JP4408186B2 - Vending machine product unloading device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention can sell products having various shapes and sizes, such as beverages sealed in cans, bottles, plastic bottles or paper packs, or dairy products and confectionery contained in predetermined containers such as cups. The present invention relates to a product carry-out device of a vending machine.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, as this type of vending machine, for example, as described in JP-A-10-302140, a vending machine main body having a product outlet at the front lower portion, and the width direction and vertical direction of the vending machine main body A plurality of product columns, a product bucket arranged in front of each product column so as to be movable in the width direction and vertical direction of the vending machine body, and the product bucket in the width direction and vertical direction of the vending machine body The thing provided with the moving mechanism to move to is known.
[0003]
In this vending machine, when a product is selected, the product bucket is moved to the product column corresponding to the selected product by the moving mechanism, and the product is unloaded into the product bucket by the product unloading device of the product column to accept the product. The product bucket is moved to the product take-out port by the moving mechanism, and the product in the product bucket is carried out to the product take-out port.
[0004]
In addition, the product carry-out device provided in the product column includes a pair of pulleys disposed on both ends of the device body, and an endless belt wound around each pulley, and one pulley is driven by a motor. It is known that a product in the apparatus main body is moved in a predetermined direction by a belt by being rotated in a predetermined direction and carried out from one end side of the apparatus main body.
[0005]
In this merchandise carrying-out device, when the merchandise carried out from the belt is detected by a sensor when the merchandise is carried out, the rotation of the belt by the motor is stopped. Also, if there is a product selection after the last product has been carried out, the belt starts to rotate first, and if the sensor does not detect the product for a predetermined time or longer, the product is sold out. It is to be determined.
[0006]
Further, a product locking plate is erected at a predetermined position in the circumferential direction of the belt, and the products are placed in a row on the belt with the product locking plate positioned on the other end side of the apparatus main body. The That is, the product locking plate is moved to one end side of the apparatus main body together with the product when the product is carried out.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, in the said product carrying-out apparatus, if a belt rotates after the last goods are carried out, a goods latching plate will reach the one end side of an apparatus main body, rotation of a belt will be stopped, and a sold-out state will be discriminate | determined. The pulley idles with respect to the belt. However, since a frictional force is generated between the belt and the pulley to transmit the driving force, a load is generated on the motor due to the frictional force with the belt when the pulley is idling. There was a problem such as causing the failure of the. In addition, there is a type that reduces the load on the motor by loosening the belt tension when the pulley is idling, but such a structure requires a complicated mechanism, which increases costs and enlarges the main body of the device. There is a drawback.
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a product carrying device for a vending machine that can reliably reduce the load on the motor when the pulley idles with a simple structure. There is to do.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a pair of pulleys disposed on both ends of the apparatus main body and an endless belt wound around each pulley, and one pulley is driven in a predetermined direction by a motor. In the product unloading device of the vending machine, in which the product in the apparatus main body is moved in a predetermined direction by the belt by the rotation, and is carried out from one end side of the apparatus main body, the predetermined portion in the circumferential direction of the belt is attached to the belt. On the other hand, the pulley can be idled, and the frictional force with the pulley is smaller than other portions.
[0010]
As a result, when a predetermined part in the circumferential direction of the belt reaches one pulley, if the pulley is idle with respect to the belt, the predetermined part in the circumferential direction of the belt has a smaller frictional force with the pulley than the other part. Therefore, the load on the motor when the pulley idles is reduced.
[0011]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the commodity delivery device for the vending machine according to the first aspect, the predetermined circumferential portion of the belt is formed by a non-contact portion that is in non-contact with the pulley.
[0012]
Thus, in addition to the operation of the first aspect, a predetermined portion in the circumferential direction of the belt is not in contact with the pulley, and the contact area between the belt and the pulley in this portion is reduced, so that the frictional force is reduced.
[0013]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the commodity carrying-out device of the automatic vending machine according to the second aspect, at least the low friction portion having a smaller frictional force with the belt than the central portion in the width direction is provided at least at the belt on both ends in the width direction of the pulley. It is provided so as to correspond to a part other than the non-contact part.
[0014]
Thereby, in addition to the operation of claim 2, since only the low friction portion of the pulley contacts the belt at a predetermined circumferential portion of the belt, the friction force between the belt and the pulley is also applied to portions other than the non-contact portion. Get smaller.
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIGS. 1 to 8 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front view of a vending machine equipped with a product carrying device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front sectional view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a side sectional view thereof. 4 is a side sectional view of the product column, FIG. 5 is a front view thereof, FIG. 6 is a front sectional view of an essential part thereof, FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a pulley, and FIG.
[0016]
The vending machine shown in the figure includes a vending machine body 10 having a transparent front part, a plurality of product columns 20 arranged in the width direction and the vertical direction of the vending machine body 10, and each product. Product delivery device 30 provided in each column 20, product bucket 40 that can receive product A delivered from each product column 20, and bucket moving mechanism 50 that moves product bucket 40 in the arrangement direction of each product column 20. It consists of and.
[0017]
The vending machine body 10 has an opening except for the lower part of the front surface, and this opening is covered with a transparent glass plate 10a. A product outlet 11 is provided in the lower front portion of the vending machine body 10, and a bill insertion slot 12, a coin insertion slot 13, an amount display section 14, a coin return slot 15, and a product selection operation section 16 are provided on one side of the front face. Is provided. The inside of the vending machine main body 10 may be cooled or heated to a predetermined temperature according to the type of merchandise to be sold, or may be kept at room temperature.
[0018]
Each product column 20 has a column main body 21 extending in the front-rear direction, and is provided in the vending machine main body 10 so as to be able to be drawn forward. Although a detailed description of the drawer structure of the product column 20 is omitted, for example, a well-known slide rail or the like can be used. The product column 20 includes a partition plate 22 that partitions the inside of the column main body 21 in the width direction, and the partition plate 22 is attached to a substrate 23 provided at the center in the width direction in the column main body 21. Each commodity column 20 is supported by a shelf 24 extending in the width direction for each step in the vertical direction, and each shelf 24 is vertically moved by a plurality of support columns 25 erected on both sides in the width direction in the vending machine body 10. The direction is fixed at a predetermined position.
[0019]
Two product carry-out devices 30 are provided in each product column 20, and each product carry-out device 30 of the product column 20 is disposed in the column body 21 in the width direction. The product carry-out device 30 includes a pair of pulleys 31 rotatably attached to the front end side and the rear end side of the column main body 21, an endless belt 32 wound around each pulley 31, and a front end side Composed of a gear 33 attached to the rotating shaft 31 a of the pulley 31, the product A is placed on the upper surface of the belt 32. That is, each product column 20 stores two products A with the partition plate 22 therebetween. Further, low-friction portions 31b having a smaller frictional force with the belt 32 than the center side in the width direction are provided at both ends in the width direction of the pulley 31 on the front end side. It is formed by applying a slippery surface treatment, coating or covering material. The belt 32 is formed with a width that allows the product A to be placed thereon, and a product locking plate 32a is erected at a predetermined position in the circumferential direction. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, when the product A is placed in a line on the belt 32 with the product locking plate 32a positioned on the rear end side of the apparatus body, and the product A is carried out, The stop plate 32a moves forward together with the product A. Further, a square hole 32b as a non-contact portion is provided at a predetermined position in the circumferential direction of the product locking plate 32a, and the square hole 32b is disposed in front of the product locking plate 32a. The square holes 32b are provided at portions other than both ends in the width direction of the belt 32, and are formed so that the belt 32 is not in contact with portions other than the low friction portions 31b of the pulley 31.
[0020]
The product bucket 40 is formed in a box shape that can receive the product A, and is equipped with a motor 41 for driving the product carry-out device 30. A gear (not shown) is connected to the motor 41, and when the product bucket 40 moves to an arbitrary product column 20, the gear on the product bucket 40 side meshes with the gear 33 of the product carry-out device 30, and the rotational force of the motor 41 Is transmitted to the gear 33. Further, the motor 41 and the gears of the product bucket 40 are provided on both sides in the width direction in the product bucket 40 corresponding to each product carry-out device 30 of the product column 20.
[0021]
The bucket moving mechanism 50 includes a first drive unit 51 that moves the product bucket 40 in the width direction and a pair of second drive units 52 that move the first drive unit 51 in the vertical direction. The drive units 52 are respectively disposed on both sides in the width direction in the vending machine 10. The first drive unit 51 includes a guide rail 51a that movably supports the product bucket 40, and a motor 51b that moves the product bucket 40, and the second drive unit 52 allows the first drive unit 51 to move. It consists of a guide rail 52a to be supported and a motor 52b for moving the first drive unit 51. In this bucket moving mechanism 50, the position of the commodity column 20 is detected by the position detection means such as an optical sensor in the width direction and the vertical direction, so that the commodity bucket 40 can be moved to any commodity column 20 or The product is moved to the product outlet 11.
[0022]
In the vending machine configured as described above, when money is inserted and a product is selected, the product bucket 40 is moved to the product column 20 corresponding to the selected product by the bucket moving mechanism 50, and The motor 41 rotates. At that time, since the products A are stored in two columns in the width direction in the product column 20, only the motor 41 corresponding to the column in which the selected products are stored operates. As a result, the rotational force of the motor 41 is transmitted to the gear 33 on the product column 20 side, the belt 32 of the product carry-out device 30 rotates, the product A moves forward, and the product A on the front end side on the belt 32 moves. It is carried out into the product bucket 40. At that time, when the unloaded merchandise A is detected by a sensor (not shown), the motor 41 stops and the merchandise bucket 40 containing the merchandise A moves to the merchandise take-out port 11 by the bucket moving mechanism 50. Then, the bottom plate (not shown) of the product bucket 40 is opened, and the product A in the product bucket 40 is carried out to the product take-out port 11.
[0023]
In addition, after the last product in one product row of the product column 20 is carried out, when the product is selected, the product bucket 40 moves to the product column 20 as described above. Next, when the belt 32 is rotated by the motor 41 and the state where the sensor does not detect the product continues for a predetermined time or more, it is determined that the product is sold out.
[0024]
At that time, the pulley 31 idles with respect to the belt 32 until the sold-out state is determined, but when the square hole 32b of the belt 32 moves to the pulley 31 on the front end side, the peripheral surface of the pulley 31 corresponding to the square hole 32b is It is not in contact with the belt 32. As a result, the contact area between the belt 32 and the pulley 31 is reduced, and the pulley 31 is in a state where only the respective low friction portions 31b are in contact with the belt 32. Therefore, the frictional force between the pulley 31 and the belt 32 during idling. Becomes extremely small.
[0025]
As described above, according to the vending machine of the present embodiment, the contact area between the belt 32 and the pulley 31 is reduced by the square holes 32b provided in the circumferential direction predetermined portion of the belt 32 so as to reduce the frictional force. Therefore, the load of the motor 41 when the pulley idles can be reliably reduced with a simple configuration, which is extremely advantageous for cost reduction and size reduction. In this case, since the contact area between the belt 32 and the pulley 31 is reduced by the square hole 32b, the frictional force between the belt 32 and the pulley 31 can be reliably reduced.
[0026]
Further, low friction portions 31b having a small frictional force with the belt 32 are provided at both ends in the width direction of the pulley 31 so as to correspond to portions other than the square holes 32b of the belt 32, and the square holes 32b of the belt 32 are on the front end side. When the pulley 31 is reached, only the low friction portions 31b of the pulley 31 are brought into contact with the belt 32, so that the frictional force between the belt 32 and the pulley 31 is also reduced in portions other than the square holes 32b of the belt 32. And the load on the motor 41 can be further reduced.
[0027]
In the above-described embodiment, the non-contact portion of the belt 32 is provided with the square holes 32b. However, as the non-contact portion, a part of the inner peripheral surface of the belt 32 as shown in FIGS. Or a low friction thin film or the like may be affixed to a part of the inner peripheral surface of the belt 32.
[0028]
Moreover, although the goods carry-out apparatus 30 shown in the said embodiment is such that the goods A are placed directly on the belt 32 and moved forward, the goods are pushed forward by a pressing member attached to the belt. The present invention can also be applied to the merchandise carry-out device.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the commodity carry-out device of the first aspect, the load of the motor at the time of idling of the pulley can be surely reduced with a simple configuration, which is extremely advantageous for cost reduction and size reduction.
[0030]
In addition to the effect of the first aspect, since the frictional force is reduced by reducing the contact area between the belt and the pulley, the product unloading device according to the second aspect ensures the frictional force between the belt and the pulley. Can be reduced.
[0031]
Further, according to the product unloading device of the third aspect, in addition to the effect of the second aspect, the frictional force between the belt and the pulley can be reduced in a portion other than the non-contact portion of the belt, so that the load on the motor is reduced. This can be further reduced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view of a vending machine provided with a product carrying device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of the vending machine. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the vending machine. Side view of the product column [Fig. 5] Front view of the product column [Fig. 6] Front cross-sectional view of the main part of the product column [Fig. 7] Perspective view of the pulley [Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a main part of a product carrying-out apparatus showing a modified example of the non-contact part. FIG. 10 is a partial side sectional view of the belt showing a modified example of the non-contact part.
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 30 ... Merchandise carrying-out apparatus, 31 ... Pulley, 31 ... Low friction part, 32 ... Belt, 32b ... Square hole, 41 ... Motor, A ... Merchandise.

Claims (3)

A pair of pulleys respectively disposed on both ends of the apparatus main body and an endless belt wound around each pulley, and rotating one pulley in a predetermined direction by a motor, In the product unloading device of the vending machine moved in a predetermined direction by the belt and unloaded from the one end side of the device main body,
The vending machine product carry-out device, wherein the predetermined part in the circumferential direction of the belt is formed such that the pulley can idle with respect to the belt and the frictional force with the pulley is smaller than that of the other part. The product carry-out device for a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a predetermined portion in the circumferential direction of the belt is formed by a non-contact portion that is non-contact with the pulley. The low-friction portion having a frictional force smaller than that of the central portion in the width direction is provided at both ends in the width direction of the pulley so as to correspond to at least a portion other than the non-contact portion of the belt. Item 2. Vending machine product carrying device.

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