JP4258087B2 - vending machine - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vending machine, and more particularly, to a vending machine that includes a hanging rack that can sell a wide variety of products and that can see through the products and their sales operations.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, vending machines that can inspire customers to purchase products and view the products in the warehouse and the sales operations of the products have been provided. Such vending machines are equipped with racks for storing and transporting products, and the types of such racks are known as so-called spiral racks, conveyor racks, pusher racks, etc., depending on the product transport mode. ing.
[0003]
Each of these racks is configured to be able to hold the same type of product at a predetermined pitch, and is configured to be able to transport the product by sending out the spiral, conveyor, and pusher by the pitch based on the sales command. .
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the spiral racks, conveyor racks, and pusher racks are suitable for selling similar products with the same shape and size, but are not suitable for selling a wide variety of products. There was a problem.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide a vending machine capable of selling a wide variety of products.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-described object, an automatic vending machine according to claim 1 of the present invention includes an endless transport body in which hooks for hanging a product are arranged at a pitch corresponding to the size of the product, and the transport. When the hook in a state where the product is suspended is moved to a predetermined position on the basis of a sales command and a carrier driving device that drives the body, the hook is swung in a posture in which the tip side is flipped upward, A hanging rack having a hook swinging device for dropping the hung product, and the hook is hung by the posture maintaining means provided on the carrier corresponding to the hook. It is possible to maintain the posture in the lowered state and the posture in which the tip end side is flipped upward, and it is possible to detect that the posture is a posture in which the tip end side is flipped upward .
[0007]
An absolute address (address) is assigned in advance to each hook disposed on the carrier. The sensor detects the home position of the carrier, the address of each hook, and the product presence / absence information. At this time, since the posture maintaining means provided on the transporting body corresponding to each hook can maintain the posture of the hook according to the presence or absence of the product for each hook , it is easy to determine the presence or absence of the product by the sensor. . The person who wishes to purchase the product rotates the carrier and confirms the product suspended from the hook, the product number, the price, and the like. Then, when the product number is input and the required amount is paid, the transport body rotates based on the sales instruction, the hook on which the desired product is suspended moves to the front of the hanging rack and stops, and X- The bucket moves below the hook by the operation of the Y transport mechanism.
[0008]
Then, by the operation of the hook swinging device, the hook is flipped up, the product comes off the hook, and falls into the bucket. The hook jumping up, that is, the falling of the product is detected by the sensor, and the bucket is moved from the XY transport mechanism to the product delivery position based on the signal, and the product is carried out from the product take-out port. In this way, a wide variety of products can be sold.
[0009]
The vending machine according to claim 2 of the present invention is the vending machine according to claim 1, wherein when a product having a width wider than the pitch of the hooks is hung on the hook, the hook adjacent to the hook is Ru Monodea to maintain the posture flipped up the front end side upward. Thereby, wide goods can be sold and the kind of goods which can be sold can be increased.
[0010]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the vending machine according to the first or second aspect is capable of confirming the product suspended from the hook in the posture in which the tip of the hook is flipped upward. it is Ru can be visibly display such product information. As a result, it is possible to easily check the sold-out products and replenish them.
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of a vending machine according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.
[0012]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main part showing a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view showing a hook swing mechanism of a hanging rack, and FIG. 3 is a side view showing a hanging rack. 4 is a plan view showing the suspension rack, FIG. 5 is a front view showing the suspension rack, FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the main part of the hook swing mechanism, and FIG. 7 is a front view showing the hook. 8 is a side view showing the hook, and FIG. 9 is a bottom view showing the hook.
[0013]
10 is a plan view (a) and a side view (b) showing a chain structure for hanging a hook, and FIG. 11 is a plan view (a) and a side view (b) showing another chain structure. FIG. 12 is a plan view (a) and a side view (b) showing the chain structure for the home position, FIG. 13 is a partial sectional view showing the posture holding mechanism of the hook, and FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing the leaf spring. 15 is a front view schematically showing the vending machine, FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing a state in which an outer door of the vending machine is opened, and FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing an XY transport mechanism. is there.
[0014]
First, the overall configuration of the vending machine will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 16, the main body case 1 stores and preserves products and carries out the products as necessary. The main case 1 includes an outer door 2 having a transparent plate 2a, an inner door 3 having a transparent plate 3a, Is openable and closable. The main body case 1 is provided with a suspension rack 4 as a main part of the present invention on the upper inner wall surface 1a, and a spiral rack 5 and a conveyor rack 6 below the suspension rack 4. The spiral rack 5 and the conveyor rack 6 are supported by a rack support plate 1b provided in the main body case 1, and are configured so that the installation positions can be changed from each other. Note that the internal temperature of the main body case 1 can be maintained at a predetermined temperature (for example, three temperature modes of normal temperature, low temperature, and refrigeration) according to the product to be handled.
[0015]
Inside the inner door 3, an XY transport mechanism 7 is provided in which the front surfaces of the racks 4, 5, and 6 are XY coordinate planes. As shown in FIG. 17, the XY transport mechanism 7 includes an X-axis transport unit 7a that moves in the horizontal direction with respect to the racks 4, 5, and 6, and a Y-axis transport unit 7b that moves in the vertical direction. Has been. The X-axis transport unit 7a is provided with a bucket 8 that receives a product. This bucket 8 is fixed to a timing belt 9 and is driven by an X-axis motor 11 via a speed reduction mechanism 10. The bucket 8 is provided with an opening (not shown) for receiving products from the racks 4, 5, 6, and the bottom of the bucket 8 is connected to the product outlet 17 via a carry-out door 16. A conveyor (not shown) for carrying out the goods is provided.
[0016]
The Y-axis transport unit 7b includes a rail unit 12 that slides and supports the X-axis transport unit 7a, a rotary shaft 13 that passes over the top of the rail unit 12, and a Y-axis motor 14 that rotates the rotary shaft 13. Have. The X-axis transport unit 7 a is fixed to the timing belt 15 and is driven up and down by the Y-axis motor 14. The X-axis motor 11 and the Y-axis motor 14 are controlled by a control unit (not shown).
[0017]
Further, on the front surface of the outer door 2, as shown in FIG. 15, a numeric keypad 18 for selecting a product, a display 19, a bill insertion slot 20, a coin insertion slot 21, a coin return lever 22, a coin return slot 23, purchase A suspension rack rotation button 24 for moving the commodity on the suspension rack 4 to confirm the desired commodity, a commodity outlet 17 communicating with the carry-out door 16, and the like are provided. On the other hand, on the back surface of the outer door 2, a bill validator (not shown) for identifying and storing an inserted bill, a coin processing mechanism 25 for identifying and storing a coin, a cash box 26 for collecting coins, a control unit (see FIG. And a keyboard 27 for performing an input operation to (not shown).
[0018]
Next, the hanging rack 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the hanging rack 4 includes a main body 30 having a substantially rectangular planar shape, sprockets 32 rotatably disposed at four corners of the main body 30, and the surroundings of the main body 30 by the sprockets 32. An endless chain 34 that rotates along the shaft 34, a chain drive mechanism 36 that applies a driving force to the sprocket 32 to rotate the chain 34 forward and backward, and a chain 34 that is detachable and swingable at a predetermined pitch. And a hook 38 for hanging the product G and a hook swinging mechanism 40 for swinging the hook 38 and dropping the product G.
[0019]
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the main body 30 is provided with a locking hole 30a for hooking the tip of an L-shaped locking piece 1c projecting from the upper inner wall surface 1a, and the tip is screwed. A screw hole 30b for fastening is provided. As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the L-shaped locking piece 30c protruding from the upper surface of the main body 30 has a locking hole 1e of the locking piece 1d protruding from the upper inner wall surface 1a. It has a screw hole 30e for hooking the tip end to the screw and fixing with the screw 30d.
[0020]
The chain drive mechanism 36 includes a motor 41, a pulley 42 provided to the motor 41 via a speed reduction mechanism, a pulley 43 provided coaxially to one sprocket 32, and the driving force of the motor 41 from the pulley 42 to the pulley 43. And a belt 44 to be transmitted to the belt. The chain 34 can be maintained at an optimum tension by a tension adjusting mechanism (not shown).
[0021]
The hook swing mechanism 40 includes a drive device 46 that reciprocates a shaft 45, and a slide plate 48 that is connected to the shaft 45 at the rear end portion and slides on the base plate 47 of the main body 30. The driving device 46 is configured to gently reciprocate the shaft 45 so that the commodity G can fall in a stable posture.
[0022]
At the tip of the slide plate 48, there is provided a pressing piece 48a formed so that the pressed piece 38a of the hook 38 can be pressed when the slide plate 48 is operated (right direction in FIG. 2). As shown in FIG. 6, the slide plate 48 is provided with a slide groove 48b, and a screw 47a provided on the base plate 47 is inserted into the slide groove 48b.
[0023]
The hook 38 is formed of a resin (for example, polyacetal), and is integrally formed from a pressed piece 38a, an engaging protrusion 38b, a contact plate 38d, a hook portion 38c, and a protruding piece 38e as shown in FIGS. Has been. The engagement protrusion 38b is formed so as to be detachably and swingably engageable with an engagement recess 52a of a chain structure 52 described later. The hook portion 38c is inclined so that the commodity G falls smoothly when the hook 38 jumps up with the engaging protrusion 38b as the rotation center.
[0024]
Further, the contact plate 38d on which the product information such as the product number and the product name is displayed on the front surface is formed to have substantially the same size as the width of the sellable product, and abuts on the upper part of the product G suspended from the hook portion 38c. In addition to stabilizing the posture, the person who hangs the product G can easily recognize the dimensions of the product that can be sold. That is, only the product G having a width dimension equal to or smaller than the mounting pitch of the hooks 38 can be easily suspended.
[0025]
The protruding piece 38e is provided so as to cause the sensor 50 to detect that the hook 38 is flipped up by the pressing piece 48a (such as a product sold out state). In addition, the product information is displayed on the bottom surface of the projecting piece 38e so that product information such as a product name can be visually recognized when the hook 38 is flipped up. For the sensor 50, for example, a transmissive photo interrupter can be used.
[0026]
The chain 34 is formed of a resin (for example, polyacetal), and as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, a necessary number of chain components 52 for hanging the hook 38, and many other chain components 53 The chain structure 54 for detecting the home position is connected to each other. As shown in FIG. 10, the engagement recess 52a of the chain structure 52 is formed so that the engagement protrusion 38b of the hook 38 is detachably and swingably engaged. As shown in FIG. 13, the recess 52 b is provided with a leaf spring 60 (see FIG. 14) for maintaining the posture of the hook 38 in a state where the hook 38 is flipped up.
[0027]
The guide piece 52 c is formed so as to sandwich the guide plate 56 of the main body 30, and prevents the chain 34 from dropping from the main body 30. The contact surface 52d is formed so as to receive a product load applied to the chain 34 by contacting the guide plate 57 of the main body 30. The projecting piece 52e is provided so as to project the position information (address) of the hook 38 to the sensor 58. The sensor 58 may be a transmissive photo interrupter, for example.
[0028]
Further, as shown in FIG. 11, the guide piece 53a of the chain structure 53 is formed so as to sandwich the guide plate 56 of the main body 30 in the same manner as the guide piece 52c. It comes to prevent. The guide piece 53a is attached to the chain structure 53 by a screw 53b, but may be formed by integral molding. The contact surface 53 c is formed so as to receive a product load applied to the chain 34 by contacting the guide plate 57 of the main body 30.
[0029]
As shown in FIG. 12, the guide piece 54 a of the chain structure 54 is formed so as to sandwich the guide plate 56 of the main body 30, and prevents the chain 34 from falling off the main body 30. The contact surface 54 c is formed so as to receive a product load applied to the chain 34 by contacting the guide plate 57 of the main body 30. The projecting piece 54d fixed to the guide piece 54a is provided so as to project the reference position information (home position) of the chain 34 to the sensor 61. The guide pieces 54a and the projecting pieces 54d are attached to the chain structure 54 by screws 54b, but may be formed by integral molding. For the sensor 61, for example, a transmissive photo interrupter can be used.
[0030]
The chain structural bodies 52, 53, and 54 formed in this way are connected so that a predetermined number of hooks 38 can be disposed according to the size of the commodity G to be handled. The chain components 52, 53, and 54 are made of resin so that they can be attached to and detached from each other, and are fitted and connected to each other, so that the connection position can be easily changed.
[0031]
As shown in FIGS. 1, 15, and 16, the two hanging racks 4 configured as described above are disposed on the inner wall upper surface 1 a of the main body 1.
[0032]
Next, an operation for preparing for selling a product will be described. Hereinafter, the operation of the hanging rack 4 which is a main part of the present invention will be described, and the description of the operations of the spiral rack 5 and the conveyor rack 6 will be omitted. First, as shown in FIG. 1, the installer of the vending machine hangs the product G on the hook 38 of the hanging rack 4 and prepares for sale. At this time, the installer can easily recognize the size of the product G that can be sold by using the width of the contact plate 38d of the hook 38 as a guide.
[0033]
Also, when suspending a product G that does not fit within the width of one hook 38, the necessary hanging pitch can be secured by flipping up the adjacent hooks 38 (sold out). Interference can be avoided. Further, the hook 38 can easily maintain the posture of the state in which the hook 38 is flipped up by the leaf spring 60 and the state in which the commodity G is suspended.
[0034]
In order to assign an absolute address (address) to each hook 38 disposed on the chain 34, the installer or the like inputs product information or the like to the control unit (not shown) by the keyboard 27 and the chain 34 1 By rotating around, the home position is detected by the sensor 61, the address is detected by the sensor 58, and the presence / absence of the product is detected by the sensor 50.
[0035]
Next, the merchandise sales operation will be described. A person who wishes to purchase a product presses the suspension rack rotation button 24 (see FIG. 15) to rotate the chain 34 and confirms the product desired to be purchased from the transparent plate 2a of the outer door 2, and is suspended from the hook 38. Check G, product number and price. Then, the merchandise number is input by the ten key button 18 and the necessary amount is paid. Then, the chain 34 rotates based on the sales instruction, the hook 38 in which the desired product is suspended moves to the front surface of the hanging rack 4 and stops, and the operation of the XY transport mechanism 7 causes the bucket 8 to It moves below the hook 38.
[0036]
Then, by the operation of the hook swing mechanism 40, the hook 38 is flipped up and the product G is detached from the hook portion 38 c and falls into the bucket 8. The jump of the hook 38, that is, the fall of the product G is detected by the sensor 50, and the bucket 8 moves to the product delivery position by the XY transport mechanism 7 based on the signal, and the product G passes through the delivery door 16. It is carried out from the product outlet 17.
[0037]
As described above, according to the vending machine according to this embodiment, since the hook 38 is disposed in the recess 52b of the chain 34 via the leaf spring 60, the posture of the hook 38 according to the presence or absence of the product G is changed. The sensor 50 can easily determine whether the product is present.
[0038]
Further, when a product G having a width wider than the pitch of the hooks 38 arranged on the chain 34 is suspended from the hook 38, the other hook 38 adjacent to the hook 38 is flipped up to increase the width. Products can be sold, and the types of products that can be sold can be increased.
[0039]
Furthermore, since the product information is displayed on the bottom surface of the protrusion 38e of the hook 38, it is possible to easily check the sold-out product G and replenish it.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the vending machine according to the present invention (Claim 1), the endless transport body that swingably holds the hook for hanging the commodity, and the transport body drive that drives the transport body. A suspension rack having a device and a hook swinging device for swinging an arbitrary hook held by the carrier based on the position information and posture information of the hook and dropping a suspended product The hook is disposed on the carrier through the posture maintaining means for maintaining the posture in which the product is suspended and the posture in which the product is not suspended. The corresponding posture of the hook can be maintained, and the presence / absence of the product can be easily determined by the sensor.
[0041]
Further, according to the vending machine according to the present invention (Claim 2), when a product having a width wider than the pitch of the hooks disposed on the carrier is suspended from the hook, the other hook adjacent to the hook. Since it is arranged in a posture in which it is flipped up, it is possible to sell a wide range of products and increase the types of products that can be sold.
[0042]
In addition, according to the vending machine according to the present invention (Claim 3), since the hook is formed so as to display the product information in the flipped-up posture, it is easy to check the sold-out product and to replenish it. It can be carried out.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a main part of a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a side view showing a hook swing mechanism of a hanging rack.
FIG. 3 is a side view showing a hanging rack.
FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a hanging rack.
FIG. 5 is a front view showing a hanging rack.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a main part of the hook swing mechanism.
FIG. 7 is a front view showing a hook.
FIG. 8 is a side view showing a hook.
FIG. 9 is a bottom view showing a hook.
FIGS. 10A and 10B are a plan view and a side view showing a chain structure for hanging a hook. FIGS.
FIG. 11 is a plan view (a) and a side view (b) showing another chain structure.
FIG. 12 is a plan view (a) and a side view (b) showing a chain structure for a home position.
FIG. 13 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a hook posture holding mechanism.
FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a leaf spring.
FIG. 15 is a front view schematically showing a vending machine.
FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing a state in which the outer door of the vending machine is opened.
FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing an XY transport mechanism.
[Explanation of symbols]
4 Suspension rack G Product 30 Main body 32 Sprocket 34 Chain 36 Chain drive mechanism 38 Hook 38a Pressed piece 38b Engagement projection 38c Hook part 38e Projection piece 40 Hook swing mechanism 46 Drive device 47 Base plate 48a Press pieces 50, 58, 61 sensor 52a engaging recess 52b recess 60 leaf spring

Claims (3)

An endless transport body in which hooks for suspending a product are arranged at a pitch according to the size of the product ;
A carrier driving device for driving the carrier;
Based on the sales instruction, when the hook with the product suspended is moved to a predetermined position, the hook is swung in a posture in which the tip side is flipped upward, and the suspended product is dropped. A suspension rack having a moving device,
The hook can be maintained in a posture in which the product is suspended and a posture in which the tip end is flipped upward by posture maintaining means provided on the transport body corresponding to the hook, A vending machine characterized in that it can detect that the tip end side is in a posture of being flipped upward . 2. When a product having a width wider than the pitch of the hooks is hung on the hook, the hook adjacent to the hook is maintained in a posture in which the tip side is flipped upward. Vending machine as described in. The hook is in posture flipped up the front end side upward, claim 1, characterized in Rukoto can visibly display the identifiable product information item which has been hung on the hook or The vending machine according to 2.

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