JP2895921B2 - Cup type vending machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cup-type vending machine which sends out a cup at the start of a selling operation, pours a beverage into the cup and sells it, and in particular, The present invention relates to a cup-type vending machine having a configuration suitable for reliably injecting a beverage.

(B) Conventional technology Conventionally, in this type of vending machine, a cup is dropped and held at the sales port provided on the front of the main body at the time of sale, and the beverage is dispensed from a beverage dispensing nozzle arranged near the cup. Had been poured out. The beverage dispensing nozzle is configured to be provided at a position off the drop passage so as not to hinder the drop of the cup. Therefore, the mouth surface of the cup and the nozzle opening of the beverage dispensing nozzle are slightly shifted laterally in position. Even in this state, the beverage is drawn into the cup in a parabolic shape due to the momentum of the beverage until the middle of the beverage dispensing, but the beverage liquid is drooped toward the end (drip later). If it does, it will not enter the cup, but will fall on the edge of the cup, the peripheral surface of the cup, and around the mounting portion of the cup, and become soiled.

As a solution, as shown in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 60-16278, the outlet for guiding the beverage into the cup is made rotatable, and after the beverage is poured out, the solenoid is sucked and the outlet is in a vertical state. To make the drink dripping more actively, the later who leads directly to the drain, the outlet of the outlet is also removed from the beverage outlet pipe, and the later from the outlet pipe leads to the outlet. Some are configured as follows.

(C) Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, even with the configuration disclosed in the above-mentioned publication, the guide body remains unsuitable to the cup mounting surface during the rotation of the lead-out body, and cannot be said to be a perfect method. In addition, a rotating mechanism for the lead-out body and a drain port are provided, which results in a complicated configuration.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cup-type vending machine including a cup gripping device that operates so that anyone can completely enter a cup after a beverage. .

(D) Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a cup-type automatic dispenser which sends out a cup at the start of a selling operation, pours a beverage into the cup by a nozzle, and sells the beverage. The vending machine has a base pivotable open / close cup gripping piece for gripping both sides of the delivered cup. After gripping the cup, the cup gripping pieces on both sides are fixed at the base pivotal support portion of the cup gripping piece. A cup gripping device is provided, which is operated so as to move the gripped cup by rotating in the direction and to position the nozzle port within the cup port.

(E) Action The cup gripping piece is waiting for the cup to be received with the cup slightly opened from the gripping portion diameter of the cup, and when the cup is sent out and the cup enters between the cup gripping pieces, the cup is slightly closed to grip the cup. .

After the cup is gripped, the cup gripping pieces are moved in the same direction with the pivot at the base end as a fulcrum. The direction of movement is on the nozzle side of the beverage dispense. The degree of shaking is such that the nozzle port of the beverage dispensing nozzle is located within the mouth surface of the cup.

As a result, the beverage is dispensed into the cup, and even if there is a later person at the end of the dispensing, the beverage is entirely dripped into the cup without dripping outside.

(F) Example Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

The cup-type vending machine according to the present invention, in the sales department, rather than injecting the beverage into the released cup, the beverage infusion unit is disposed separately from the vending machine in an appropriate place in the machine, The sales department has a structure in which the cups already filled with the beverage are carried out.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the entire appearance of a cup-type vending machine according to the present invention, in which a sales section 1 is of a counter table type which is widely opened sideways which is significantly different from a conventional rectangular sales port. And Then, for example, a semi-disc-shaped sales door 3 is rotatably provided on the counter table 2 so that a part of the counter table 2 can be opened and closed, and this operates like a shutter. Are closed and open for sale to form an outlet for cup beverages. Further, the sales unit 1 is provided at a height position H (for example, 900 mm) which is higher than the conventional height position.
Specifically, it is formed immediately below the panel section 4A to which the selection button 4 is attached, and is a recessed sales section that is recessed in the back. The opening is horizontally long and has a height dimension that does not hinder the removal of the cup 6. ing. A cup into which beverages have already been injected comes out to the sales section 1. Therefore, a supply section to which cups, beverages, ice, and the like are sent out is provided separately from the sales section 1. In a distributed manner. 4 is a product selection button.

FIGS. 2 and 4 are perspective views showing the external structure of the selling mechanism in the main body that performs the selling operation described above. FIG. 2 shows that the drink is poured into the cup and the cup after the filling is transferred to the cup vertical moving device. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing a situation in which a beverage cup is raised by a cup vertical movement device, and FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing a situation in which a beverage cup is approaching a sales department. It is.

In each of the figures, reference numeral 5 denotes a cup gripping device having openable / closable cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B for gripping a cup 6 sent out from a cup supply device in accordance with a sales command. The cup gripping device 5 is a cabinet of a vending machine. The slider 9 is slidably mounted on a rail 8 arranged substantially horizontally in the
It can be slid forward and backward. The driving device for sliding the cup gripping device 5 includes:
A rack and gear mechanism can be used. For example, a configuration is conceivable in which a rack is formed on the rear surface side of the rail 8 in the lateral direction, and a pinion that meshes with the rack and a pinion drive motor are provided on the slider 9 side.

The degree of opening of the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B, which are expected to be able to receive the cup, can be adjusted in accordance with the size of the cup to be used.

The mechanism for opening and closing the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B will be described later.

Meanwhile, a beverage supply device, an ice maker, and the like (both not shown) are provided above the illustrated position in FIG. 2 where the cup gripping device 5 is open to accept the delivered cup and is waiting. And nozzles for pouring beverages from them 10
And an ice discharge hose 11 faces the cup 6.

However, the cup 6 gripped by the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B immediately after being discharged is at the position shown by the two-dot chain line shown in FIG. It is located at the nozzle port 10A at the tip of the exit nozzle 10 and is misaligned.

The present invention, from this shifted position, after gripping the cup, by moving the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B toward the beverage discharge nozzle 10 side, moving to the solid line position shown in FIG. The present invention is characterized in that the ten nozzle openings 10A are located in the mouth 6A of the cup 6 so that anybody P behind the beverage discharge nozzle 10 can surely enter the cup 6.
This shaking operation, its mechanism, etc. will also be described later.

In the cup 6 that has been operated as described above, the beverage selected by the customer is dispensed by the beverage supply device, and the beverage dispensing nozzle 10
Poured through.

At this time, the beverage supply device prepares the carbonated beverage by diluting the syrup with carbonated water, or dissolves the powdered raw material such as coffee by thirst, and adds sugar and milk as needed, and supplies the coffee beverage. To mix. Similarly, the ice maker sends ice through the ice discharge hose 11 into the cup held by the cup holding device 5 when the customer performs a product selection operation.

When beverage and ice are supplied to the cup, the cup gripping device 5
Slides in the direction of arrow A, comes to the position shown in FIG. 3, and stops at the predetermined position. The stop control of the cup gripping device 5 is controlled by an optical position detection sensor or the like disposed on the transfer path. Numeral 12 is a cup up and down moving device which transfers the cup which has come to the predetermined position and raises it.

The cup vertically moving device 12 is provided with an endless belt or an endless chain in a vertical direction, and is rotatable in a forward direction and a reverse direction by a drive motor, and a tray member attached to the endless belt or the endless chain, that is, a coaster. 18 is configured to be vertically slidable along a guide rod 19. The coaster 18 is normally waiting at a position slightly lower than the bottom surface of the cup 6 moving in the direction A. When the cup 6 comes, the coaster 18 slightly rises to support the bottom surface of the cup 6 and put it thereon.

Thereafter, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B open, and the cup gripping pieces 7
The transfer from A, 7B to coaster 18 is performed. Next, after the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B are further opened so as not to hinder the elevation of the cup 6, the cup vertical moving device 12
In order to prevent the cup from falling, the coaster 18 is raised in the forward rotation of the cup, enters the cup guide section 21 having a shape slightly larger than the diameter of the cup, and is stopped at a slightly raised position.

FIG. 4 shows that the cup 6 is the counter table 2 of the sales department 1
The situation shown above is shown, and as can be understood from the figure, the cup 6 containing the beverage appears in the sales department 1 as if approaching from below and is carried out. At this time, of course, the selling door 3 is opened to form a carry-out port 22 from which the cup comes out.

As described above, grasping the released cup → injecting the beverage into the cup → moving to the cup lifting and lowering device after injecting the beverage → transferring the cup to the cup lifting and lowering device → lifting the cup → unloading to the sales department , A cup beverage is provided to the customer.

By the way, in connection with this series of selling operations, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B perform the operations shown in FIGS. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing one process of the operation as viewed from the side.

First, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B are in the waiting state in FIG. In this state, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B are opened by 2 to 3 mm from the diameter of the gripping portion of the designated cup, so that the cup dropped and dropped can be received.

When a sales order is issued, the cup supply device operates to drop the cup from the dropper 20, and the cup is shot.
Through 24, they enter the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B.

After the cup falls, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B move inward together as shown in FIG. 7 and begin to close and grasp and support the cup based on the cup size. Thereafter, the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B are slightly swung in the same direction (arrow) as shown in FIG. 8 with the supporting shafts 37, 37 pivotally supporting the base ends of the operating levers 38A, 38B. . This swinging direction is the direction in which the beverage discharging nozzle 10 is located. And the stroke by this swinging operation is different between the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B, for example, by controlling the cup gripping piece 7B to be larger than 7A, the gripping of the cup is maintained and the function of shaking is achieved. Let it.
This means that the cup moves from the cup drop position at the point a shown in FIG. Thus, the cup 6 becomes as shown in FIG.
It is moved from the position shown by the two-dot chain line to the position shown by the solid line,
Under the vertical line of the nozzle opening 10A of the beverage discharge nozzle 10, a cup 6
The beverages from the beverage dispensing nozzle 10 are dispensed into the cup 6, and at the end of the dispensing, no matter who is behind it, it also enters the cup 6, and The peripheral surface and the vicinity of the mounting portion are not stained.

When the beverage injection is completed, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B
While holding the cup, the cup up and down moving device 12
Move to. Then, when the coaster 18 places the cup 6, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B open widely. The fifth
In the drawing, reference numeral 21 denotes a cup rest for holding the cup together with the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B, which supports the cup bottom surface and is provided on the rail 8 or the like. The cup rest 21 can be moved up and down so that the upper ends thereof are aligned even if cup heights different from each other are used.

Further, when the cup is moved to the cup vertical movement device 12 side, in order to prevent the cup rest 21 and the cup 6 from falling due to contact with each other, the cup is not horizontally moved but moved so as to be inclined about 5 degrees.

Further, reference numeral 22 denotes a cup clogging detection sensor. When the ejected cup is not properly gripped by the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B and enters in an inclined state, the light is continuously blocked by the cup and the cup is clogged. A signal is output, and when this signal is generated, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B are slightly opened, and the cup is properly dropped and held in a normal state.

FIG. 9 is an operation mechanism diagram of the cup gripping device 5, and FIGS. 10 and 12 show specific mechanisms for performing each operation in the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B.

In FIG. 9, the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B are connected to the arms 39A, 39B.
Actuating levers 38A, 38B connected via the springs are urged in directions repelled by springs 40A, 40B extended between one end of the levers and the base frame 25B. And the operating lever 38A,
The other rotating end of 38B is bent in the direction of approaching the center, and the tip thereof has a projection 41 in contact with a cam 42.
A and 41B are provided respectively. The protrusion 41B provided on the operation lever 38B side is located above, and the protrusion 41 provided on the operation lever 38A side is located below. And
The cam surface 44 of the cam 42, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 12,
Cam surfaces 44a, 44b, both of which are in uniform contact with the projections 41A, 41B,
As shown in FIG. 11, the concave cam surface 4 with which the projection 41A contacts
4c and the projection 41B are formed on a convex cam surface 44d in contact with the cam surface 44d shown by a solid line, and the cam surface 4d shown by a broken line
4c is provided so as to be located below.

Since the cam surfaces 44a, 44b, 44c, and 44d have different distances from the cam rotation shaft 43, the degree of opening of the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B varies depending on the cam surface that is in contact. Cam42
The drive device comprises a drive motor 46, a reduction mechanism 47 for reducing the rotation thereof, a drive gear 48, and a cam drive gear 49 fixed to a lower portion of a cam rotation shaft 43 on which the cam 42 is fixed. Is done.

Next, with the rotation of the cam 42, the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B
The opening / closing operation of the lever will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 12.When the projections 41A and 41B of the operating levers 38A and 38B are in contact with the cam surface 44a, in FIG. The projections 41A, 41B are pushed by the distant, that is, the cam surfaces 44a, 44b with a large degree of overhang, and the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B face in parallel, and are waiting to receive the cup to be sent.

When the cup enters the cup gripping pieces 7A, 7B, the cam 42 rotates counterclockwise, and as shown in FIG.
The projection 41A of A is on the cam surface 44c, while the projection of the operating lever 38B is
41B respectively hits the cam surface 44d. As a result, both of the operating levers 38A and 38B swing and tilt upward (counterclockwise) as a whole with the support shaft 37 as a fulcrum. This situation is a movement for moving the cup toward the nozzle port 10A. The first
In the process from FIG. 0 to the state shown in FIG.
The operation of FIG. 7 where A and 7B are slightly closed is also performed, and the operation of grasping the cup is performed.

And, after the beverage is poured, the cup is moved up and down by the cup
When it is moved in the direction of 12, and is placed on the coaster 18, the cam 42 rotates again, and the projections 41A, 41B on the cam surface 44b as shown in FIG.
Will be hit in common. In this situation the projections 41A, 41B
Will hit the cam surface 44b whose distance from the cam rotation shaft 43 is short, so that the operating levers 38A and 38B are rotated in directions repelling each other by the tensile spring force of the springs 40A and 40B, and the cup gripping piece 7A , 7B open and release the grip on the cup.

Thereafter, the cam 42 makes one rotation and returns to the state shown in FIG.
The rotation of the cam 42 is controlled by attaching a rotating disk with a projection projecting from a part of the peripheral surface to the upper end of the cam 42 (not shown). As a result, a plurality of sensors for detecting the rotation angle of the rotating disk are arranged, and the position detection sensors allow the cup holding device 5 to wait for the cup, hold the cup, and open the cup. The opening and closing of the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B can be controlled by detecting the rotation angle position of the cam 42 in the mode.

Next, the operation of the cup-type vending machine having the above configuration will be described.

In a state where the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B of the cup gripping device 5 are gripped according to the large cup, the medium cup, and the small cup to be sold,
Adjust it up and down to a height that can hold 30.

When a predetermined coin is inserted and a sales instruction is given by a customer's selection operation, the cup discharged from the cup supply device is held by the cup holding device 5.

Immediately thereafter, the cam 42 starts to rotate slightly, and the cup gripping piece 7
With A and 7B slightly closed, grasp cup 6. Further, the cam 42 continues to rotate, causing the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B to swing toward the beverage discharging nozzle 10, and the cup 6 is moved into the cup 6 as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. Face. Then, at the position, the ice and the beverage supplied from the ice machine and the beverage supply device are received by the cup 6 holding the beverage, and the beverage is injected. Anyone after the nozzle port 10A completely enters the cup 6, so that the surroundings are not stained. After injecting beverage, slide
It moves to the cup up-and-down moving device 12 side by 9A. At the position where the movement has been completed, the coaster 18 of the cup vertical moving device 12
Is lifted to receive the bottom surface of the cup 6 and put it on it, the cam 42 rotates again, and the cup gripping piece 7
A and 7B are opened as shown in FIG. 13, and the cup 6 is changed to the coaster 18. After transfer, the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B return to their original positions and wait for the next sale. Then, the cup vertical moving device 12 is operated again and the coaster
18 keeps rising. While the coaster 18 is being lifted, the selling door 3 has already been opened and the carry-out port 22 has been formed, so that the cup 6 rests on the coaster 18 and comes out from below into the selling section 1. Therefore, the customer can easily take out the cup 6 placed on the coaster 18 from the sales department 1 simply by lightly grasping the cup 6. In addition, since the sales department 1 is provided at a higher position than in the past, the customer can take it out without having to bend down low, and there is no difficulty.

After the removal of the cup 6, the coaster 18 descends to its original position, waits for the next cup transfer, and ends a series of selling operations.

In the cup feeding path, when the cup is clogged or is held in a tilted state, it is detected by the cup clogging detection sensor 22 and the cup gripping pieces 7A and 7B are slightly opened to correct the posture and correct gripping. State.

(G) Effect of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, after the open / close cup gripping piece that grips the cup to be fed is gripped, the cup gripping pieces on both the left and right sides are also rotated in the same direction. As a result, the nozzle was shaken toward the beverage discharge nozzle and the nozzle outlet of the beverage discharge nozzle was positioned in the mouth of the cup.
Anyone after the beverage from the nozzle opening, which occurs towards the end of the beverage injection, can be completely contained in the cup.

Therefore, the problem of providing the customer with a dirty cup by the customer can be solved, and the sales department that takes out the beverage with the cup can also be prevented from being stained by the dripping of the beverage, as in the related art, so that a clean sales department can be obtained. be able to.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an entire appearance of a cup-type vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an external structural view of a selling mechanism showing a process of injecting a beverage into a cup and moving the cup after the infusion. FIG. 4 is an external configuration diagram of the vending mechanism showing the situation immediately after the transfer to the cup lifting / lowering device, FIG. 4 is an external configuration diagram of the vending mechanism showing the situation where the cup appears from below in the vending department, and FIG. FIG. 6 is a side view schematically showing a configuration of a main part of the sales mechanism, FIG. 6 is a plan view mainly showing an operation of a cup gripping piece in a cup receiving waiting state, and FIG. 7 is an operation of a cup gripping piece in a cup gripping state. FIG. 8 is a plan view mainly showing the operation of the cup gripping piece in a state of being swung toward the beverage injection nozzle after gripping the cup, FIG. 9 is a plan configuration view of the cup gripping device, FIG. The figure shows the cup holder in the cup waiting state. FIG. 11 is a plan view of the apparatus, FIG. 11 is a plan view of the cup holding apparatus showing a state in which the cup has been slightly moved to the beverage injection nozzle side after holding the cup, and FIG. 12 is a view showing the cup holding apparatus releasing the cup holding. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a state in which the state of FIG. 1 ... sales department, 5 ... cup holding device, 6 ... cup,
7A, 7B …… Cup gripping piece, 10 …… Beverage discharge nozzle, 10A…
... Nozzle port, 37 ... Support shaft, 42 ... Cam, 44a, 44b, 44
c, 44d: cam surface, P ...

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cup-type vending machine in which a cup is sent out at the start of a selling operation and a beverage is poured out into the cup by a nozzle for sale, and a proximal pivot supporting both sides of the delivered cup. Having an openable / closable cup gripping piece,
After the cup is gripped, the cup is moved by rotating the cup gripping pieces on both sides in the same direction with the base pivot portion of the cup gripping point as a fulcrum, and the operation is controlled so that the nozzle port is located in the cup port. A cup-type vending machine comprising a cup gripping device.