JP2010020396A - Vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vending machine improving sales efficiency of commodities and space efficiency. <P>SOLUTION: The vending machine includes: a commodity storage chamber 3 having a heat-insulating structure formed in a body cabinet (1); and a commodity storage rack 20 arranged inside the commodity storage chamber 3 for storing commodities in a vertically extended commodity storage passage 21 and for dispensing the commodities in the bottom position of the commodity storage passage 21 when a dispensing command is given. The machine is also provided with a commodity shelf 24 detachably arranged on the commodity storage rack 20, for dividing the commodity storage passage 21 into upper and lower areas to form storage space 25 enough to store commodities in the upper area when it is attached on the commodity storage rack 20. The commodity shelf 24 is desirably installed on the commodity storage rack 20 by entry of an engaging piece 24a formed at an edge part into an engaging hole 23 of the commodity storage rack 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement in a vending machine that stores and sells products such as paper-packed beverages.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a vending machine that stores and sells products such as paper-packed beverages, for example, a vending machine that includes a product storage and a product storage rack is known.

  A goods storage has the heat insulation structure defined in the inside of the main body cabinet which is a vending machine main body. The product storage rack is disposed inside the product storage passage, stores products in the product storage passage extending in the vertical direction, and is the lowest product in the product storage passage when a payout command is given. To pay out.

  In such a vending machine, in a normal standby state, products are stored in a stacked manner in the product storage passage, and a dispensing instruction is given to the corresponding product storage rack at the time of product sales, so that The goods at the lower level are paid out and sold (for example, see Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-129842

  By the way, in the vending machine as described above, the sales are generally different depending on the time of sale, the type of goods, and the like. For this reason, in the case of products that do not sell well, it may be possible to reduce the number of products stored in the product storage passage when the product is replenished, but this will also reduce the height level of the highest product among the stored products. There is a possibility that a dead space may exist in the upper area of the top product. Regardless of the sales, if the same number of products are replenished in each product storage passage at the time of product replenishment, products that do not perform well will be stored in the product storage rack as a result, and the product will be cooled or heated. This was wasted, and the sales efficiency of the products was not excellent.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a vending machine capable of improving the sales efficiency and the space efficiency of products.

  In order to achieve the above object, a vending machine according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a commodity container having a heat insulating structure defined in the main body of the vending machine, and disposed inside the commodity container. And a product storage rack that stores the product in a product storage passage that extends in the vertical direction and delivers the product at the bottom of the product storage passage when a payout command is given In the machine, the product storage rack is arranged in a detachable manner, and when mounted on the product storage rack, the product storage passage is partitioned vertically, and the product is simply stored in the upper area. A product shelf that defines a storage space is provided.

  The vending machine according to claim 2 of the present invention is the vending machine according to claim 1 described above, wherein the product shelf has an engagement piece formed on an edge thereof entering the engagement hole of the product storage rack. It is mounted on the commodity storage rack.

  According to the present invention, when a product shelf arranged in an attachable / detachable manner is mounted on a product storage rack, the product storage passage is divided up and down and the product is stored only in the upper area. Since the storage space is defined, products with good sales can be stored in the storage space. Accordingly, the product stored in the storage space is not offered for sale at least until the next product replenishment, but can be cooled or heated inside the product storage. Therefore, when the product is refilled next time or later, the product stored immediately in the storage space and cooled or heated to a predetermined temperature is stored in the product storage path to which the product is assigned, thereby selling the product immediately. And sales efficiency can be improved. In particular, by defining such a storage space in a product storage passage to which products that are not selling well are assigned, dead space can be eliminated and space efficiency can be improved. Therefore, it is possible to improve the sales efficiency and the space efficiency of the product.

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

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view schematically showing the internal structure of a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. The vending machine exemplified here sells products such as paper-packed beverages, and includes a main body cabinet 1 and an outer door 2.

  The main body cabinet 1 has a rectangular shape with an open front, and is formed by appropriately combining a plurality of steel plates. The outer door 2 has a size sufficient to cover the front opening of the main body cabinet 1 and is made of a solid steel material. The outer door 2 is supported on one side edge of the main body cabinet 1 in such a manner that the front opening of the main body cabinet 1 can be opened and closed. Although not clearly shown in the figure, the outer door 2 has an exhibition room on the front side for displaying sample products, a product selection button for selecting products, and a coin slot for inserting coins. And a bill insertion slot for inserting bills, a product outlet for taking out products, and a coin return port for returning coins, while controlling the operation of the vending machine on the back side There are provided a control board for performing the processing, a coin processing device for processing the money received from the coin slot, and a bill processing device for processing the money received from the bill insertion slot.

  Inside the main body cabinet 1, a product storage 3 having a heat insulating structure is provided. More specifically, the interior of the main body cabinet 1 is partitioned vertically by a heat insulating bottom wall 1a. The machine room 4 is provided on the lower side, while the product storage 3 is provided on the upper side.

  The product storage 3 is for storing a product such as a paper-packed beverage while maintaining a desired temperature state. The product storage 3 has an opening on the front surface like the main body cabinet 1 and is a heat insulating door. It can be opened and closed by a door (not shown).

  A product shooter 5 is provided in the lower part of the product storage 3. The product shooter 5 is formed so as to be gradually inclined downward from the rear side (the back side) toward the front side (the near side), and rolls the product delivered from the product storage rack 20 described later. It is for leading to the product outlet. An evaporator (cooler) 6, a heater H, and an internal fan F are provided below the product shooter 5.

  The evaporator 6 is connected to a compressor 7, a condenser 8, an expansion mechanism 9, and the like that are refrigerators disposed in the machine room 4 through a refrigerant pipe 10, and constitutes a refrigeration cycle that circulates the enclosed refrigerant. In order to cool the air passing through the surroundings, that is, the internal air (internal atmosphere) of the commodity storage 3. The heater H is for heating the ambient air, that is, the internal air of the commodity storage 3 when being in an energized state.

  The internal fan F is a circulation unit that blows the internal air cooled by the evaporator 6 and circulates it inside the commodity storage 3.

  As described above, the commodity storage 3 cools and maintains the commodity to be accommodated by cooling the internal air to a desired cooling temperature. In the example shown in the figure, one commodity storage 3 is provided inside the main body cabinet 1, but in the present invention, a plurality of commodity storages 3 may be provided inside the main body cabinet 1. . In the case where a plurality (at least two) of the product storage boxes 3 are provided in the main body cabinet 1, the products stored therein can be stored in a cooled or heated state.

  Slide means 11 is provided on the lower surface of the upper wall of such a product storage case 3. The slide means 11 includes a fixed rail portion 11a fixed to the lower surface of the upper wall of the commodity storage 3, and an intermediate rail portion 11b and a movable rail portion 11c that are slidably supported with respect to the fixed rail portion 11a. It is a thing.

  The fixed rail part 11a is provided with two or more along the left-right direction of the goods storage 3, and is extended in the aspect along the front-back direction, respectively. As shown in FIG. 2, each of the movable rail portions 11c can be slid toward the front of the fixed rail portion 11a via the intermediate rail portion 11b, and a product storage rack (product storage device) is provided on each lower surface. ) 20 is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the product storage rack 20 defines a product storage passage 21 for storing products in a stacked manner along the vertical direction, and a payout mechanism 22 is provided at the bottom. The payout mechanism 22 is a so-called bend mech, and includes a pedal 22a and an auxiliary pedal (not shown) that are swingably disposed in a manner that allows the product storage passage 21 to move forward and backward. .

  The pedal 22a is held in a state where the pedal 22a is advanced toward the product storage passage 21 in a normal state, and prevents the passage of the pedal 22a by coming into contact with the product, while retracting from the product storage passage 21 when a product delivery command is given. In this manner, the product is allowed to pass by swinging downward.

  An auxiliary pedal (not shown) protrudes in such a manner that the pedal 22a advances into the product storage passage 21 before the pedal 22a swings downward, and is positioned further by contacting the lower side of the product located second from the bottom. This prevents the product from falling.

  That is, the product storage rack 20 is a product stored in an upper region of the product storage path 21 by driving the pedal 22a and the auxiliary pedal when a payout command is given, that is, a product stored in a manner stacked in the product storage passage 21. , The product at the bottom is paid out downward. The dispensed merchandise is conveyed to the merchandise outlet through the merchandise shooter 5.

  Engagement holes 23 are formed on the front surface, rear surface, and one side surface of the product storage rack 20 at, for example, an intermediate height level. And, in any product storage rack 20, a product shelf 24 is detachably disposed in such a manner that the locking piece 24a enters the engagement hole 23.

  The merchandise shelf 24 is a flat plate member formed by processing, for example, a steel plate or the like, and locking pieces 24 a are respectively formed on the front, rear, and one side of the merchandise storage rack 20. As a result of the locking pieces 24 a entering the corresponding engagement holes 23, the product shelf 24 is mounted on the product storage rack 20. The product shelf 24 mounted on the product storage rack 20 defines a storage space 25 for partitioning the product storage passage 21 in the vertical direction and stacking and storing products in the upper area.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a characteristic control system of the vending machine. The vending machine will be further described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the vending machine includes a lower thermistor (first temperature detection means) 26, an upper thermistor (second temperature detection means) 27, and a control unit (control means) 30.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the lower thermistor 26 is disposed in the lower part of the product storage 3 and detects the temperature in the vicinity of the lowest product among the products stored in the product storage passage 21. It is.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the upper thermistor 27 is disposed in the upper part of the product storage 3 and detects the temperature in the vicinity of the product at the top of the products stored in the product storage passage 21. It is.

  The control unit 30 controls driving of the compressor 7 and the internal fan F according to the detection results of the upper thermistor 27 and the lower thermistor 26. In the present embodiment, the control unit 30 is illustrated as an independent example. However, the control unit 30 may be incorporated in a control box that comprehensively controls the operation of the vending machine. Or it may be provided separately from the control box.

  Such a control box includes a cooling control unit 31 and a circulation control unit 32. The cooling control unit 31 performs cooling control for controlling driving of the compressor 7 in accordance with a predetermined program, and includes an input processing unit 311, a comparison unit 312, and a compressor driving processing unit 313.

  The input processing unit 311 performs input processing on the lower temperature (first detected temperature) detected by the lower thermistor 26.

  The comparison unit 312 reads the first reference temperature information stored in advance in the cooling control memory 31a, the first reference temperature range included in the first reference temperature information, and the lower temperature that has been input through the input processing unit 311 Are compared. Here, the first reference temperature range is predetermined in order to adjust the cooling amount of the evaporator (cooler) 6 to a desired range, and is stored in the cooling control memory 31a as the first reference temperature information. Has been. More specifically, this first reference temperature range is used to bring a product that may be paid out at the next sales opportunity, that is, a product at the lowest level into a temperature state (appropriate temperature state) required at the time of sale. It is decided.

  The compressor drive processing unit 313 performs drive processing of the compressor 7 according to the comparison result through the comparison unit 312. Specifically, the compressor 7 is turned on / off, that is, the compressor 7 is driven or stopped.

  The circulation control unit 32 performs circulation control for controlling driving of the internal fan F according to a predetermined program, and includes an input processing unit 321, a comparison unit 322, and an internal fan drive processing unit 323.

  The input processing unit 321 performs input processing on the upper temperature (second detected temperature) detected by the upper thermistor 27.

  The comparison unit 322 reads the second reference temperature information stored in advance in the circulation control memory 32a, the second reference temperature range included in the second reference temperature information, and the upper temperature that has been input through the input processing unit 321. Are compared. Here, the second reference temperature range is determined in advance in order to adjust the air flow rate of the internal fan F and adjust the circulation amount of the internal air of the product storage case 3 to a desired range. The reference temperature information is stored in the circulation control memory 32a. In addition, the second reference temperature range is generally higher than the first reference temperature range, and more specifically, a product that is unlikely to be paid out at the next sales opportunity, that is, the highest level It is determined to cool the product or the like to such an extent that the quality does not deteriorate even if it is not cooled to an appropriate temperature.

  The in-compartment fan drive processing unit 323 performs a drive process of the in-compartment fan F according to the comparison result through the comparison unit 322. Specifically, the rotational speed of the internal fan F is increased or decreased. When the number of rotations of the internal fan F is increased, the internal air circulates in the entire interior as shown by an arrow A in FIG. 1, and when the number of rotations of the internal fan F is decreased, As shown by the arrow B, the internal air circulates in the lower part of the interior.

  5 and 6 are flowcharts showing the processing contents of the cooling control and the circulation control performed by the control unit. These cooling control and circulation control are performed individually according to a preset time schedule. The operation of the vending machine will be described by explaining the contents of each process with reference to these drawings.

  In the cooling control shown in FIG. 5, the cooling control unit 31 of the control unit 30 performs the following process when the compressor 7 is driven (step S101: Yes). That is, when the lower temperature detected by the lower thermistor 26 is input through the input processing unit 311 (step S102: Yes), the cooling control unit 31 reads the first reference temperature information from the cooling control memory 31a through the comparison unit 312. (Step S103), it is compared whether or not the lower temperature input in Step S102 is below the lower limit value of the first reference temperature range (Step S104).

  When the lower temperature is below the lower limit value of the first reference temperature range (step S104: Yes), the cooling control unit 31 stops driving the compressor 7 through the compressor drive processing unit 313 (step S105), and the procedure is performed. Return and end the current process.

  According to this, the amount of cooling of the internal air of the product storage 3 by the evaporator 6 is reduced, and the temperature of the internal air of the product storage 3 is gradually increased.

  When the lower temperature is not below the lower limit value of the first reference temperature range (step S104: No), the cooling control unit 31 maintains the drive of the compressor 7 (step S106), returns the procedure, and returns to the current time. The process ends.

  On the other hand, when the compressor 7 is not driven (step S101: No), the cooling control unit 31 performs the following process. That is, when the lower temperature detected by the lower thermistor 26 is input through the input processing unit 311 (step S107: Yes), the cooling control unit 31 reads the first reference temperature information from the cooling control memory 31a through the comparison unit 312. (Step S108), it is compared whether or not the lower temperature input in Step S107 exceeds the upper limit value of the first reference temperature range (Step S109).

  When the lower temperature exceeds the upper limit value of the first reference temperature range (step S109: Yes), the cooling control unit 31 drives the compressor 7 through the compressor drive processing unit 313 (step S110), and returns the procedure. And this process is complete | finished.

  According to this, the amount of cooling of the internal air of the product storage 3 by the evaporator 6 is increased, and the temperature of the internal air of the product storage 3 is gradually lowered.

  When the lower temperature does not exceed the upper limit value of the first reference temperature range (step S109: No), the cooling control unit 31 maintains the drive stop of the compressor 7 (step S111), returns the procedure, and this time Terminate the process.

  In the circulation control shown in FIG. 6, when the circulation control unit 32 of the control unit 30 inputs the upper temperature detected by the upper thermistor 27 through the input processing unit 321 (step S201: Yes), the circulation control unit 32 The second reference temperature information is read from the circulation control memory 32a through 322 (step S202), and it is compared whether or not the upper temperature input in step S201 exceeds the upper limit value of the second reference temperature range (step S203).

  When the upper temperature exceeds the upper limit value of the second reference temperature range (step S203: Yes), the circulation control unit 32 increases the rotation speed of the internal fan F through the internal fan drive processing unit 323 (step S204). ), The procedure is returned to end the current process.

  According to this, since the internal air of the product storage 3 circulates in the entire storage, the cooled internal air in the lower part of the product storage 3 changes in a direction of gradually rising, and the product in the product storage 3 The product stored in the upper part of the storage rack 20 can be cooled to an appropriate temperature.

  On the other hand, when the upper temperature is less than the lower limit value of the second reference temperature range (step S203: No, step S205: Yes), the circulation control unit 32 determines the rotation speed of the internal fan F through the internal fan drive processing unit 323. (Step S206), the procedure is returned, and the current process is terminated.

  According to this, since the internal air of the product storage case 3 circulates in the lower part of the storage unit, it is possible to avoid excessive cooling of the product stored in the upper part of the product storage rack 20 of the product storage case 3. Thus, power consumption is reduced.

  When the upper temperature is within the second reference temperature range (step S203: No, step S205: No), the circulation control unit 32 maintains the rotation speed of the internal fan F (step S207), and returns the procedure. To end the current process.

  As described above, according to the vending machine according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the detachable product shelf 24 is mounted on the product storage rack 20, the product storage passage 21 is partitioned vertically. In addition, since a storage space 25 in which products can be stacked and stored in the upper area is defined, products with good sales can be stored in the storage space 25. Thereby, the product stored in the storage space 25 is not offered for sale at least until the next product replenishment, but can be cooled or heated inside the product storage 3. Therefore, when the product is replenished after the next time, the product stored in the storage space 25 and cooled or heated to a predetermined temperature is stored in the product storage passage 21 to which the product is assigned, so that the product can be immediately stored. It becomes possible to sell, and sales efficiency can be improved. In particular, by defining the storage space 25 in the product storage passage 21 to which products whose sales are not favorable are defined, dead space can be eliminated and space efficiency can be improved. Therefore, it is possible to improve the sales efficiency and the space efficiency of products.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the upper thermistor 27 is disposed at the upper part of the product storage 3, but the upper thermistor 27 is at the top of the products stored in the product storage passage 21. It suffices if the temperature in the vicinity of the product can be detected, and any position can be used as long as it can detect the temperature in the vicinity of the product on the top. Further, since the product at the top has a tendency to gradually move downward with every sale, the upper thermistor 27 may also be arranged in such a manner that it gradually moves downward together with the product at the top.

  As described above, the vending machine according to the present invention is useful for selling, for example, products such as paper-packed beverages.

It is a section side view showing typically the internal structure of the vending machine which is an embodiment of the invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state by which the goods storage rack was pulled ahead by the sliding means shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the goods storage rack shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the characteristic control system of the vending machine shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of the cooling control which a control unit implements. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of the circulation control which a control unit implements.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body cabinet 3 Commodity storage 6 Evaporator 7 Compressor 20 Commodity storage rack 21 Commodity storage passage 22 Discharge mechanism 23 Engagement hole 24 Commodity shelf 24a Locking piece 25 Storage space 26 Lower thermistor 27 Upper thermistor 30 Control unit 31 Cooling control Unit 311 Input processing unit 312 Comparison unit 313 Compressor drive processing unit 32 Circulation control unit 321 Input processing unit 322 Comparison unit 323 Fan drive processing unit in the store F Fan in the store

Claims (2)

A product container having a heat insulation structure defined inside the vending machine body;
The product is stored in a product storage passage disposed in the product storage and extending in the vertical direction, and the product at the lowest level of the product storage passage is paid out when a payout instruction is given. In a vending machine equipped with a product storage rack,
A storage space that is arranged in a manner that can be attached to and detached from the product storage rack, and that, when mounted on the product storage rack, divides the product storage passage vertically and stores products in the upper area. A vending machine characterized by a product shelf that defines   The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the product shelf is attached to the product storage rack when a locking piece formed at an edge enters the engagement hole of the product storage rack. .

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