JP3021780B2 - vending machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vending machine capable of cooking and selling goods.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a vending machine for cooking and selling products, there is a so-called cup type vending machine of a type in which a beverage such as coffee is cooked (mixed) and supplied to a cup for sale. Such a cup-type vending machine has a product selection (ie,
Selection of coffee from various beverages or selection of coffee type), as well as the amount of sugar and milk to be mixed with coffee, and, in the case of iced coffee, the presence or absence of ice, and the customer's preference for the product. It can be cooked and sold according to conditions. In this case, when there is no particular preference, the seller is sold under an average condition. However, customers who cannot satisfy the average condition must input the preference condition every time they sell.

For this reason, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-39295 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-128295 have a card in which the card holder always stores desired products and preference conditions, and automatically sells card information. Disclosed are vending machines each of which can be read by the machine to omit the input of a preference condition every time of sale. The difference between the two is that one uses a magnetic card, while the other uses a memory card.

[0004]

However, none of the prior arts described above allows the customer to easily rewrite the preference conditions stored in the card.

[0005] Accordingly, the present invention provides a vending machine that allows a card owner to easily rewrite the preference conditions stored in the card.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a vending machine comprising: an input device for inputting a preference condition; a card having a storage area for storing the preference condition; A reader writer, and when the card in which the preference conditions are stored in the card reader / writer is inserted, and when the preference conditions are not input to the input device, based on the preference conditions recorded in the inserted card. A sales control device that cooks a product and, when a preference condition is input to the input device, controls the product to be cooked and sold based on the input preference condition, and a card is inserted into the card reader / writer. When a preference condition is input to the input device while the operation is being performed, a document for controlling the card reader / writer to write the entered preference condition on a card. And a control unit.

[0007]

When a card in which preference conditions are stored is inserted into a card reader / writer, the sales control device controls to cook and sell products based on the preference conditions. However, when a card that does not store the preference condition is inserted, or when the customer inputs the preference condition to the input device even when the inserted card stores the preference condition, the sales control device may use the preference condition. It controls to cook and sell the product based on it. Then, at this time, the writing control device controls the card reader / writer to write the preference condition input to the input device. This makes it possible to newly write or rewrite the preference condition to the card reader / writer using the input device.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described using a cup type vending machine. FIG. 2 shows a front view of a cup-type vending machine. Reference numeral 1 denotes a vending machine main body, which has a door 2 on a front surface, a signboard portion 3 at an upper portion on a front surface of the door 2, and an operation panel at a central portion. The section 4 has a product take-out port 5 and a change return port 6 at its lower part.

The operation panel unit 4 has fifteen product selection buttons 7 for selecting a product to be purchased, a selection display unit 8 which lights up in accordance with a selectable product, and a case where money is inserted at the time of product purchase with money. A money slot 9, an input device 10 for inputting a preference condition, and a money amount display 13 are provided. The input device 10 has a raw material increase / decrease button 11 which can select the amount of the raw materials to be mixed (the amount of sugar, the amount of cream, and the amount of coffee) in two stages of increasing from the reference value and two stages of decreasing the raw material, for a total of five stages. And an increase / decrease amount display unit 12 for displaying the increase / decrease amount of the raw material in five stages of two stages of increase on the right side and two stages of decrease on the left side with the central part as a reference value. In addition, the vending machine 1 can perform payment with an IC card together with money.
Is provided. In this example, this IC
Using a card to store preference conditions, the customer
When the C card is inserted, the vending machine prepares and sells a beverage based on the preference conditions stored therein.

FIG. 2 shows an IC card payment system. An IC card 20 held by a customer and an IC card depositing machine 16 for writing a prepaid amount on the IC card 20 are shown.
And a plurality of vending machines 1 capable of performing a selling operation by inserting the IC card 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, the IC card 20 includes a CPU 21 for executing a control operation according to a program, a ROM 22 storing the program, and a RAM 23.
And rewritable nonvolatile memory (EEPRO)
M) 24, a serial communication interface 25, and a connector 27 for connecting to an external IC card reader / writer 26.

The EEPROM 24 has at least a storage unit 24.
_1, 24 _2, comprises 24 _3, the storage unit 24 ₁ personal information about the person who owns the IC card 1 that, the storage unit 24 ₂
Prepay amount in preference condition of the person carrying the IC card 20 in the memory 24 ₃ is respectively stored.

The control section of the vending machine 1 employs a master slave system as shown in FIG. 1, and a master control section 30 which is a main control section for controlling the operation of the vending machine 1.
And a plurality of terminal control units 31 to 34. The master control unit 30 transmits and receives data by polling each terminal control unit. These terminal control units 31 to 34 are constituted by a central processing unit (CPU) that executes a control operation by a program.

The terminal control unit 31 controls the money processing device 35. The terminal control unit 31 transmits the money amount information input to the money processing device 35 to the master control unit 30, and the change information transmitted from the master control unit 30. The change dispensing operation of the money handling apparatus 35 is controlled based on.

The terminal control unit 32 transmits and receives data to and from the IC card 20 through the IC card reader / writer 26. Data on the preference conditions stored in the IC card 20 is transmitted to the IC card reader / writer 26. This data is sent to the master control unit 30
To the IC card reader / writer 26, and data of the preference condition for recording on the IC card 20 sent from the master control unit 30.

The terminal control section 33 controls the commodity selection button 7, the selection display section 8, the input device 10, and the price display 13, and the commodity selection button 7 indicates a selection indicating the kind of commodity selected by the operation. The data is transmitted to the master control unit 30, and based on the display information sent from the master control unit 30, the selection display unit 8 or the increase / decrease display unit 12
The display operation of is controlled.

The terminal controller 34 controls the vending machine 36. When the vending machine 36 receives the blending data from the master controller 21, the vending machine 36 takes out the ingredients based on the blending data, blends the ingredients, and fills the cup. And sends it out to the product outlet 5.

The IC card reader / writer 26 has a CPU 40 for executing a control operation in accordance with a program. The CPU 40 has a ROM 43 storing an operation program via a bus line 41, a RAM 44, and a serial communication interface. Interface 45 and an I / O interface 46. The CPU 40 connects the serial communication terminals TXD and RXD to the terminal control unit 32. In addition, the IC card reader / writer 26
A power supply circuit 47 for supplying power to the IC card 20;
A clock circuit 48 for supplying a clock CLK and a reset signal generating circuit 49 for supplying a reset signal RST are provided.

A transport mechanism 50 for transporting the IC card 20 inserted into the insertion slot 15 is connected to the I / O interface 46, and the IC card reader / writer 26 receives the IC card 20. When this is done, the transport mechanism 5
0, and the connector 11 of the IC card 20 is connected to the electrical contact. Thus, the power, the clock CLK, and the reset signal RST are supplied to the IC card 1, and the serial communication interface 45 is connected to the serial communication interface 45 through the connector section 11 of the IC card 20.
Connected to face 9. When the IC card 20 is connected to the IC card reader / writer 26, the CPU 20 sends predetermined check data to the IC card reader / writer 26, and the IC card reader / writer 26 that has received the check data further transfers the check data to the terminal control unit 32. I do. Upon receiving the check data, the terminal control unit 32 checks the suitability of the IC card 20 inserted into the IC card reader / writer 26 based on the check data, and if the check data matches, the storage units 24 ₁ , 24 ₂ , 24 _{3 of the} EEPROM 24. Is transmitted to the IC card 20 through the IC card reader / writer 26. IC card 20
When the password is received, the CPU 21 checks the appropriateness, and if the password is appropriate, allows the terminal control unit 32 to access the storage units 24 ₁ , 24 ₂ , and 24 ₃ .

The writing of the prepaid amount can be performed by a predetermined IC card depositing machine. In this case, the IC card depositing machine includes an IC card reader / writer similar to the IC card reader / writer 26,
Of the prepaid amount into the IC card depositing machine and I
By setting the C cards, IC card 2 in the storage unit 24 ₂ of the IC card is the total amount of the prepaid amount and the amount which has been stored up to now written as a new prepaid amount
0 is returned to the customer.

The operation of the vending machine 1 when the IC card 20 is inserted will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. At this time, the terminal control unit 32 and the IC card 20
The above check data and password are exchanged via the IC card reader / writer 26, and as a result, the terminal control unit 32 stores the storage units 24 ₁ , 24 _{2 of} the EPROM 24,
It is assumed that in a state capable of 24 ₃ of access. The master control unit 30, for transmitting the display data storage amount in the storage unit 24 ₂ of EPROM24 of IC card 20 sent from the terminal control unit 32 to the terminal control unit 33, amount display unit 13 is the terminal control The money amount information stored in the IC card 20 is displayed under the control of the unit 33.

First, in step S1, the master control unit 30 instructs the terminal control unit 32 to transmit the preference condition data stored in the IC card 20. The terminal control unit 32, the preference condition in the storage unit 24 ₃ of EEPROM24 the IC card 20 is stored, and transmits this preference condition data in the master control unit 30. When the master control unit 30 receives the preference condition data from the terminal control unit 32, the process proceeds to step S2, and stores the received preference condition data in the buffer storage unit 30A provided therein.
The preference condition data indicates the amounts of sugar, cream, and coffee, and the amounts of sugar, cream, and coffee are set to 0 as a predetermined reference amount, and the amounts increased and decreased from +2, +1, -1, and It is represented by -2.

If the preference condition is not stored in the IC card 20, the preference condition data is not transmitted to the master control unit 30, and in this case, the process of step S3 is performed, and the master control unit 30 executes the process of the preset reference. The preference condition data indicating the amount is stored in the buffer storage unit 30A.

In the next step S4, display data for displaying the preference condition data stored in the buffer storage unit 30A in five stages on the increase / decrease amount display unit 12 is transmitted to the terminal control unit 33. Therefore, in the increase / decrease amount display section 12, I
When the preference condition is stored in the C card 20, the preference condition is displayed, and when the preference condition is not stored, the reference preference condition is displayed. As a result, the customer can check the increase / decrease amount display section 12 and can operate the raw material increase / decrease button 11 to change the preference condition.

In step S5, the master control unit 30 instructs the terminal control unit 33 to transmit the preference condition data, and checks whether the preference condition has been changed by operating the material increase / decrease button 11. The terminal control unit 33 includes:
When the raw material increase / decrease button 11 of the input device 10 is operated by the customer, a value indicating a change from the reference set value is transmitted to the terminal control unit 33 as preference condition data. When the master control unit 30 receives the preference condition data, the process proceeds to step S6, and this data is stored in the buffer storage unit 30.
Store in A. In the next step S7, display data for displaying this preference condition in five steps on the increase / decrease amount display unit 12 is transmitted to the terminal control unit 33, and the terminal control unit 33 transmits the change amount display unit 12 based on the display data. Drive. Therefore, the content changed by the customer operating the raw material increase / decrease button 11 is displayed on the increase / decrease amount display section 12. Then, the master control unit 30 returns to the process of step S5, and thereafter checks whether there is an input for changing the preference condition.

When it is determined in step S5 that there is no input for changing the preference condition, the processing of the master control unit 30 becomes the processing of step S8. In step S8,
The master control unit 30 instructs the terminal control unit 33 to transmit selection data, and when the product selection button 7 is operated by the customer, the terminal control unit 33 transmits selection information indicating the type of the selected product. When the master control unit 30 receives the selection data, the process of step S9 is performed. However, when the selection data is not transmitted, the process of step S5 is performed again. Therefore, before the product selection button 7 is not operated, the customer can operate the raw material increase / decrease button 11 to arbitrarily adjust and input the amount of the raw material to be prepared. You can check.

In step S9, the IC card 20
To determine whether less card balance written in the storage unit 24 ₁ of the EEPROM 24. If the result of the determination is that the card balance is equal to or higher than the price of the product, the difference data is transmitted to the terminal control unit 32 in the next step S10. Thereby, the terminal control unit 32 for writing the difference in the storage unit 24 ₁ and controls the IC card reader writer 26, the IC card 10 stores the updated card balance information after discontinued.

In step S11, the master control unit 30 prepares compounding data based on the preference condition data stored in the buffer storage unit 30A and transmits it to the terminal control unit 34. The blending data is data indicating the amount of each raw material to be taken out according to the preference condition, and the terminal control unit 34 controls the raw material sending time of each raw material storage container according to this data, so that the raw material in the amount indicated by the data is obtained. Taken out. Then, the terminal control unit 34 controls the dispensing device 36 to mix the extracted raw materials, pour the raw materials into a cup, and send the raw materials to the product outlet 5.

Then, in step S12, the master control unit 30 transmits the preference condition data stored in the buffer storage unit 30A to the terminal control unit 32. As a result, the terminal control unit 32 sets the IC card reader / writer 26
Control to the stores the preference condition data in the memory 24 ₃ of the card 20. After that, the master control unit 30 controls the IC card reader / writer 26 to eject the IC card 20 and terminate the sales by the IC card 20.

If it is determined in step S9 that the remaining amount of the card is less than the commodity price, the flow proceeds to the sales processing at the time of insertion of money.

In the vending machine 1 described above, the master control unit 30 and the terminal control unit 34 operate when the IC card 20 in which the preference conditions are stored in the IC card reader / writer 26 is inserted. When the preference condition is not input to the input device 10, the product is cooked based on the preference condition recorded on the IC card 20, and when the preference condition is input to the input device 10, the product is cooked based on the input preference condition. Each of which has a function as a sales control device for controlling the sales to be performed.
And the terminal control unit 32, when the IC card 20 is inserted into the IC card reader / writer 26, the input device 10
Has a function as a writing control device that controls the IC card reader / writer 26 so that when the preference condition is input to the card, the input preference condition is written to the card.

Then, the IC card reader / writer 26
Is stored as follows. That is, an IC card 20 in which no preference condition is stored is inserted, and the material increase / decrease button 11
Is operated and the preference condition is input, the input preference condition is stored in the IC card 20. Further, if the raw material increase / decrease button 11 is not operated even if the IC card 20 in which the preference condition is not stored is inserted, the reference preference condition is stored in the IC card 20. When the customer operates the raw material increase / decrease button 11 even if the IC card 20 storing the preference condition is inserted, it is determined that the preference condition has been changed, and the changed preference condition is stored in the IC card 20. Is done.

[0033]

According to the present invention, a card 2 is provided by using a switch provided in a vending machine to increase or decrease the amount of raw materials.
Since the preference condition can be stored in 0, the owner of the card can easily rewrite the preference condition stored in the card.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control circuit of a vending machine.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a front panel of the cup-type vending machine.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an IC card and an IC card reader / writer;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an operation when an IC card is inserted into a vending machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vending machine 10 Input device 20 IC card 26 IC card reader / writer 30 Master control part 32 Terminal control part of IC card reader / writer 36 Terminal control part of vending machine

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A vending machine capable of cooking and selling a product according to a customer's preference condition, comprising: an input device for inputting the preference condition; and a card having a storage area for storing the preference condition. A card reader writer, when a card in which the preference conditions are stored in the card reader writer is inserted, and when the preference conditions are not input to the input device, the preference conditions recorded in the inserted card A sales control device that cooks a product based on the preference condition and controls the product to be sold based on the entered preference condition when the preference condition is input to the input device; When the preference condition is input to the input device when the input device is inserted, the card reader / writer is configured to write the entered preference condition to a card. Gosuru vending machine and a writing control unit.