JP4025085B2 - Product carrying device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a product carry-out device of a vending machine that sells products in paper packs, cans, bottles or plastic bottles.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, as this type of product carry-out device, as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-108941, a plurality of product storage units that stack and store products in the vertical direction and a width between each product storage unit are used. 2. Description of the Related Art A vertically hollow partition member that partitions in a direction and a carry-out unit attached to the lower end side of the partition member are known.
[0003]
The carry-out unit has a rotatable opening / closing plate that opens and closes the lower surface of the product storage unit, a substantially semicircular rotation regulating plate that restricts the downward rotation of the opening / closing plate in a substantially horizontal position, and a width within the product storage unit. The product holding plate is provided so as to be able to project and retract in a direction, and a cam-like contact member that projects the product holding plate into the product storage portion by contacting a predetermined portion of the product holding plate. In this carry-out unit, when an arbitrary product is selected, the product holding plate protrudes into the product storage unit and is locked to the second product from below the product storage unit, thereby holding the second product from below. The product is held in the product storage unit by the plate, and in this state, the rotation restriction of the opening / closing plate by the rotation restriction plate is released, so that the opening / closing plate is rotated downward by the weight of the lowest product, and the lowest product is It is designed to drop out from the product storage unit.
[0004]
As shown in FIG. 13, the partition member 1 is attached to a storage plate 2 having a U-shaped cross section, and its lower end side is formed shorter than the storage plate 2. That is, the lower end side of each product storage unit 3 is partitioned by the carry-out unit 4 attached to the lower end of the partition member 1.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, side plates 4b are attached to the carry-out unit 4 so as to cover both side surfaces of the unit main body 4a in the width direction, and the side plates 4b form partition walls in the product storage section 3. In this case, since the carry-out unit 4 is attached by inserting the upper end portion into the partition member 1 as shown in FIG. 14, a step is formed between the side surface of the partition member 1 and the side plate 4b. There was a risk of unloading.
[0006]
Further, the width dimension T of the partition member 1 is a dimension including the width dimension T2 of the unit body 4a of the carry-out unit 4 and the thickness T3 of each side plate 4b in addition to the plate thickness T1 of each side surface of the partition member 1. For this reason, there existed a problem that the width dimension T of the partition member 1 became large and the whole apparatus enlarged in the width direction.
[0007]
Further, in the commodity carry-out device, the opening / closing plate is urged by a spring so as to rotate to a predetermined position above the rotation restriction position by the rotation restriction plate, and interlocked with the rotation of the opening / closing plate to the upper position. Some of them are designed to detect sold out items. That is, when there is a product in the product storage unit, the opening and closing plate does not rotate upward due to the weight of the product, but when the product in the product storage unit is sold out, the opening and closing plate is rotated to the upper position by a spring and interlocked with this. The sold-out detection switch detects whether the product has been sold out.
[0008]
However, in the above configuration, since the opening / closing plate is biased upward by the spring, when the product is carried out, the unloaded product always rotates the opening / closing plate while receiving the biasing force of the spring against the weight of the product. In the case of a small and light product, the opening and closing operation of the opening / closing plate is slow, and in some cases, there is a problem that unloading failure occurs.
[0009]
In addition, the product holding plate protrudes into the product storage portion by the contact of the abutting member. However, since the protruding amount is constant, the protruding amount is always appropriate according to the outer dimensions of the product. There is a risk that unsatisfactory carry-out may occur due to an inappropriate amount of protrusion.
[0010]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a product carry-out apparatus that can reliably prevent a carry-out failure of a product.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, in claim 1 , a product storage unit for stacking and storing products in a vertical direction, and a product storage unit that is rotatably attached to a lower end side of the product storage unit in a vertical direction. An opening and closing plate that opens and closes the lower surface of the product, a rotation restricting member that restricts the downward rotation of the opening and closing plate at a predetermined position, and a product holding member that appears and disappears in the width direction in the product storage unit. The second product from the lower side is held in the product storage unit by projecting into the storage unit and being locked to the second product from the lower side of the product storage unit. In the product carry-out device in which the opening / closing plate is rotated downward by releasing the rotation restriction so that the lowest product is dropped from the product storage unit, the opening / closing plate is rotated by a rotation restriction member. Rotate to a predetermined position above The first biasing means for turning off, the sold-out detecting means for detecting the sold-out of the product in conjunction with the turning of the opening / closing plate to the predetermined position, and the turning restricting member to restrict the downward turning. And an auxiliary member that is locked to the opening and closing plate and rotates downward together with the opening and closing plate when the rotation restriction of the rotation restricting member is released, and a second urging means that urges the auxiliary member downward. ing.
[0012]
As a result, when there is no product in the product storage section, the opening / closing plate is rotated upward by the first biasing means, and the sold-out detection means interlocked therewith detects that the product has been sold out. Further, since the opening / closing plate is rotated downward together with the auxiliary member by the urging force of the second urging means when the product is carried out, the lower surface of the product storage portion is forced by the opening / closing plate not depending on the weight of the product. Is released.
[0013]
According to a second aspect of the present invention , there is provided a product storage unit for stacking and storing products in the vertical direction, an opening / closing plate for opening and closing a lower surface of the product storage unit, and a product holding member provided in the product storage unit so as to be able to appear and disappear in the width direction An abutting member for projecting the product holding member into the product storage unit by contacting the predetermined part of the product holding member, and projecting the product holding member into the product storage unit from the bottom of the product storage unit In the product carry-out apparatus in which the second product from the lower side is held in the product storage unit by being locked to the product, and the lowermost product is dropped from the product storage unit by rotating the open / close plate downward in this state. The projecting amount of the product holding member into the product storage portion can be arbitrarily adjusted by changing the contact position of the contact member with the product holding member.
[0014]
Thereby, it can be set as the suitable protrusion amount according to the external dimension of goods by adjusting the protrusion amount of the goods holding member in the goods storage part arbitrarily.
[0015]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the commodity carry-out device according to the second aspect, the contact member is provided with a plurality of contact portions corresponding to contact positions with the commodity holding member, and each contact portion is in surface contact with the commodity holding member. While forming with an inclined surface, it forms so that the inclination angle of a one part contact part may differ from the inclination angle of another contact part.
[0016]
Thereby, in addition to the operation of the second aspect , since the protruding amount of the product holding plate becomes a protruding amount corresponding to the inclination angle of each contact portion, the protruding amount of the product holding plate by each contact portion is always made accurate. Can do. In this case, since the product holding plate and the inclined surface of each contact portion are in surface contact with each other, wear of parts due to local contact does not occur.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 to FIG. 12 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front sectional view of a main part of a product carrying-out apparatus, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view thereof, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a carrying-out unit, and FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the main part, FIGS. 6 and 7 are explanatory views of the operation of the opening and closing plate, FIG. 8 is a side view of the product holding plate and the contact member, FIG. 9 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. The operation explanatory view, FIGS. 11 and 12 are operation explanatory views of the commodity carry-out device.
[0018]
This product carry-out device is used in a vending machine for products enclosed in cans, bottles, paper packs, PET bottles, etc., and includes a plurality of product storage units that stack and store products A one by one in the vertical direction. 10 and a carry-out unit 20 for carrying out the products A in each product storage unit 10 one by one from below.
[0019]
Each product storage unit 10 is partitioned in the width direction by a total of two vertical hollow partition members 11, and the partition members 11 are attached to a storage plate 12 having a U-shaped cross section that covers the side surface and the back surface of the product storage unit 10. ing. That is, a total of two product storage portions 10 partitioned by the partition member 11 are formed in the storage plate 12, and these are arranged in parallel in a plurality of width directions. Further, openings 11 a and 11 b for exposing a part of the carry-out unit 20 are provided on the lower end side of the partition member 11.
[0020]
The carry-out unit 20 includes a unit main body 21 inserted into the partition member 11, a pair of opening / closing plates 22 that open and close the lower surface of each product storage unit 10, and a pair of product holding plates 23 that appear and disappear in each product storage unit 10. A rotation restricting plate 24 that restricts the downward rotation of the opening / closing plate 22 at a substantially horizontal position, a pair of auxiliary plates 25 that are locked to the opening / closing plate 22 and rotated downward, and the opening / closing plate 22 upward. A first spring 26 that biases the auxiliary plate 25 downward, a second spring 27 that biases the auxiliary plate 25 downward, a motor 28 that drives each opening / closing plate 22 and each product holding plate 23, and each product holding plate 23. The contact member 29 is protruded into each product storage unit 10 and a sold-out detection mechanism 30 for detecting the sold-out of each product storage unit 10.
[0021]
The unit main body 21 is formed so as to cover the front surface, the upper surface, and the rear surface of the carry-out unit 20, and both side surfaces thereof are open. Reinforcing members 21a and 21b are attached to the substantially central and lower end sides of the unit main body 21 in the vertical direction.
[0022]
Each opening / closing plate 22 is disposed at the lower end of each product storage unit 10, and one end side thereof is rotatably supported by the unit main body 21 via a support shaft 22 a. One end of the opening / closing plate 22 is provided with a locking piece 22b for locking to the auxiliary plate 25 and the sold-out detection mechanism 30, and a lower surface of the opening / closing plate 22 is provided with a recess 22c for receiving the auxiliary plate 25.
[0023]
Each commodity holding plate 23 is disposed above each opening / closing plate 22 and has an upper end rotatably attached to a lower end side of the slide plate 23b via a support shaft 23a. The slide plate 23b is provided on the unit main body 21 so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and an operation pin 23c for moving the slide plate 23b in the vertical direction is attached to the upper end side of the slide plate 23b. One end side of the operation pin 23c is inserted into a long hole 23d provided in the front surface of the unit body 21 so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and a plurality of grooves 23e into which the operation pin 23c can be engaged are inserted into the long hole 23d. Are provided at intervals in the vertical direction. That is, the vertical position of the product holding plate 23 can be changed by engaging the operation pin 23c with an arbitrary groove 23e.
[0024]
The rotation restricting plate 24 is formed in a substantially semicircular shape, and is rotated in the horizontal direction below each opening / closing plate 22. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, when the rotation restricting plate 24 is positioned over both the open / close plates 22, the open / close plates 22 are all restricted from rotating downward by the turn restricting plate 24. When the rotation restricting plate 24 is rotated to one of the opening / closing plates 21 side, the other opening / closing plate 22 is released from the rotation restriction and rotated downward, and the product storage portion. The lower surface of 10 is opened.
[0025]
Each auxiliary plate 25 is disposed below the opening / closing plate 22, and one end side of each auxiliary plate 25 is rotatably attached to the support shaft 22 a of the opening / closing plate 22. Further, a locking piece 25a is provided at one end of the auxiliary plate 25 so as to be locked to the locking piece 22b of the opening / closing plate 22. The locking piece 25a is opened when the opening / closing plate 22 opens by a predetermined angle φ with respect to the auxiliary plate 25. The locking piece 22b of the opening / closing plate 22 is locked.
[0026]
The first spring 26 is a torsion coil spring wound around a support shaft 22 a of the opening / closing plate 22. One end of the first spring 26 is locked to the lower surface of the opening / closing plate 22, and the other end is locked to the upper surface of the auxiliary plate 25. . That is, the opening / closing plate 22 is biased upward with respect to the auxiliary plate 25 by the first spring 26.
[0027]
The second spring 27 is a torsion coil spring wound around the support shaft 22 a of the opening / closing plate 22. One end of the second spring 27 is fixed to the reinforcing member 21 b of the unit body 21, and the other end is locked to the upper surface of the auxiliary plate 25. Yes. That is, the auxiliary plate 25 is urged by the second spring 27 so as to rotate downward. In this embodiment, torsion coil springs are used for the springs 26 and 27, but other urging means such as compression coil springs and leaf springs can also be used.
[0028]
The motor 28 is disposed on the upper portion of the unit main body 21 and is configured to be capable of normal rotation and reverse rotation. A drive shaft 28a extending to the lower end of the unit body 21 is connected to the motor 28 via a gear unit 28b, and a rotation restricting plate 24 is attached to the lower end of the drive shaft 28a. That is, the motor 28 is connected to a control unit (not shown) of the vending machine and is driven and controlled by the control unit.
[0029]
The contact member 29 is formed of a vertically long cam-like member, and is attached to the drive shaft 28a so as to rotate integrally. A plurality of concave portions 29a are provided in the radial direction of the abutting member 29 so as to be spaced apart from each other in the vertical direction, and a contact portion with the product holding plate 23 is provided below each concave portion 29a. An inclined surface 29b is formed. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, when the contact member 29 is rotated to either one by the drive shaft 28 a, the inclined surface 29 b of the recess 29 a at the corresponding position of the product holding plate 23 comes into contact with the upper back of the product holding plate 23. The product holding plate 23 is rotated toward the product storage unit 10 side. In this case, the inclined surface 29b of each concave portion 29a is formed so as to be in surface contact with the product holding plate 23, and the inclined angle of the inclined surface 29b in some of the concave portions 29a is different from the inclined surfaces 29b of the other concave portions 29a. Is formed. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the inclination angle θ1 of the inclined surface 29b in the upper concave portion 29a is formed larger than the inclination angle θ2 of the inclined surface 29b in the lower concave portion 29a. Thus, the protrusion amount L1 of the product holding plate 23 that contacts the inclined surface 29b of the upper concave portion 29a (the distance from the tip of the product holding plate 23 protruding into the product storage portion 10 to the unit body 21) is the lower concave portion. It becomes longer by ΔL than the protrusion amount L2 of the product holding plate 23 that contacts the inclined surface 29b of 29a. In this case, each of the inclined surfaces 29b may be provided so that the inclination angles are different in a total of three or more ways. In addition, the inclined surfaces 29b may be arranged in order of gradually different inclination angles in the vertical direction, or a plurality of inclined surfaces 29b having different inclination angles may be arranged in the vertical direction.
[0030]
The sold-out detection mechanism 30 includes an interlocking member 31 that moves up and down in conjunction with the opening / closing plate 22, and a micro switch 32 that is turned on / off by the up-and-down movement of the interlocking member 31. Yes. The interlocking member 31 extends from the upper end side to the lower end side of the unit main body 21, and the lower end side thereof is bent in an L shape so as to be locked to the locking piece 22 b of the opening / closing plate 22. Further, the upper end side of the interlocking member 31 is bent in an L shape so that the microswitch 32 is pressed. The microswitch 32 is disposed in the gear unit 28b of the motor 28, and protrudes to the outside with a locking portion with the interlocking member 31. That is, in this sold-out detection mechanism 30, when the opening / closing plate 22 rotates upward, the locking piece 22b of the opening / closing plate 22 is locked to the lower end side of the interlocking member 31, and the interlocking member 31 is pushed down. The contact 32a of the micro switch 32 is pressed by the upper end side of 31, and a sold-out detection signal is output to a control unit (not shown) of the vending machine. As shown in FIG. 6, when the opening / closing plate 22 is rotated downward by the weight of the product, the interlocking member 31 is lifted by a spring or the like (not shown) as the opening / closing plate 22 is rotated upward. Thus, the pressing of the contact 32a of the micro switch 32 by the upper end side of the interlocking member 31 is released, and the sold-out detection signal is not output.
[0031]
The carry-out unit 20 configured as described above has a spacer 21c disposed on the back side of the unit main body 21, is inserted into the partition member 11 from below, and is fixed to the partition member 11 by screws or the like. At that time, both side surfaces of the unit main body 21 are covered with the side surfaces of the partition member 11, and the opening / closing plates 22 and the product holding plates 23 of the carry-out unit 20 are exposed from the openings 11 a of the partition member 11. In this case, both side surfaces of the unit main body 21 are open, but are covered to the lower end side by the side surfaces of the partition member 11, so that no step is generated on the carry-out unit 20 side in the product storage unit 10. Further, since it is not necessary to separately attach a side plate to the unit main body 21, the width dimension T of the partition member 11 is equal to the plate thickness T 1 of each side surface of the partition member 11 and the width dimension T 2 of the unit main body 21. It becomes the dimension which put together.
[0032]
Next, in the commodity unloading apparatus, when the commodity A is unloaded from the commodity storage unit 10, the motor 28 of the unloading unit 20 rotates and the rotation restricting plate 24 rotates as shown in FIG. At that time, the contact member 29 rotates together with the rotation restricting plate 24, the inclined surface 29 b of the contact member 29 contacts the product holding plate 23, and the product holding plate 23 protrudes toward the product storage unit 10. Accordingly, the product holding plate 23 is locked to the second product A from below, and the product A is held by the product holding plate 23. Thereafter, when the rotation of the rotation restriction plate 24 advances, the rotation restriction of the opening / closing plate 22 and the auxiliary plate 25 by the rotation restriction plate 24 is released. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 12, the auxiliary plate 25 is rotated downward by the second spring 26, and the locking piece 25a of the auxiliary plate 25 is locked to the locking piece 22b of the opening / closing plate 22, thereby opening and closing the opening / closing plate. 22 rotates together with the auxiliary plate 25, the lower surface of the product storage unit 10 is opened, and the lowest product A is dropped and carried out.
[0033]
In addition, in the product carry-out device, when it is desired to adjust the position of the product holding plate 23 such as when the product is changed to one having a different external dimension, the product holding plate 23 is moved in the vertical direction by the operation pin 23c of the slide plate 23b. Move to any position. At that time, by aligning the product holding plate 23 with an arbitrary concave portion 29a of the contact member 29, the protruding amount of the product holding plate 23 can be set according to the inclination angle of the inclined surface 29b.
[0034]
Thus, according to the product carry-out device of the present embodiment, the unit main body 21 is formed so that both side surfaces thereof are open, and both side surfaces of the unit main body 21 are covered by the side surfaces of the partition member 11. Further, there is no step on the unloading unit 20 side in the product storage unit 10, and it is possible to reliably prevent unloading failure due to the step. In this case, since it is not necessary to separately attach a side plate to the unit main body 21, the width dimension of the partition member 11 can be reduced correspondingly, and the entire apparatus can be reduced in the width direction.
[0035]
Further, when the product A in the product storage unit 10 runs out, the first spring 26 rotates the open / close plate 22 upward, and the sold-out detection mechanism 30 linked thereto detects the sold-out product. In this case, by providing the auxiliary plate 25 that rotates the opening / closing plate 22 downward by the urging force of the second spring 27 when the product is unloaded, the product is forced by the opening / closing plate 22 regardless of its own weight. Since the lower surface of the storage unit 10 is opened, the product A can be quickly and reliably carried out without being affected by the first spring 26, and even if it is a lightweight product, it is possible to reliably prevent unloading defects. be able to.
[0036]
Further, the amount of protrusion of the product holding plate 23 into the product storage unit 10 can be arbitrarily adjusted by changing the contact position of the contact member 29 with the product holding plate 23 in the vertical direction. Can always be set to an appropriate protruding amount according to the outer dimensions of the product, and unloading failure due to an inappropriate protruding amount can be reliably prevented.
[0037]
In this case, the contact member 29 that causes the product holding plate 23 to protrude into the product storage unit 10 is provided with a plurality of inclined surfaces 29b that come into contact with the product holding plate 23, and the inclination angle of some of the inclined surfaces 29b is changed to another inclination. Since the protrusions of the product holding plate 23 are formed so as to be different from the inclination angle of the surface, the protrusion amount of the product holding plate 23 corresponds to the inclination angle of the inclined surface 29b. The accuracy can always be improved, and the reliability can be improved.
[0038]
Further, since the product holding plate 23 and the inclined surface 29b are brought into surface contact with each other, wear due to local contact does not occur, and the life of the parts can be maintained for a long time.
[0039]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the commodity carry-out device of claim 1 , the sold-out commodity is detected in conjunction with the upward rotation of the opening / closing plate by urging the opening / closing plate upward. In this case, the lower surface of the product storage portion can be opened by forcibly turning the opening / closing plate regardless of the weight of the product, so that the product can be quickly and easily affected by the urging force upward of the opening / closing plate. It is possible to reliably carry out, and it is possible to reliably prevent unloading defects even for lightweight products.
[0040]
Moreover, according to the product carrying-out apparatus of claim 2 , since the product holding plate can always be made to have an appropriate protruding amount according to the outer dimensions of the product, it is possible to reliably prevent unloading failure due to an inappropriate protruding amount. Can do.
[0041]
Further, according to the product unloading device of claim 3 , in addition to the effect of claim 2 , the amount of protrusion of the product holding plate can always be made accurate, so that the reliability can be improved and the product holding Since the member and the abutting member do not cause wear due to local contact, the life of the component can be maintained for a long time.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front cross-sectional view of a main part of a product carry-out apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a product carry-out apparatus. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a carry-out unit. FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the main part of the carry-out unit. FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory diagram of the opening and closing plate. FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory diagram of the opening and closing plate. Fig. 10 is a plan view of the product holding plate and the contact member. Fig. 10 is an operation explanatory diagram of the product holding plate and the contact member. Fig. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the product carry-out device. An exploded perspective view of a conventional product carrying-out apparatus FIG. 14 is a partially sectional front view of a conventional product carrying-out apparatus.
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Merchandise storage part, 11 ... Partition member, 21 ... Unit main body, 22 ... Opening / closing plate, 23 ... Product holding plate, 24 ... Turning control plate, 25 ... Auxiliary plate, 26 ... First spring, 27 ... Second 29 ... Contact member, 29b ... Inclined surface, 30 ... Sold out detection mechanism, A ... Product.

Claims (3)

A product storage unit that stacks and stores products in the vertical direction, an open / close plate that is pivotally attached to the lower end of the product storage unit to open and close the lower surface of the product storage unit, and a downward rotation of the open / close plate A rotation restricting member that restricts movement at a predetermined position and a product holding member that protrudes and disappears in the width direction in the product storage unit, the product holding member protrudes into the product storage unit, and the second product from below the product storage unit The second product from the lower side is held in the product storage section by being locked to, and the opening / closing plate is rotated downward by releasing the rotation restriction of the opening / closing plate by the rotation restricting member in this state. In the product carry-out device that allows the lowest product to fall from the product storage unit,
First biasing means for rotating the opening / closing plate to a predetermined position above a rotation restriction position by a rotation restriction member;
Sold-out detection means for detecting the sold-out of the product in conjunction with the rotation of the opening and closing plate to the predetermined position above,
An auxiliary member that is controlled to rotate downward by the rotation restricting member, and that is locked to the opening and closing plate when the turning restriction of the rotation restricting member is released, and rotates downward together with the opening and closing plate;
And a second urging means for urging the auxiliary member downward. A product storage unit that stores products stacked in the vertical direction, an opening / closing plate that opens and closes the lower surface of the product storage unit, a product holding member that can be projected and retracted in the width direction in the product storage unit, and a predetermined portion of the product holding member And a contact member for projecting the product holding member into the product storage unit by contacting the product, and the product holding member is projected into the product storage unit and locked to the second product from below the product storage unit. In the product carry-out device that holds the second product from the product storage unit and rotates the opening / closing plate downward in this state to drop the lowest product from the product storage unit,
The product carry-out apparatus, wherein the contact amount of the product holding member into the product storage unit can be arbitrarily adjusted by changing the contact position of the contact member with the product holding member. The contact member is provided with a plurality of contact portions corresponding to contact positions with the product holding member,
Each contact portion so as to form the inclined surface, the product holding member surface contact of claim 2, wherein the forming the inclination angle of the part of the contact portion so as to be different from the inclination angle of the other contact portion Product carry-out device.

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