JP3189112B2 - Vending machine product unloading 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 unloading device for a vending machine which controls unloading of merchandise arranged in a merchandise aisle based on a sales command by inserting coins or coins.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a vending machine of this kind has a large number of rotatable rack segments 30 which are pivotally supported at one end as shown in FIGS. In a product passage 32 in which racks 31 are arranged side by side in the depth direction and in the horizontal direction, cylindrical products 33 such as cans or bottles are stored in a row in a laid state. At the lower end of each of the product racks 31, that is, at a portion near the product outlet 34, a product unloading controller 35 that controls unloading based on a sales command, Is provided with a passage regulating plate 36 for regulating the passage width in accordance with the kind of the diameter dimension of the passage.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show the mounting structure of the passage restricting plate 36. FIG. That is, the product passage 32 which is adjacent in the depth direction except for the product passage 32 at the front end.
a, 32b are provided on the passage regulating plates 36a, 3 respectively.
6b are installed with their backs facing each other.
As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, 6a and 36b have engagement shafts 37 and 38 protruding from the upper and lower sides, respectively. On the other hand, slots 40 and 41 for engaging the engagement shafts 37 and 38 are provided in the shelf side plates 39 disposed on both sides of the passage regulating plates 36a and 36b, and are provided in the case shown in FIGS. Are slots 40a and 40b, and slots 41a and 41b
Are arranged side by side as pairs of the same height. This slot 40
a, 40b, 41a, 41b, the upper slot 40
a, 40b are stepped in the front-rear direction, and the lower slots 41a, 41b are oblique in the front-rear direction, and have return portions 42 at the upper and lower ends. Then, the passage regulating plates 36a, 36
6b, the engagement shafts 37, 38 are guided by the slots 40, 41 to obtain two front and rear positions, and the product passage 3
2, so that the width in the front-rear direction can be changed according to the size of the product. The passage restricting plates 36a, 36
When displacing b, since it is guided by the slots 40 and 41, the lower part of the passage restricting plate 36 is moved up and down so as to be lifted up and down, then inclined and moved up and down. When the regulating plate 36b is inclined,
As shown by the dotted line in FIG.
a, it cannot be displaced.
The interval between the two passage regulating plates 36a and 36b must be sufficiently large. This opposed passage regulating plate 3
Since several rows of 6a and 36b are provided, this structure causes the depth dimension of the vending machine to increase. 7 and 8, the upper two slots 4 are used.
The distance between 0a and 40b in the front-rear direction is reduced, and the positions in the height direction are shifted up and down. Accordingly, the heights of the two lower slots 41a and 41b are shifted from each other.

In addition, two corresponding passage regulating plates 36
One of the flanges 43 pivotally supporting at least the lower engagement shaft 38 of the a and 36b is shifted toward the center.

In this configuration, when the width of the product passage 32 in the depth direction is adjusted according to the type of the diameter of the product,
When the upwardly displaced passage restricting plate 36b of the two corresponding passage restricting plates 36a, 36b is tilted, FIG.
The upper end is located above the passage restricting plate 36a, as described above, that is, adjustment work can be performed without disturbing the passage restricting plate 36a. On the other hand, when the passage regulating plate 36a which is shifted downward is displaced, if the passage regulating plate 36a is inclined, the above adjustment can be performed without reaching the upper end thereof to contact the corresponding passage regulating plate 36b.

Further, the flange 43 for pivotally supporting the engagement shaft 38 below the passage regulating plates 36a and 36b is located at a position shifted laterally and does not face directly, and absorbs the height of one of the flanges 43. it can. Therefore, the slots 40a and 40a
b, 41a and 41b and the absorption of one of the heights of the flange 43, the two passage restricting plates 36a, 3b.
6b can be provided in close proximity, thus this structure contributes to reducing the depth dimension of the vending machine.

As described above with reference to FIGS. 3, 5 and 6, the slot 40 with which the engaging shafts 37 and 38 of the passage regulating plate 36 engage.
a and 40b and the slots 41a and 41b are provided on the shelf side plate 39 at the same height with a slightly larger interval, or the heights are shifted as described with reference to FIGS. 4, 7, and 8, and It has been conventionally known to provide a small interval.

However, the above-described passage restricting plate 36
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, each is formed by bending the periphery of one sheet metal, and the details thereof will be described with reference to FIG. 9A is a front view of the passage regulating plate 36, and FIG. 9B is a rear view of the same.

In FIG. 9, a passage restricting plate 36 is a so-called fluff-contained portion 4 for forming a concave portion for reinforcement in one sheet metal.
4 is provided to increase the strength so that the product 33 descending along the product path 32 does not deform even if it collides.
A side edge and a lower edge of the passage regulating plate 36 are bent to form a bent wall 45, and a through hole 46 through which the engaging shaft 38 is inserted is provided below the bent wall 45 on both side edges. I have. This through hole 4
6 is fixed by a rotation preventing piece 47 so that the engaging shaft 38 does not rotate. The engaging shaft 37 is formed at the upper shoulder of the passage regulating plate 36 so as to bend a part of the sheet metal of the passage regulating plate 36 and project into a hollow cylindrical shape. It is apparent from FIGS. 5 and 7 that the engagement shafts 37 and 38 are loosely fitted into the slots 40 and 41 of the shelf side plate 39.

Since the conventional passage restricting plate 36 needs to be strong enough not to be deformed by the collision of the product 33, a bent wall 45 is provided by bending one sheet metal, or the engaging shaft 37 is formed by bending. Is formed, and the portion of the bent wall 45 having the through hole 46 through which the engagement shaft 38 is inserted has a particularly large height, so that the thickness of the passage regulating plate 36 becomes considerably large. Therefore, it is necessary to arrange a number of such thick passage restricting plates 36 in one vending machine, so that the depth dimension of the vending machine is increased.

[0011]

The conventional problem to be solved by the present invention is that the passage regulating plate bends the periphery of one sheet metal at a substantially right angle to form a bent wall. A through hole is provided in the bent wall, the lower engaging shaft is inserted, and the shoulder of the sheet metal is bent to form a hollow engaging shaft. This means that the thickness of the passage regulating plate becomes large.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a vending machine for a vending machine having a passage regulating plate below a plurality of front and rear adjacent product passages. Wherein the passage restricting plate does not have a bent wall bent at a substantially right angle and has engaging shafts protruding on both upper and lower sides, respectively, and the engaging shaft is partially formed by the passage restricting plate. The shelf side plate which is formed integrally with the passage regulating plate by pressing and has a solid cylindrical pin shape having a diameter equal to or greater than the thickness of the passage regulating plate, and which forms a side portion of the product passage. A slot is provided in which each of the engagement shafts engages, and the engagement shaft can take two front and rear positions, and a large number of the passage regulating plates are arranged in the depth direction.

[0013]

In the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, the passage restricting plate does not have a bent wall bent at a substantially right angle, and a solid cylindrical pin molded integrally with the passage restricting plate on both upper and lower sides by pressing. Since the thickness of the passage restricting plate itself is smaller than that of the conventional example whose peripheral edge is bent at a substantially right angle, a large number of passage restricting plates are arranged in the depth direction. The depth dimension of the installed vending machine itself is reduced.

[0014]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a metal passage restricting plate. Only an upper edge portion is formed as a slightly inclined slope portion 2 so that a product can easily roll, and a lower edge portion is located at a deviated position. It is provided with the formed notch portion 3 for finger hook. The thickness L of the passage restricting plate 1 is 2 mm as shown in FIG. Numeral 4 denotes a cylindrical pin-shaped solid engaging shaft integrally formed on the upper portion and the lower portion of the side portion of the passage regulating plate 1 by press working, and the diameter thereof is indicated by D in FIG. 1 (b). The conventional passage restricting plate 3 shown in FIGS.
As in the case of No. 6, it is engaged with the slot of the shelf side plate.
In order to form the engaging shaft 4, the width of the passage regulating plate is formed larger than the dimension of the final product, and the width of the portion serving as the engaging shaft is made larger than the thickness of the passage regulating plate. Cut off the other side to the same dimensions as the lateral dimensions of the final product. Then, the portion to be the engagement shaft is pressure-molded into a solid cylindrical pin shape to reduce its diameter to 3 mm. Reference numeral 5 denotes a notch provided at the base of the engaging shaft 4. The notch 5 is formed to improve the integral molding of the engaging shaft 4 with the passage restricting plate 1 and to press the cylindrical member into a cylindrical shape. It is provided so that it can be easily removed. Reference numeral 6 denotes a through hole formed substantially at the center of the passage regulating plate 1, and the engaging piece 10 of the spacer 7 is engaged with the through hole. 2A is a front view of the passage regulating plate 1 in a state where the spacer 7 is engaged, and FIG. 2B is a side sectional view thereof. A cut portion 8 is provided below the peripheral edge of the through hole 6, and the dotted line in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1C, which is an enlarged sectional side view taken along the line A, the thin portion 9 is formed so that even if the engaging piece 10 of the spacer 7 is engaged, the thickness of only that portion is not increased. Have been. The cut portion 8 serves as a so-called relief portion provided to facilitate the molding of the thin portion 9 by molding. The spacer 7 engages with the passage regulating plate 1 in order to adjust the width of the lower part of the passage of the product according to the size in the diameter direction of the product. Is used when is not appropriate. 2 (a) shows a front view when the spacer 7 is engaged with the through hole 6 of the passage regulating plate 1, and FIG. 2 (b) shows a cross section taken along the line BB in FIG. 2 (a). 2 shows a state in which the thin portion 9 absorbs the thickness of the engagement piece 10 of the spacer 7.

As described above, the passage restricting plate 1 of this embodiment has a thickness of 2 mm and a diameter of the engaging shaft 4 of 3 mm.
Since it is millimeter and solid, it has high mechanical strength.

On the other hand, the thickness of the conventional passage restricting plate 36 shown in FIGS. 3 to 9, that is, JL in FIG. 9 uses a sheet metal as thin as 1 mm. In order to reinforce it so as not to be deformed even when it is deformed, a fliccon processing portion 44 is provided, and a bent wall 45 is provided by bending the periphery substantially vertically. The bent wall 45, that is, JH in FIG.
9, ie, JD in FIG. 9 is 5 mm, and the height JP at the portion where the hole of the bent wall through which the engagement shaft 38 is inserted is 7
Millimeters. Therefore, in the conventional example in which a thin sheet metal is processed into the passage regulating plate 36, the dimension in the thickness direction is eventually increased due to reinforcement, a bent wall at the periphery, and the like.
There is a portion of the passage regulating plate 1 of the present embodiment that is much thicker than the engagement shaft 4 having the largest thickness.

As described above, even if the thickness of the metal plate is thick enough to have sufficient strength, the engagement shaft is formed into a solid cylindrical pin by pressing and molding the engagement shafts on both sides. The merchandise unloading device in which a number of passage regulating plates of the present embodiment, which are not provided with a bent wall that is bent substantially vertically, has the advantage that the depth dimension can be made smaller than before and the occupied depth is small in the installation of the vending machine on the road surface. Have

[0019]

As is clear from the above description, the passage restricting plate of the present invention is formed such that the engaging shaft engaging with the slot of the shelf side plate is formed integrally with the passage restricting plate by pressure molding. It is formed as a solid cylindrical pin with a diameter equal to or greater than the thickness, and the periphery of the passage control plate does not have a bent wall that is bent substantially vertically, so that when the product falls, The thickness is smaller than that of the conventional passage restricting plate having the reinforcing configuration only by making the plate thickness that does not deform.
Therefore, the commodity discharging device in which a number of the passage regulating plates of the present invention are arranged side by side contributes to the reduction of the depth dimension of the vending machine,
The effect is great.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1A is a front view of a passage regulating plate according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1B is a side view thereof, and FIG. 1C is an enlarged side sectional view of a main part taken along line AA in FIG.

FIG. 2A is a front view of a state in which a spacer is engaged with a passage regulating plate. FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional side view taken along line BB of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view of one embodiment of a vending machine.

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view of another embodiment of a vending machine.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of the vending machine shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged schematic side view of the main part.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of the vending machine shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged schematic side view of the main part.

9A is a front view of a conventional passage restricting plate, FIG. 9B is a rear view thereof, and FIG. 9C is a side view thereof.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 36 passage regulating plate 3 finger notch 4, 37, 38 engaging shaft 5 notch 6 through-hole 7 spacer 8 notch 9 thin part 10 engaging piece 31 product rack 32 product passage 33 product 35 product carrying controller 39 shelf side plate 40, 41 slot

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-3-75991 (JP, A) Japanese Utility Model Application No. Sho 59-96682 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Application Utility Model No. 64-10585 (JP, U) (58) Field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G07F 11/00-11/72 E03F 5/04

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A product carrying device for a vending machine having a passage regulating plate below a plurality of commodity passages adjacent to each other in front and rear, wherein the passage regulating plate does not have a bent wall bent at a substantially right angle. Each has an engagement shaft protruding on both sides of the upper and lower parts,
The engagement shaft is formed integrally with the passage restricting plate by partial pressure processing of the passage restricting plate and has a solid cylindrical pin shape having a diameter equal to or greater than the thickness of the passage restricting plate, The shelf side plate forming a side portion of the product passage is provided with a slot through which each of the engagement shafts engages, and the engagement shaft can take two front and rear positions. A number of vending machine product unloading devices arranged side by side in the depth direction. 2. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a cutout portion is provided in a portion of the passage regulating plate extending from a root portion of a solid cylindrical pin-shaped engaging shaft integrally formed and protruded from the passage regulating plate. Product unloading device. 3. At the lower edge of the passage regulating plate, while lifting the passage regulating plate, an engaging shaft provided integrally with the passage regulating plate is guided and moved into a stepped slot in the shelf side plate. 2. The product discharging device for a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a finger hook notch portion to be engaged is provided. 4. A through hole through which an engaging piece projecting from a back surface of the spacer is engaged is formed in the passage regulating plate, and a cut portion is formed in a periphery of the through hole. 2. The product unloading device of a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a thin portion is formed at a portion where the engaging piece of the spacer engages so that the engaging piece of the spacer does not protrude from the surface of the passage regulating plate.