JP2023104273A - Beverage supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

To suppress losing of an opportunity for supplying a beverage even when a type of a cup cannot be determined.SOLUTION: A beverage supply device 1 comprises: an information acquisition unit 25 that acquires information on a cup C placed on a beverage supply part 22; a cup determination processing unit 30a that determines the type of the cup C from the information acquired in the information acquisition unit 25; and a control unit 30 that causes a display 21 to display a supply beverage, which is one beverage corresponding to the determined type of the cup C when the type of the cup C is determined by the cup determination processing unit 30a. When the supply beverage is selected, the control unit 30 makes a beverage generating unit 11 generate the supply beverage and supplies the same to the cup C. The control unit 30 causes the display 21 to display a placement change indication when the number of times of consecutive non-determination is less than a set number of times, and display a plurality of beverages that can be supplied when the number of times of consecutive non-determination is equal to or more than the set number of times.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a beverage supply device, and more particularly to improvement of a beverage supply device such as a coffee machine installed in a store such as a convenience store.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a beverage supply device such as a coffee machine is installed in a store such as a convenience store. A beverage supply device performs processing such as coffee bean grinding and extraction processing such as dripping to produce a beverage, and supplies the beverage to a cup, which is a container.

Such a beverage supply apparatus includes an image pickup unit such as a camera that picks up an image of the placed cup. determines the type.

In such a beverage supply device, when the type of cup cannot be determined from the image information acquired by the imaging section, the cup is arranged in a predetermined area in order to prevent an erroneous determination from occurring. A layout change display is displayed on the display unit to prompt the user to change the layout of the cups, and when the layout change display is continuously performed a predetermined number of times, the display unit calls a manager. The information is displayed (see Patent Document 1, for example).

JP 2019-195364 A

By the way, in the beverage supply device proposed in Patent Document 1, when the type of the cup cannot be determined, the layout change display is performed. Since the call display to the effect that the manager is to be called is displayed at the end of the day, maintenance work by the manager is required, and as a result, there is a problem that the opportunity to supply the beverage (opportunity to sell) is lost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a beverage supply device capable of suppressing loss of opportunity to supply beverages even when the type of cup cannot be determined.

In order to achieve the above object, the beverage supply apparatus according to the present invention includes information acquisition means for acquiring information on a cup placed in a beverage supply section, and determination of the type of the cup from the information acquired by the information acquisition means. and a control unit that, when the type of the cup is determined by the cup determination unit, causes a display unit to display a supplied beverage that is one beverage corresponding to the type of the determined cup, wherein the supply In the beverage supply device, when a beverage is selected, the control unit causes the beverage generation unit to generate the supplied beverage and supplies it to the cup, wherein the control unit selects the cup by the cup determination means. When the number of consecutive non-determinations in which the type cannot be determined continuously is less than a predetermined set number of times, a layout change display is displayed on the display unit to the effect that the cup is placed in a predetermined information acquisition area in the beverage supply unit. While displaying, when the number of consecutive non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times, a plurality of beverages that can be supplied are displayed on the display unit.

In the beverage supply apparatus according to the present invention, when the number of continuous non-determination times is equal to or greater than the set number of times, A plurality of corresponding candidate beverages are displayed on the display unit, and a list display selection unit for transitioning to a list display displaying all types of beverages that can be supplied is displayed on the display unit.

Further, according to the present invention, in the above beverage supply device, the control unit causes the display unit to display all types of beverages that can be supplied when the list display selection unit is selected.

Further, according to the present invention, in the above-described beverage supply device, the control unit causes the display unit to display all types of beverages that can be supplied when the number of continuous non-determination times is equal to or greater than the set number of times. .

Further, according to the present invention, in the above beverage supply apparatus, the information acquiring means acquires characteristic information of the size, color and image of the cup.

Further, according to the present invention, the beverage supply device further comprises a cup detection section for detecting that the cup has been placed in the beverage supply section, and the cup determination means detects the placement of the cup by the cup detection section. In this case, the type of the cup is determined.

According to the present invention, when the number of consecutive non-determination times in which the type of cup cannot be determined continuously by the cup determination means is less than the predetermined set number of times, the control part can obtain the predetermined information about the cup in the beverage supply part. While the display unit displays a layout change display to the effect that the beverages are placed in the area, when the number of consecutive non-judgments reaches the set number of times or more, the display unit displays a plurality of beverages that can be supplied, so that the user (purchaser) can be made to recognize the repositioning of the cup and prompt the cup to be placed in the information acquisition area, the information acquired from the cup will be good, and misjudgment will be prevented to determine the type of cup. It is possible to improve the accuracy of determination, and moreover, it is possible to suppress the loss of the opportunity to supply the beverage even when the type of cup cannot be determined.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the external configuration of a beverage supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing the control system of the beverage supply device according to the embodiment of the invention. FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing processing contents of a beverage supply control process performed by the control unit shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the contents of the determination display process shown in FIG. (a) to (d) of FIG. 5 are explanatory diagrams showing display examples of the display section in the determination display process shown in FIG.

Preferred embodiments of the beverage supply device according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show a beverage supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the external configuration, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing a control system. is.

The beverage supply device 1 exemplified here is a coffee machine installed in a store such as a convenience store, for example. supply. Such a beverage supply device 1 has a main body cabinet 10 and a front door 20 .

The main body cabinet 10 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape with an open front surface. Inside the main body cabinet 10, a beverage producing section 11 for producing a beverage (for example, coffee) is provided.

The front door 20 is a door body large enough to close the front opening of the main body cabinet 10 . The front door 20 is provided at one edge on the front side of the main body cabinet 10 so as to be able to swing around the central axis of a shaft portion (not shown) extending along the vertical direction. It is possible to open and close the opening.

The front surface of the front door 20 constitutes a customer service surface, and is provided with a display section 21, a beverage supply section 22, and an opening/closing door 23. As shown in FIG. The display unit 21 is configured by, for example, a liquid crystal touch panel, and has an input unit 21a that displays various information and enables input operations such as touch operations.

The beverage supply section 22 is provided below the display section 21 and has a nozzle 22a and a stage 22b. The nozzle 22a discharges the beverage produced by the beverage production section 11 downward.

The stage 22b is provided in the area below the nozzle 22a. This stage 22b is for placing the cup C, and is provided with an arcuate stopper 22c. The stopper 22c constitutes a predetermined information obtainable area S in which the beverage ejected from the nozzle 22a can be favorably received and the information of the cup C can be favorably obtained by the information obtaining section 25, which will be described later. .

The opening/closing door 23 is made of, for example, a translucent material such as transparent resin, and has a size sufficient to cover the entrance 22 d of the beverage supply section 22 . The open/close door 23 has a left end pivotally supported by the front door 20 and is swingable in the front-rear direction.

That is, the opening/closing door 23 can swing along the front-rear direction in a manner to approach and separate from the beverage supply section 22 , and when it swings backward in a manner to approach the beverage supply section 22 , the opening and closing door 23 of the beverage supply section 22 is closed. 22 d can be closed and the inlet 22 d of the beverage supply 22 can be opened when swinging forward away from the beverage supply 22 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , the beverage supply device 1 includes a cup detection section 24 , an information acquisition section (information acquisition means) 25 , a door opening/closing detection section 26 , a door opening/closing lock mechanism 27 and a control section 30 .

The cup detection section 24 is composed of, for example, an optical sensor or the like, and detects whether or not the cup C is placed in the beverage supply section 22, that is, whether or not the cup C is placed on the stage 22b. The cup detection unit 24 sends the detection result of the presence or absence of the cup C to the control unit 30 as a signal.

The information acquisition section 25 is provided in the beverage supply section 22 . The information acquisition unit 25 includes, for example, an optical sensor, an RGB sensor, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensor, etc., and acquires information on the size (height), color, and image of the cup C. . The information acquisition section 25 sends the acquired information to the control section 30 as a signal.

The door opening/closing detection unit 26 is provided near the entrance 22d of the beverage supply unit 22, and is composed of, for example, an optical sensor. The door opening/closing detection unit 26 detects opening/closing of the entrance 22d by the opening/closing door 23. More specifically, it detects whether the entrance 22d is closed, that is, whether the opening/closing door 23 is closed. be. The door opening/closing detection unit 26 sends a detection result as to whether or not the opening/closing door 23 is closed to the control unit 30 as a signal.

The door opening/closing lock mechanism 27 is provided near the entrance 22 d of the beverage supply section 22 . The door opening/closing lock mechanism 27 has a locked state in which the opening/closing door 23 that closes the entrance 22d is kept closed to prevent the opening/closing door 23 from swinging forward. It is possible to switch alternatively between a released state in which it is allowed to swing forward. Such switching of the door opening/closing lock mechanism 27 is performed according to a command given from the control section 30 .

The control unit 30 is electrically connected to the beverage production unit 11, the display unit 21, the cup detection unit 24, the information acquisition unit 25, the door opening/closing detection unit 26, and the door opening/closing lock mechanism 27. According to the programs and data stored in the connected storage unit 31, the operations of these units are collectively controlled. The control unit 30 has a cup determination processing unit (cup determination means) 30a that determines the type of the cup C in a determination display process to be described later.

It should be noted that the control unit 30 may be implemented by software, for example, by causing a processing device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) to execute a program, or may be implemented by hardware such as an IC (Integrated Circuit). Alternatively, software and hardware may be used together.

The storage unit 31 also stores a correspondence table 31a that stores the relationship between the information acquired by the information acquisition unit 25 and the type of cup C. FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the contents of the beverage supply control process performed by the controller 30 shown in FIG. The operation of the beverage supply device 1 will be explained while explaining the contents of the beverage supply control process.

In this beverage supply control process, the control section 30 carries out a judgment display process (step S110).

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the contents of the determination display process shown in FIG. In this determination display process, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the cup detection unit 24 has detected that the cup C is in the beverage supply unit 22 (step S111). That is, the cup detector 24 detects whether or not the cup C is placed on the stage 22b. If the presence of the cup C is not detected (step S111: No), the control unit 30 repeats the determination process of step S111.

On the other hand, when it is detected that there is a cup C (step S111: Yes), the control section 30 acquires information on the cup C through the information acquisition section 25 (step S112).

Then, the cup determination processing unit 30a of the control unit 30 reads out the correspondence table 31a from the storage unit 31 (step S113), and determines the type of cup C based on the information obtained in step S112 and the correspondence table 31a (step S114). .

When the type of cup C is determined (step S114: Yes), the control unit 30 displays one beverage corresponding to the determined type of cup C on the display unit 21, as shown in FIG. and the touch guidance display of the input unit 21a displaying the words "press", for example (step S115). exit.

On the other hand, if the type of cup C cannot be determined (step S114: No), the control unit 30 counts the number of consecutive failures, which is the number of times the type of cup C cannot be determined continuously in step S114 (step S116).

After counting the number of consecutive non-judgments in this way, the control unit 30 reads preset set number of times information from the storage unit 31 and determines whether or not the number of consecutive non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times included in the set number of times information. It judges (step S117).

If the number of consecutive non-judgments is not equal to or greater than the set number (step S117: No), the control unit 30 displays a placement change display ( For example, "Please replace the cup") is displayed on the display unit 21 (step S118), the procedure proceeds to step S111, and the processes after step S111 are repeated.

On the other hand, if the number of consecutive non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times (step S117: Yes), the control unit 30 instructs the display unit 21 as shown in FIG. A plurality of candidate beverages (for example, "hot coffee regular", "hot coffee large", and "iced coffee regular") corresponding to each of the plurality of types of cups C that are candidates in the determination process by the processing unit 30a are input to the input unit 21a. , and a list display selection unit (for example, “list display”) that transitions to a list display that displays all types of beverages that can be supplied is displayed as the input unit 21a, and further touch guidance display to these input units 21a (For example, "Please select a product") is performed (step S119).

After displaying candidate beverages in this way, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the list display selection unit, which is one of the input units 21a, has been touched (step S120). If the list display selection section (input section 21a) is not touched (step S120: No), the control section 30 continues to display candidate beverages, etc., and then returns the procedure to end the current process.

On the other hand, when the list display selection unit (input unit 21a) is touched (step S120: Yes), the control unit 30 displays all the items that can be supplied to the display unit 21 as shown in FIG. Types of beverages (eg, "hot coffee regular", "hot coffee large", "iced coffee regular", and "iced coffee large") are displayed as the input section 21a, and touch guidance display (eg "Please select a product") is performed (step S121), and then the procedure is returned to end the current processing.

The control unit 30 that has performed such determination display processing causes the display unit 21 to display the supplied beverages (display in step S115), display candidate beverages (display in step S119), or display a list (display in step S121). display) is performed, it is determined whether or not the input unit 21a is touched (step S130). If the input unit 21a is not touched (step S130: No), the control unit 30 repeats the determination process of step S130.

On the other hand, if the input unit 21a is touched (step S130: Yes), the control unit 30 determines whether the opening/closing door 23 is closed based on the detection result of the door opening/closing detection unit 26 (step S150). If the opening/closing door 23 is not closed (step S150: No), the determination process of step S150 is repeated.

When the open/close door 23 is closed (step S150: Yes), the control unit 30 locks the open/close door 23 in a closed state using the door open/close lock mechanism 27 (step S170), and instructs the beverage production unit 11 to Then, the drink touched in step S130 is produced and supplied (step S190).

After that, the controller 30 determines whether or not the beverage supply by the beverage generator 11 has ended (step S210). If the supply of the beverage has not ended (step S210: No), the control section 30 continues the process of producing and supplying the beverage.

On the other hand, when the supply of the beverage is finished (step S210: Yes), the control unit 30 unlocks the closed state of the open/close door 23 by the door open/close lock mechanism 27 (step S230), and then returns the procedure. to terminate the current beverage supply control process. According to this, it is possible to provide the user (purchaser) with the beverage corresponding to the purchased cup C.

As described above, according to the beverage supply apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 30 displays the layout change display when the number of continuous non-determinations by the cup determination processing unit 30a is less than the set number of times. Since it is displayed on the unit 21, it is possible to make the user recognize that the cup C has been repositioned, and prompt the user to place the cup C in the information acquisition possible area S. As a result, the information acquired from the cup C is improved, and the occurrence of erroneous determination can be prevented, thereby improving the accuracy of determining the type of the cup C. Then, when the number of continuous non-determination times is equal to or greater than the set number of times, the control unit 30 causes the display unit 21 to display candidate beverages and the like and display a list to display a plurality of beverages that can be supplied. Beverage can be supplied even when the judgment of the cup C cannot be made, and thus the loss of the opportunity to supply the beverage can be suppressed even when the cup C cannot be judged.

In particular, when the number of consecutive non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times, the control unit 30 displays a plurality of candidate beverages corresponding to each of the plurality of types of cups C that are candidates in the judgment process by the cup judgment processing unit 30a. In addition, the display unit 21 displays a list display selection unit that transitions to a list display that displays all types of beverages that can be supplied, so the number of products to be selected can be minimized, and the user can It is possible to omit as much time and effort as possible for product selection by means of the system, and to improve the convenience of the user.

Moreover, when the list display selection section is selected, the control section 30 causes the display section 21 to display all types of beverages that can be supplied. The user can receive a beverage according to the type of the cup C purchased, and the unmanned supply of the beverage can be ensured.

Further, according to the beverage supply device 1, since the type of the cup C is determined after the cup detection unit 24 determines that the cup C is present in the beverage supply unit 22, the timing of determination is uniquely determined. Therefore, erroneous determination can be prevented.

Moreover, before the opening/closing door 23 is closed, that is, before the entrance 22d of the beverage supply section 22 is closed, the type of the cup C is determined, thereby shortening the time required to supply the beverage. can be done.

According to the beverage supply device 1, the opening/closing door 23 is locked while the beverage is being supplied by the beverage production section 11, so that it is possible to prevent the user from being burned. .

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

In the above-described embodiment, when the number of consecutive non-determination times is equal to or greater than the set number of times, the control unit 30 selects a plurality of types of cups corresponding to each of the multiple types of cups C that are candidates in the determination process by the cup determination processing unit 30a. Although the candidate beverages and the list display selection portion are displayed on the display portion 21, in the present invention, all types of beverages that can be supplied are displayed on the display portion when the number of continuous non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times. You can let it run. With this, even if the type of cup cannot be determined, it is possible to suppress the loss of the opportunity to supply the beverage.

In the embodiment described above, one nozzle 22a is provided in the beverage supply unit 22, but in the present invention, the nozzles are provided in a manner separated left and right, and different types of beverages are supplied from the respective nozzles. It may be configured to be ejected.

In the above-described embodiment, the type of the cup C is determined after the cup detection unit 24 determines that the cup C is present in the beverage supply unit 22. However, in the present invention, it is determined that the open/close door is closed. The type of cup may be determined from

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Beverage supply apparatus, 10... Main body cabinet, 11... Beverage production part, 20... Front door, 21... Display part, 21a... Input part, 22... Beverage supply part, 22a... Nozzle, 22b... Stage, 22c... Stopper, 22d Entrance 23 Opening/closing door 24 Cup detection unit 25 Information acquisition unit 26 Door opening/closing detection unit 27 Door opening/closing lock mechanism 30 Control unit 30a Cup determination processing unit 31 Memory Part 31a: Correspondence table, C: Cup, S: Information obtainable area.

Claims (6)

an information acquisition means for acquiring information on the cup placed in the beverage supply section;
cup determination means for determining the type of the cup from the information acquired by the information acquisition means;
a control unit that causes a display unit to display, when the type of the cup is determined by the cup determination means, a supplied beverage that is one beverage corresponding to the determined type of the cup,
A beverage supply device, wherein, when the supply beverage is selected, the control unit causes the beverage generation unit to generate the supply beverage and supply it to the cup,
The control unit moves the cup to a predetermined information acquirable area in the beverage supply unit when the number of consecutive failures in determining the type of the cup by the cup determination means is less than a predetermined set number of times. While displaying on the display unit an arrangement change display to the effect that it is arranged in the display unit, when the number of consecutive non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times, a plurality of beverages that can be supplied are displayed on the display unit Beverage dispenser. When the number of continuous non-determination times is equal to or greater than the set number of times, the control unit displays a plurality of candidate beverages corresponding to each of the plurality of types of cups that are candidates in the determination process by the cup determination unit on the display unit. 2. The beverage supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display unit displays a list display selection section for transitioning to a list display that displays all types of beverages that can be supplied. 3. The beverage supply device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit causes the display unit to display all types of beverages that can be supplied when the list display selection unit is selected. 2. The beverage supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit causes the display unit to display all types of beverages that can be supplied when the number of consecutive non-judgments is equal to or greater than the set number of times. 5. The beverage dispenser according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the information acquisition means acquires characteristic information of the size, color and image of the cup. A cup detection unit that detects that the cup is placed in the beverage supply unit,
The beverage supply apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the cup determination means determines the type of the cup when the cup detection section detects the placement of the cup.

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