In order to achieve the above object, a product storage device according to claim 1 of the present invention is provided with a translucent member that is disposed in a manner covering the front opening of the main body cabinet and visually recognizes the product stored inside the main body cabinet. In the commodity storage device, the front surface of the translucent member is configured to have a curved shape that protrudes outward.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product storage device according to the first aspect, wherein the translucent member includes two transparent plates, and each of the transparent plates is disposed outward. It is characterized by having a curved surface shape that is convex toward the surface.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product storage device according to the first aspect, wherein the translucent member includes two transparent plates, and is disposed on the outer side. Is formed into a flat plate shape, while the transparent plate disposed on the inner side is formed into a flat plate shape.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product storage device according to the first aspect, wherein the translucent member is convex in a columnar shape centering on an axis along the vertical direction. And

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product storage device according to the first aspect, wherein the light-transmitting member includes a transparent plate, and the transparent plate is formed of a synthetic resin material. It is characterized by being.

  According to the present invention, since the front surface of the translucent member is configured to have a curved surface that is convex outward, even when installed in an environment with a lot of external light, Therefore, the visibility of the product stored inside can be ensured.

  Exemplary embodiments of a product storage device according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG.1 and FIG.2 shows the goods storage apparatus which is embodiment of this invention. The product storage device illustrated here is configured as a vending machine that pays out a product when predetermined deposit conditions such as the insertion of money are satisfied, and includes a main body cabinet 10.

  The main body cabinet 10 is configured in a box shape having a front surface opened by combining a plurality of wall plates, and by placing a heat insulating material on each wall plate, a product storage space 11 having a heat insulating function therein. Is defined. Although not shown in the figure, the main body cabinet 10 exemplified in the present embodiment stores a beverage filled in a container, such as a canned beverage, a beverage in a plastic bottle, or a packed beverage, in a cooled or heated state. To do.

  Inside the main body cabinet 10, a plurality of storage racks 20 are provided, and a bucket 30 is provided at a position in front of the storage rack 20. Each stage of the storage rack 20 is provided with a plurality of rows of product storage areas 21 for storing a plurality of products along the front-rear direction. Although not clearly shown in the figure, each product storage area 21 is provided with a conveyor for transporting products toward the front, while at each front end, a regulation plate 22 for regulating the delivery of the products. Is arranged. The bucket 30 is for transporting the goods delivered from the front end of the storage rack 20 to the product outlet 12, and is arranged so as to be movable in the vertical and horizontal directions by a transport mechanism (not shown). The product storage area 21 can be moved to the front area.

  On the other hand, a glass door (translucent member) 40 is provided on the front surface of the main body cabinet 10 so as to cover the opening 10a. As shown in FIG. 3, the glass door 40 is configured by supporting two front and rear glass plates (transparent plates) 41 and 42 on a door frame 43. It is hinged to the side edge, and the opening 10a of the main body cabinet 10 can be opened and closed.

  As is apparent from FIG. 3, in the glass door 40 applied to the vending machine of this embodiment, the two glass plates 41 and 42 are each configured in a curved shape that is convex outward. . More specifically, each of the two glass plates 41 and 42 has a heat insulating function called heat insulating glass, and has a cylindrical shape centered on a common axis O extending along the vertical direction. And the door frame 43 is supported in a state in which the heat insulating space 44 is secured between them.

  1 is a coin slot for inserting coins, 14 is a banknote slot for inserting banknotes, 15 is a coin return slot for returning coins, and 16 is a product. This is a product selection button for making a selection.

  In the vending machine configured as described above, the product stored in the main body cabinet 10 can be viewed from the outside through the glass plates 41 and 42 of the glass door 40. Therefore, compared with the vending machine that simply displays the product name and image, the user's willingness to purchase can be increased and the sales of the product can be expected. In addition, if a product is selected by operating the product selection button 16 after depositing money, the bucket 30 moves to the product storage area 21 that stores the selected product, and the product in the product storage area 21 is transferred to the bucket 30. And the step of transporting the bucket 30 carrying the product to the product outlet 12 can be visually recognized from the outside through the glass plates 41 and 42 of the glass door 40, respectively. It becomes like this.

  Furthermore, since the front surface of the glass door 40 has a curved shape that is convex outward, it is installed in an environment with a lot of external light, for example, outdoors or in a place where there is a lot of illumination indoors. Even in this case, the area reflected with respect to the incidence of external light is reduced. Accordingly, it is possible to ensure the visibility of the product stored in the main body cabinet 10, and there is no possibility of causing a problem such as difficulty in selecting the product when the product selection button 16 is operated.

  In addition, the vending machine configured in a curved shape that is convex with the front surface of the glass door 40 facing outwards not only improves the design as compared to the flat configuration of the front surface of the glass door 40, This is also advantageous in terms of strength. Furthermore, since the front surface of the glass door 40 is configured in a cylindrical shape with an axis O extending in the vertical direction as an axis, the appearance of the reflected user appears to be thin and attracts the user's attention. You can also expect an increase in the rate of attracting customers.

  In the above-described embodiment, the glass door 40 including the two glass plates 41 and 42 is illustrated, but the two glass plates 41 and 42 are not necessarily provided. In the embodiment described above when the glass door 40 having two glass plates 41 and 42 is applied, each of the glass doors 41 and 42 is configured in a curved surface shape that is convex outward. As shown in the figure, only the glass plate 141 located on the outermost side in the glass door 140 is configured in a curved shape that is convex outward, while the glass plate 142 positioned on the inner side is configured in a flat plate shape. Even if each is held on the door frame 143, the same effect can be obtained. Moreover, according to the glass door 140 of the first modification shown in FIG. 4, it is defined between the two glass doors 141 and 142 without changing the external dimensions as compared with the glass door 40 of FIG. 3. It is possible to increase the heat insulating space 144 to be improved, and the heat insulating function of the main body cabinet 10 can be improved.

  FIG. 5 shows a second modification of the commodity storage device described above. The product storage device of the second modification is configured as a vending machine as in the above-described embodiment, and the configuration of the main body cabinet to which the translucent member and the translucent member are applied is different. That is, the inner cabinet 250 is provided in the main body cabinet 10 of the second modification. Note that in the second modification, the same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as those in the embodiment, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.

  The inner door 250 is provided so as to cover the opening 10 a of the main body cabinet 10, and is configured by supporting a glass plate 251 on the inner door frame 255 as shown in FIG. 5. The glass plate 251 is a flat plate material having a heat insulating function called heat insulating glass, and is supported by the inner door frame 255. The inner door frame 255 is hinged to one side edge of the main body cabinet 10 via one side edge. That is, the inner door 250 can open and close the opening 10 a of the main body cabinet 10. Although not clearly shown in the figure, a gasket is provided in a portion of the inner door 250 that contacts the main body cabinet 10 when the opening 10a of the main body cabinet 10 is closed. By properly deforming the gasket between the inner door 250 and the main body cabinet 10, the sealing property of the commodity storage space 11 is secured.

  The outer door 240 (translucent member) is provided so as to cover the inner door 250. As shown in FIG. 5, the lighting plate 241 (transparent plate) is supported by the outer door frame 245, and is configured. is there. The lighting plate 241 is a flat plate material obtained by molding a synthetic resin material such as polycarbonate or acrylic resin, and is supported by the outer door frame 245. The outer door frame 245 is hinged to one side edge of the main body cabinet 10 via one side edge. That is, the outer door 240 can be opened and closed in a mode that covers the inner door 250 and a mode that opens.

  As apparent from FIG. 6, in the outer door 240 of the second modification, the upper, lower, left, and right edges of the electric lighting plate 241, which is a flat plate material molded from a synthetic resin material, are appropriately bent to the outer door frame 245. However, the electric lighting plate 241 is formed in a curved shape that protrudes outward by being fitted and held.

  In the vending machine of the second modification configured as described above, the inside can be visually recognized through the electric lighting plate 241 of the outer door 240 covering the opening 10a of the main body cabinet 10. Further, in the vending machine according to the second modification, an inner door 250 is provided inside the outer door 240, and a product stored inside the main body cabinet 10 is visually recognized through the glass plate 251 of the inner door 250. be able to. Therefore, compared with the vending machine that simply displays the product name and image, the user's willingness to purchase can be increased and the sales of the product can be expected. In addition, if a product is selected by operating the product selection button 16 after depositing money, the bucket 30 moves to the product storage area 21 that stores the selected product, and the product in the product storage area 21 is transferred to the bucket 30. And the step of transporting the bucket 30 carrying the product to the product outlet 12 can be visually recognized from the outside through the electric lighting plate 241 of the outer door 240, respectively, so that the user's willingness to purchase can be further enhanced. become.

  Furthermore, since the front surface of the outer door 240 is formed in a curved shape that protrudes outward, it is installed in an environment with a lot of external light, for example, outdoors or in a place where there is a lot of illumination indoors. Even in this case, the area reflected with respect to the incidence of external light is reduced. Accordingly, it is possible to ensure the visibility of the product stored in the main body cabinet 10, and there is no possibility of causing a problem such as difficulty in selecting the product when the product selection button 16 is operated.

  In addition, the vending machine configured in a curved shape that protrudes outwardly from the front surface of the outer door 240 not only has improved design compared to a flat front surface of the outer door 240, This is also advantageous in terms of strength.

  Furthermore, in the second modification, the outer door 240 is formed by molding a synthetic resin material such as polycarbonate or acrylic resin on the lighting plate 241. Therefore, the electric lighting plate 241 can be made cheaper than when the electric lighting plate 241 has a heat insulating function called heat insulating glass.

  Moreover, in the second modification, the upper, lower, left, and right edges of the electric door plate 241, which is a flat plate material obtained by molding a synthetic resin material in the outer door 240, are fitted and held while appropriately bending to the outer door frame 245. As a result, the lighting plate 241 is configured to have a curved shape that is convex outward, and thus it is not necessary to prepare the lighting plate 241 that has been molded into a curved shape in advance. Therefore, the outer door 240 can be made cheaper and the design can be improved as compared with the case where a heat insulating function called heat insulating glass is applied to the lighting plate 241. it can.

  Moreover, although the example applied to the vending machine was shown in the above-described embodiment, it is not necessarily a vending machine, and is installed in a main body cabinet such as a supermarket or a convenience store. It can also be applied as a refrigerated / frozen showcase.

1 is an external view of a vending machine as a product storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a cross-sectional top view of the vending machine shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional top view of the translucent member applied to the vending machine shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional top view which shows the modification 1 of the translucent member applied to the vending machine shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the modification 2 of the translucent member applied to the vending machine shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional plan view showing a manufacturing process of the translucent member shown in FIG. 5.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Main body cabinet 10a Front opening 11 Goods storage space 40 Glass door 41,42 Glass plate 43 Door frame 44 Thermal insulation space 140 Glass door 141 Glass plate 141, 142 Glass plate 143 Door frame 144 Thermal insulation space 240 Outer door 241 Electric lighting board 245 Outside Door frame 250 Inner door 251 Glass plate 255 Inner door frame

Claims (5)

In a product storage device having a translucent member that is arranged in a manner covering the front opening of the main body cabinet and visually recognizes the product stored inside the main body cabinet,
A product storage device characterized in that the translucent member has a curved surface that is convex outwardly.   The said translucent member is comprised including two transparent plates, These transparent plates were each comprised in the curved-surface shape which becomes convex toward the outward, The Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. Product storage device.   The translucent member is configured to include two transparent plates, and the transparent plate disposed on the outer side is configured in a curved shape, while the transparent plate disposed on the inner side is configured in a flat plate shape. The product storage device according to claim 1.   The merchandise storage device according to claim 1, wherein the translucent member is convex in a columnar shape centering on an axis along the vertical direction.   2. The product storage device according to claim 1, wherein the translucent member includes a transparent plate, and the transparent plate is formed by molding a synthetic resin material.

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