JP2790424B2 - Commodity return device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a merchandise return apparatus for allowing a user who has borrowed a predetermined merchandise to return the merchandise.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-214
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 897 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-162996, an apparatus for both lending and returning products such as video tapes has been proposed. That is, this type of device is provided with a plurality of storage sections for individually storing the products to be handled, and is configured to automatically receive the product inserted from the customer service port and store it in any of the storage sections. Have been.

[0003] However, in the above-described device, the storage section
Products that can be handled by shape are decided
For example, video tapes, compact discs,
Laser disks, books and rental car keys, etc.
Products cannot be handled at the same time, and lacks versatility
Problem. So, just like a post box,
A post-type product return device (for returning products) that stores all products put in from the input port in one storage unit .
Post) has been put to practical use.

[0004]

The object of the invention is to be Solved However, the above-mentioned port
In a strike type product return device, regardless of the shape of the product
Can be returned without any
It will be possible to return the product at once
Despite the advantages, there are the following problems.

That is, in a post-type product return device,
Needs to be large enough to take advantage of the above advantages.
This will make the settings for the device
A user or a third party inserts an arm from the slot and stores it in the housing
To take out returned goods that have been returned
It is more likely that they will be performed.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of such problems , and can handle products of various shapes.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a merchandise return device that can prevent mischief with a simple configuration .

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention according to claim 1 is a product return device for returning a product, which is used for putting the product in. A main body having an input port, and a storage portion provided below the input port and configured to store a product input from the input port, the input port is formed on a side surface of the main body, and further, a substantially semicircular shape is provided. A pair of side walls formed in a shape of a circle and a curved plate curved along the arc of each side wall, and connecting the circular arc of each side wall to each curved side edge of the curved plate to form a substantially half cylinder. An opening / closing member forming a storage chamber in a shape of;
The opening and closing member is rotatably supported between a closed position in which the inlet is closed by the outer surface of the curved plate and an open position in which the inner surface of the curved plate faces upward to open the inlet. The support member and the opening / closing member are closed by the input port.
Locking means for locking in position and use to return the goods
Identification means for identifying a person; and
Only when identified as a user to be returned
Release hand for releasing the locking of the locking means to the opening / closing member
And a step .

Further, the invention of claim 2, in product return device according to claim 1, in said body
Provided between the input port and the storage section,
A guide plate for guiding the inserted product to the storage section;
Detecting means for detecting that the product has been inserted from,
The detection means detects that the product has been inserted a predetermined number of times.
When the guide plate is swung in a predetermined direction,
Swinging the dropped product in the storage section to change the drop position
And a means for returning the product.

[0009]

[0010]

[0011]

An article return device according to claim 1 having the structure described above, according to the action and Invention, when turning on the product from inlet formed in the side surface of the body, the products are inlet in the body Stored in the storage section provided below
You. In other words, the commodity return device according to claim 1 is a video
Tapes, compact discs, laser discs, books and
A key such as a rental car key that is thrown in from the slot and returned
All products of various shapes are configured to be stored in one storage
Has been established.

[0012] Here, in particular, the commodity return device according to claim 1
And a pair of side walls formed in a substantially semicircular shape,
And a curved plate curved along the arc of each side wall of the bay
Connect the arc of each side wall to each curved side edge of the curved plate.
And an opening and closing member forming a substantially semi-cylindrical storage chamber by
ing. And this opening and closing member is, by the support member,
Closed position and curve to close the input port by the outer surface of the curved plate
The open position where the inner side of the plate faces upward and the input port is opened
It is supported rotatably with respect to the installation.

Therefore, by rotating the opening / closing member to the open position,
When the inlet is opened, each side wall of the opening / closing member and the curved plate
The substantially semi-cylindrical storage chamber formed from the inlet
It will be. And after putting the product in the storage room,
If the opening and closing member is rotated to the closing position where the input port is closed,
The product slides down into the body along the inside surface of the curved plate
The returned product is securely stored in the storage
Can be led to.

[0014] Then, especially, when opening the opening closure site material is allowed to inlet rotated to the open position, out of the side edge of which is not curved in the curved plate, and the side edges of the inner body is lifted upward Therefore, even if the user inserts an arm through the insertion port in this state, the arm cannot reach the storage unit. Therefore, according to the commodity return device of the first aspect, in addition to being able to simultaneously handle various shapes of the commodity, a mischievous act of inserting the arm from the insertion port and taking out the commodity in the storage section is performed by a special action. This can be prevented without providing a mechanism.

[0015] In addition, under the trade return device according to claim 1,
Is locking means lock the opening and closing member described above in the closed position of the inlet, the identifying means identifies the user should return the product. Then, the locking means releases the locking of the locking means to the opening / closing member only when the release means is identified by the identification means as a user who should return the product.

[0016] Therefore, according to the commodity return device according to claim 1, only the user of the device should return the goods, the closing member is rotated, it is possible to open the inlet Therefore, it is possible to prevent a third party other than the user of the device from trying to steal the returned merchandise stored in the storage unit or conversely throwing in foreign matter.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a merchandise returning apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the merchandise input from the input port is provided between the input port and the storage section in the main body. A guide plate for guiding the product to the storage unit is provided, and the detecting means detects that a product has been inserted from the insertion port.
When the detecting means detects the insertion of the article for a predetermined number of times, the swinging means swings the guide plate in a predetermined direction to change the dropped position of the inserted article in the storage section.

That is, in the merchandise return device according to the second aspect , the guide plate is swung every time a predetermined number of commodities are supplied, so that the dropped position of the supplied commodities in the storage section is changed. ing.

[0019] Therefore, according to the commodity return device according to claim 2, in the accommodated portion, it is possible to prevent the returned goods are housed biased, accommodating the amount of product that meets the volume of the housing part Will be able to In particular, in the merchandise return device of the present invention, as described above, after the opening / closing member is turned to the open position and the product is put into the storage chamber of the opening / closing member, the opening / closing member is turned to the closing position. Since the product slides down into the main body along the inner surface of the curved plate, the returned product can be surely guided to a predetermined position in the main body such as the guide plate, and the function of the oscillating means. Is advantageous in that it can be realized reliably.

[0020] Incidentally, in the product return device according to the claim 1, the housing portion, and a storage box with wheels for moving on the bottom, and out can configure storage box as a storage unit from the body Then, it is possible to collect the returned goods at once by simply taking out the storage box itself from the main body.

[0021]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, FIG. 1 is an external view showing a product return device 2 to which the present invention is applied. The product return device 2 of the present embodiment is
It is used by a user who has borrowed a product such as a video tape, a compact disk, or a laser disk by providing a well-known rental business to return the product.

As shown in FIG. 1 (A), the merchandise return device 2 of the present embodiment comprises a main body 4 formed in a substantially rectangular column shape, a customer service section 6 provided on the upper front surface of the main body 4, The door 8 is provided below the customer service unit 6 so as to be openable and closable. As shown in FIG. 10a to 10d (1
A storage box 10 having a storage unit having 0d (not shown) is disposed.

Here, the customer service unit 6 has a display unit 11 for displaying whether or not the device is currently usable, a speaker 12, and a slot for a user to put a product into the device. 14, a revolving door 16 as an opening / closing member for closing and opening the slot 14, and a card reader 1 for reading stored contents of a membership card (magnetic card) distributed to a user
8 and a printer 20 for issuing to the user a slip describing the use date and time of the device and the time. In the merchandise return device 2 according to the present embodiment, as described later, when the user opens the revolving door 16 provided in the customer service section 6 and inserts the merchandise through the slot 14, the merchandise is stored in the storage box 10. Is stored.

As shown by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 1B, the storage box 10 is suspended from its upper four corners by four springs 22a to 22d (22b and 22d are not shown). Tray 24 is provided, and the tray 24 gradually descends according to the weight of the stored goods.

Next, the revolving door 1 for opening and closing the inlet 14
6 as an opening and closing mechanism as a supporting member for rotatably supporting the movable member 6 between a predetermined closed position and an open position.
This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the inside of the customer service unit 6 in a perspective view inside the main body 4.

First, as shown in FIG. 3, the rotating door 16 has a pair of side walls 26a, 26 formed in a substantially semicircular shape.
b, a curved plate 28 curved along the arc of each side wall 26a, 26b, and a handle 3 attached to the curved plate 28.
0, and each side wall 2 is provided on each curved side edge of the curved plate 28.
A substantially semi-cylindrical storage chamber 32 is formed by connecting the arcs of 6a and 26b, respectively. The support shafts 34a and 34b protrude from the substantially center positions of the arcs on the side walls 26a and 26b toward the opposite side (outside) of the storage chamber 32, respectively.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, inside the main body 4, a pair of support plates 36a, 36b disposed on the upper surface thereof at intervals slightly larger than the axial width of the rotating door 16.
Is fixed. Then, the revolving door 16 has the support shafts 34a, 3 on the support plates 36a, 36b.
4b is rotatably supported by being inserted therethrough. The opening 14 is closed by the outer surface of the curved plate 28 from the outside, and the opening 14 is rotated so that the inner surface of the curved plate 28 faces upward. Is to be opened.

An operation arm 38 is fixed to the support shaft 34a of the rotating door 16 protruding from the support plate 36a, and a damper 40 is attached to an end of the operation arm 38 opposite to the support shaft 34a. A tip end 44a of a rod 44 extending from the cylinder 42 is rotatably mounted. On the other hand, the end 42a of the cylinder 42 on the side where the rod 44 does not project is rotatably attached to the end of the support plate 36a on the side opposite to the side that supports the support shaft 34a.
A pin 4 for restricting the rotation of the operation arm 38 is provided from slightly above the portion where the support shaft 34a of the support plate 36a protrudes.
6 are protruding.

In the opening / closing mechanism of the rotating door 16 configured as described above, as shown in FIG. 4A, the rod 44 tends to protrude from the cylinder 42 in the damper 40 at normal times, so that the force (ie, the force) , The biasing force of the damper 40) reduces the angle between the rod 44 and the operating arm 38. Therefore, the support shaft 34a of the revolving door 16 is urged in the clockwise direction in the figure by the operating arm 38, so that the revolving door 16 is eventually urged in the closing direction, that is, the direction shown by the arrow A. .

Then, as shown in FIG.
The side walls 26 are biased by the urging force of the damper 40.
At the position where a and 26b come into contact with the frame member 36, they are fully closed. That is, the position where each of the side walls 26a and 26b abuts on the frame member 36 is the closing position. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4 (B), when the user of the device grips the handle 30 and pushes down the revolving door 16 in the direction of arrow B, the support shaft 34a moves in the counterclockwise direction in the drawing. Due to the rotation, the angle between the operation arm 38 and the rod 44 increases, and the rod 44 contracts toward the cylinder 42. When the operation arm 38 comes into contact with the pin 46 protruding from the support plate 36a, the position of the operation arm 38 does not change any more, so that the rotating door 16 cannot be opened from that position. That is, this is the fully opened state of the revolving door 16, and the position where the operating arm 38 abuts on the pin 46 is the open position.

When the user releases the handle 30 in the state shown in FIG. 4B, the urging force of the damper 40 causes the user to release the handle 30 again.
The state shown in (A) is reached, and the revolving door 16 is closed. As described above, in the present embodiment, the support shafts 34a and 34b of the revolving door 16 and the frame member 36 (the support plate 3
6a, 36b), an operating arm 38, a damper 40, and a pin 46 constitute an opening / closing mechanism, and each of these members corresponds to a support member.

Here, although not shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, on the side of the support plate 36b where the support shaft 34b protrudes, as shown in FIG. A stopper 52 as locking means having two engaging portions 52a and 52b engaging with the lock pin 50 protruding from the side wall 26b of the revolving door 16, and biasing the stopper 52 in a direction to engage the lock pin 50. Spring 54
And a solenoid 56 for releasing the engagement between the stopper 52 and the lock pin 50 against the urging force of the spring 54, and turning on by contacting the lock pin 50 to close the rotary door 16. Proximity switch 58 to detect
And a lock mechanism comprising:

The lock pins 50 projecting from the side wall 26b of the revolving door 16 are engaged with the engaging portions 52a, 52 of the stopper 52 when the revolving door 16 is fully closed as described above.
b, the engaging portion 52a further provided on the fixed shaft 48 side
The proximity switch 5
8 comes into contact with the lock pin 50 only when the revolving door 16 is fully closed.

The solenoid 56 retracts the sliding rod 56a when energized.
6a are engaging portions 52a, 52b of the stopper 52.
Is rotatably attached to the end on the side where the is not provided. Further, the spring 54 is attached to the engagement portion 52 a side of the fixed shaft 48 of the stopper 52.

In the lock mechanism provided on the side of the support plate 36b as described above, when the rotary door 16 is fully closed and the solenoid 56 is not energized normally, the stopper 52 (engagement force) Joint 52a,
Since 52b) engages with the lock pin 50, even if the user of the device pushes down the handle 30 of the revolving door 16 as described above, the revolving door 16 cannot be opened.

When the solenoid 56 is energized, the sliding rod 56a retracts in the direction of arrow C in FIG. Rotates in the opposite direction. Accordingly, the engagement between the stopper 52 and the lock pin 50 is released, and the revolving door 16 can be opened.

When the rotating door 16 is automatically closed by the urging force of the damper 40 as described above when the solenoid 56 is not energized, the lock pin 50 is engaged by the engaging portion 52b of the stopper 52. The parts 52a are engaged in this order. Therefore, for example, even when a thin product such as a compact disk is sandwiched between the insertion port 14 and the revolving door 16 and the revolving door 16 is not fully closed, the lock pin 50 can be engaged with the stopper 52. Joint 52
b, and can perform a minimum locking function.

Next, inside the main body 4, the revolving door 16
The distributing mechanism provided below is described with reference to FIGS. In addition, this distribution mechanism distributes and stores the commodities falling from the storage chamber 32 of the revolving door 16 to a predetermined position in the storage box 10 as described later.

As shown in FIG. 2, the distribution mechanism includes a frame member 36.
, A pair of square pillar members 62a, 62b fixed to the bottom of the guide plate 60, and a first support penetrating through the rotation fulcrum of each square pillar member 62a, 62b. A rod 64, a second support rod 66 extending from a portion of the square pillar member 62 a closer to the customer service part 6 than the first support rod 64, and a first support rod 6 fixed to both side walls in the main body 4.
A pair of shaft support members 68a, 68b that support both ends of the fourth member 4
A first arm 70 rotatably attached to the tip of the second support bar 66, and a first arm 70 rotatably mounted on an end of the first arm 70 opposite to the side on which the second support bar 66 is mounted. A second arm 72 attached thereto, and a motor 74 that swings the guide plate 60 by rotating the second arm 72.
And

In FIG. 2, the quadrangular prism member 62b and the shaft support member 68b are not shown. Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the guide plate 60 is opposite to the customer service unit 6 side (that is,
Aside from the door 8 of the main body 4 except for the rear side), a side wall plate 6 is provided.
0a is provided. Here, one end of the second arm 72 is fixed to a rotating shaft (not shown) of the motor 74, and the opposite end is rotatably attached to the first arm 70. A projection 76 is provided on a portion of the second arm 72 connected to the first arm 70. Therefore, this protrusion 76 is
With the rotation of, the second arm 72 moves on a circular orbit whose radius is substantially equal to the length of the second arm 72.

The fixed plate 7 to which the motor 74 is fixed
Proximity switches 80a, 80
b is provided, and the protrusion 76 moves as described above.
To come into contact with each other. Next, an operation state of the distribution mechanism thus configured will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the distribution mechanism viewed from the direction shown in FIG.

First, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 6A,
When the angle between the first arm 70 and the second arm 72 is 180 degrees, the guide plate 60 is horizontal. At this time, the proximity switch 80b provided below the fixed plate 78
Turns on when it comes into contact with the protrusion 76 provided on the second arm 72.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the motor 74 rotates and the angle between the first arm 70 and the second arm 72 becomes 0 degree, the guide plate 60 tilts toward the back of the main body 4. Will be done. Then, at this time, the proximity switch 80a provided on the upper portion of the fixed plate 78 comes into contact with the projection 76 and turns on.

When the motor 74 further rotates, the angle between the first arm 70 and the second arm 72 becomes 180 degrees again as shown in FIG. 6A, and the guide plate 60 becomes horizontal. At the same time, the proximity switch 80b is turned ON. That is, in the distribution mechanism of this embodiment, the motor 7
The guide plate 60 is configured to alternately repeat the horizontal state and the inclined state every time the 4 rotates 180 degrees.

Next, the speaker 12 provided in the customer service section 6
The control device 82 that controls the printer, the printer 20, and the lock mechanism and the distribution mechanism configured as described above will be described. The control device 82 is provided inside the service part 6 in the main body 4 and is configured as shown in FIG.

That is, the control device 82 controls the proximity switch 5
C, which controls the drive of the solenoid 56, the motor 74, etc., based on ON / OFF signals from 8, 80a, 80b
A PU 84a, a ROM 84b storing programs and the like for performing these controls, a RAM 84c for temporarily storing data and the like generated when the CPU executes the programs, and a speaker provided in the customer service unit 6. 12, an audio output controller 86 for uttering a predetermined guidance voice, and an I / O interface (hereinafter simply referred to as I / O interface).
O) 88 and a bus 90 for interconnecting them.
And a solenoid drive circuit 92 connected to the I / O 88 to drive the solenoid 56, and a motor drive circuit 94 also connected to the I / O 88 to drive the motor 74.

The I / O 88 includes a card reader 18 and a printer 20 provided in the customer service section 6, the above-described proximity switches 58, 80 a, and 80 b, and a host provided outside the commodity return device 2. A computer 96;
Is connected. Then, in the control device 82 thus configured, the CPU 84a executes a return process shown in FIG. The return process is executed every time the user passes the membership card through the card reader 18 of the customer service unit 6.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the execution of the return process is started, first, a step (hereinafter simply referred to as S) is performed.
At 110, the stored contents of the membership card are read from the card reader 18 via the I / O 88. And the following S12
At 0, a card check, which is a process as an identification means, is performed to determine whether or not the content belongs to the member who should return the product, and it is determined that the content does not belong to the member who should return the product. In this case, after an error alarm is generated in subsequent S130, the process returns to S110, and waits for the next pass of the membership card to the card reader 18.

The information on members used in the determination in S120 is always given from the host computer 96 connected to the I / O 88. In addition, the error alarm generated in S130 is performed by uttering a voice guidance such as "cannot handle" from the speaker 12.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S120 that the stored contents of the member card are those of the member to whom the merchandise is to be returned, the flow shifts to S140 to energize the solenoid 56 via the solenoid drive circuit 92. , A process as a releasing means is executed. Then, as described above, the solenoid 5
6 is retracted in the direction of arrow C in FIG. 5 and the engagement between the stopper 52 and the lock pin 50 is released, so that the revolving door 16 can be opened. The energization of the solenoid 56 is performed only for a predetermined time (10 seconds in this embodiment). Therefore, the revolving door 16 can be opened for only 10 seconds.

Then, at S150, the speaker 12
Then, a first return guidance is made to utter a voice guidance such as "Please come and open the door." Then, in S160, it is determined whether or not the revolving door 16 is opened. Until it is determined that the revolving door 16 is opened, S
160 is repeated.

Note that this determination is made as described above,
Proximity switch 58 provided on support plate 36b of No. 6 is ON
This is performed by determining whether the state has changed from OFF to OFF. Although not shown in FIG. 8, the solenoid 5
If it is not determined that the revolving door 16 has been opened within 10 seconds after the power supply to the power supply 6 has been started, the return process is terminated once, and the member card is passed to the card reader 18 again. Return to the waiting state.

Here, if the user opens the revolving door 16 by pushing down the handle 30 within 10 seconds while the solenoid 56 is energized, it is determined in S160 that the revolving door 16 has been opened. Then, the process proceeds to S170 and the speaker 1
From the second, a second return guidance is made to utter voice guidance such as "Please put in a product."
From the printer 20, the number of the device, date and time of use, and time,
Issue a slip with your membership number and other information.

Then, at S190, the revolving door 16
The processing as a detecting means for determining whether or not the door 16 has been closed is executed.
Is repeated. Note that this determination is opposite to the determination in S160, and the proximity switch 58 is turned on from OFF.
This is performed by determining whether or not it has changed.

Here, when the user opens the revolving door 16 and puts a product into the storage room 32 and releases the handle 30 of the revolving door 16, the revolving door 16 is attached with the damper 40 as described above. It will automatically close by the power.
If it is determined in S190 that the revolving door 16 is closed, the process proceeds to S200, in which a motor driving process, which is a process as a swing unit, that rotates the motor 74 through the motor driving circuit 94 by 180 degrees, is performed. Run.

This motor driving process is executed in such a procedure that power is supplied to the motor 74 until one of the proximity switches 80a and 80b provided on the fixed plate 78 of the motor 74 changes from OFF to ON. Therefore, when the motor 74 is stopped, one of the proximity switches 80a and 80b is turned on. In this motor driving process, the switch is turned on before the motor 74 is energized.
The proximity switch that is different from the proximity switch that was
Until the power is supplied to the motor 74.

When the execution of the motor driving process is completed in S200, the return process is completed. Here, a series of operating states of the revolving door 16 and the guide plate 60 realized by such return processing are shown in FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG. Since FIG. 9 shows only the operating state of the revolving door 16 and the guide plate 60, the relative dimensions of each part are not shown in detail.

First, in the initial state in which the control device 82 has not executed the above-described return process, the rotating door 16 is fully closed by the urging force of the damper 40 as shown in FIG. At the same time, the guide plate 60 is in a horizontal state. In this initial state, the solenoid 52 is not energized, so that the stopper 52 is
6, the revolving door 16 cannot be opened. In this state, of the proximity switches 80a and 80b, the proximity switch 80b provided below the fixed plate 78 is ON.

Next, the first (first) user passes the membership card through the card reader 18 to start the above-described return processing. When the card check (S120) passes, the revolving door 16 may be opened. Ready (S14)
0). Then, as shown in FIG. 9B, the user pushes down the handle 30 to open the revolving door 16, puts the commodity H1 into the storage room 32, and releases the handle 30 of the revolving door 16.

Then, as shown in FIG. 9C, the rotating door 16 is automatically closed by the urging force of the damper 40, so that the commodity H1 is moved from the storage room 32 of the rotating door 16 to the curved plate 2.
8 will slide down on the guide plate 60.
When the revolving door 16 is closed, the stopper 52 is engaged with the lock pin 50 as described above, and the revolving door 16 cannot be opened.

When the revolving door 16 is closed, a motor driving process is executed (S200), and the motor 74 is energized until the proximity switch 80a is turned on (until it rotates 180 degrees). Then, as shown in FIG. 9 (D), the guide plate 60 is inclined, and the product H1 on the guide plate 60 is inclined.
However, it falls to the back side when viewed from the door 8 of the storage box 10.

That is, when the product is returned to the product return device 2 for the first time, the guide plate 60 stops in an inclined state as shown in FIG. 9D. Then, in this state, when the next (second) user passes the membership card through the card reader 18 and the card check (S120) passes, the revolving door 16 can be opened again ( S140), the user opens the revolving door 16 and places the product H2 in the storage room 32 as shown in FIG.
Will be introduced.

Then, the user operates the handle 3 of the revolving door 16.
When 0 is released, as shown in FIG. 9 (F), the revolving door 16 automatically closes, so that the commodity H2 slides down from the storage room 32 of the revolving door 16 along the curved plate 28 and passes through the guide plate 60. Without directly falling into the storage box 10. That is, in this case, the commodity H2 falls to the door 8 side of the storage box 10.

When the revolving door 16 is closed, the stopper 52 is engaged with the lock pin 50 as described above, so that the revolving door 16 cannot be opened, and the motor driving process is executed. (S200), the motor 74 is energized until the proximity switch 80b is turned on (until it rotates 180 degrees). Therefore, the guide plate 60 returns to the horizontal state, and returns to the initial state shown in FIG.

As described above, in the commodity return device 2 of the present embodiment, each time the commodity is returned once, the guide plate 60 is swung back and forth as viewed from the door 8 of the main body 4. Thereby, the falling position of the commodity in the storage box 10 is changed. Therefore, according to the merchandise return device 2 of the present embodiment, the returned merchandise can be prevented from dropping to the storage box 10 and can store an amount of merchandise corresponding to the volume of the storage box 10. . In addition, according to the commodity return device 2 of the present embodiment, since the returned commodity is stored in one storage box 10, various items such as a video tape, a compact disk, a laser disk, a book, a key of a rental car, and the like are used. Products with different shapes can be handled simultaneously.

In this embodiment, the guide plate 60 is swung only in the front-rear direction when viewed from the door 8 side of the main body 4. However, the guide plate 60 may be swung in the front-rear, left-right direction, for example. Good. In this case, the returned merchandise can be distributed and stored in the four corners of the storage box 10.

Further, in this embodiment, it is detected that the commodity is put in by detecting that the revolving door 16 is closed by the proximity switch 58. However, for example, an object using infrared rays or the like is used. The introduction of the product may be directly detected by the sensor.

In particular, in the merchandise return device 2 of the present embodiment , the pair of side walls 26a, 2
6b and a curved plate 28 curved along the arc of each side wall 26a, 26b as a main part, forms the revolving door 16, and closes the inlet 14 with the outer surface of the curved plate 28; The revolving door 16 is rotated so that the inner surface of the opening 28 faces upward, and the slot 14 is opened. When the input port 14 is opened, that is, when the revolving door 16 is opened, the product is put into the storage chamber 32 of the revolving door 16 approaching from the input port 14, and the revolving door 16 is closed again. Is introduced into the main body 4.

Therefore, according to the merchandise return device 2 of this embodiment,
If, rotating opened the door 16, FIG. 9 (B), the (E), the side edges 28 of which is not curved in the curved plate 28
a, 28b (see FIG. 3), the side edge 28 inside the main body 4
a is lifted upward, so that the
Insert the arm a mischievous act went already strike out <br/> up the storage goods in the storage box 10, providing a special mechanism from
Ru can be prevented without. Also returned by the user
The product to be supplied is securely guided along the inner surface of the curved plate 28.
60 or storage box 10
Achieved the function of preventing deviation of the product by the guide plate 60
it can.

In the merchandise return device 2 of the present embodiment, the revolving door 16 is checked only when the member card of the user is checked and it is determined that the member is to return the merchandise.
The engagement between the lock pin 50 and the stopper 52 is released. Therefore, since a person who is not a member who should return the product cannot open the revolving door 16, the returned product may be stolen from the input port 14, or conversely, a foreign substance may be input from the input port 14. Can be prevented.

Further, in the commodity return device 2 of the present embodiment, the storage box 10 provided with the wheels 10a to 10d is installed at a position where the returned commodity falls in the main body 4. Therefore, according to the product return device 2 of the present embodiment, it is possible to collect the returned products at one time simply by opening the door 8 and taking out the storage box 10 from the main body 4.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view illustrating a product return device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view for explaining the inside of the product return device.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a revolving door used in the product return device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view illustrating an opening / closing mechanism of a rotating door.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view illustrating a lock mechanism of the revolving door.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an operation state of a distribution mechanism provided in the product return device.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control device provided in the product return device.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a return process executed in the control device.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a series of operating states of a rotating door and a distribution mechanism (guide plate).

[Explanation of symbols]

2 ... Commodity return device 4 ... Main body 6 ... Customer service unit 10 ... Storage box 14 ... Input port 16 ... Revolving door 18 ... Card reader 26a, 26b ... Side wall 28 ... Curved plate 32 ... Storage room 34a, 34b ... Support shaft 36 ... Frame Material 38 Operating arm 40 Damper 46 Pin 50 Lock pin 52 Stopper 54 Spring 56
Solenoids 58, 80a, 80b Proximity switch 60 Guide plate 64 First support rod 66 Second support rod 70
First arm 72 Second arm 74 Motor 82 Control device 84a CPU 84b ROM
84c RAM

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-4-339986 (JP, A) JP-A-2-123687 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G07F 17/00 B65D 91/00

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A merchandise return device for returning merchandise, comprising: an input port for inputting the merchandise; and a storage unit provided below the input port for storing the merchandise input from the input port. And the input port is formed in a side surface of the main body, and further includes a pair of side walls formed in a substantially semicircular shape, and a curved plate curved along an arc of each side wall. An opening / closing member that forms a substantially semi-cylindrical storage chamber by connecting the arcs of the side walls to the curved side edges of the curved plate, respectively, and the opening / closing member is inserted by the outer surface of the curved plate. closed position of the inlet and supporting member for rotatably supporting, said closing member between an open position where the inner surface of the curved plate and a closed position for closing the mouth to open the inlet becomes upward Locking hands to lock with
A stage, identifying means for identifying the user should return the product, if it is the user should return the items by identification means
Only when identified, the opening / closing member of the locking means
And a release means for releasing the lock on the product. 2. The merchandise return device according to claim 1, wherein the merchandise return device is provided between the insertion port and the storage section in the main body.
And the proposed product is guided to the storage unit.
An inner plate and a detection device for detecting that the product has been inserted from the input port.
Delivery means and the detection means detect that the product has been inserted a predetermined number of times.
When the guide plate is swung in a predetermined direction,
Swinging the dropped product in the storage section to change the drop position
Product return equipment, characterized in that it comprises a means, a.