JP4710201B2 - Cup beverage vending machine - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a cup beverage vending machine that provides beverages in cups.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The cup beverage vending machine (hereinafter simply referred to as “vending machine”) is a product which is prepared or stored in a cup in a cup transported from a cup storage mechanism when a product selection button is pressed. Although it is transported to the take-out port, the user may take out the cup containing the drink from the product take-out port, and the beverage may be spilled when carrying it. As a countermeasure, a cap mounting mechanism is installed in the machine to contain the drink. A vending machine has been developed in which a cup is automatically attached to the cup and the cup is sealed before the cup is conveyed to the product outlet.
[0003]
FIG. 7 is a plan view conceptually showing a cup mixing type equipped with a cap mounting mechanism, that is, a vending machine that adjusts beverages by directly charging and stirring beverage ingredients into the cups. In FIG. 7, the cup 1 is stored in the cup storage mechanism 2, and when a product selection button (not shown) is pressed, the cup 1 moves from the standby position {circle around (1)} toward the cup transport mechanism 3 that has advanced below the cup storage mechanism 2. 1 is carried out. The cup transport mechanism 3 that has received the cup 1 circulates along the chain arrow in FIG. The beverage is prepared by being stirred and stirred by the stirring mechanism 6. In the case of a cold beverage, cold water or ice is further injected. Next, after the cap is mounted on the upper surface of the cup 1 by the cap mounting mechanism 7 at the station (4), it is carried out to the product outlet 8 and taken out by the user by hand.
[0004]
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a cap mounting principle in the cap mounting mechanism 7. In FIG. 8, the cap 10 stacked on the cap storage cylinder 9 slides on the shooter 11 and is received on the pair of left and right shutter plates 12. The shutter plate 12 is positioned directly above the cup 1, and once the cap 10 is received, it is opened in the direction of the arrow to drop the cap 10 onto the cup 1, and then closed again at the illustrated position. When the cap 10 gets on the cup 1, the cup transport mechanism 3 is raised, the cap 10 is pressed against the bottom surface of the shutter plate 12, and the cap 10 is engaged with the upper edge of the cup 1. Thereafter, the cup transport mechanism 3 moves down to the illustrated position and then moves to the product outlet 8.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Attaching a cap to a cup is especially effective for hot beverages where there is a high risk of hand burns when the beverage is spilled, but vending machines with a cap attachment mechanism are more effective than those without a cap. It can't be denied that the sales time will be longer by the amount of wear. On the other hand, it does not require a cap so much that it may be annoying for some users, such as cold beverages or drinking in front of a vending machine immediately after purchase. Therefore, even if a cap mounting mechanism is incorporated, it is desirable that the vending machine operator can set in advance whether or not the cap is mounted, without necessarily operating the cap mounting mechanism.
[0006]
However, even if the operator of the vending machine decides whether or not to operate the cap mounting mechanism in advance, it is a choice of whether the cap is always mounted or not at all. It is impossible to meet the needs of both users who need it and those who do not need it.
[0007]
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to improve the convenience of a vending machine with a cap mounting mechanism by arbitrarily combining an operator's intention and a user's request with or without cap mounting. is there.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a cup beverage vending machine that provides a selected beverage in a cup when a product selection button is pressed.
A cap mounting mechanism for mounting a cap on the cup containing beverage, setting means for setting whether or not the cap is mounted, a cap button for selecting whether or not the cap is mounted, and the product selection button are pressed. If the cap button is not pushed before, the cup is loaded with or without the cap as set by the setting means, and the cup containing beverage is transported to the product outlet, and the product selection button is pressed. If the cap button is pushed before, the control means for conveying the cup containing beverage to the product outlet without attaching the cap or opposite to setting by the setting means (Claim 1). In the vicinity of the cap button, a cap button operation guidance display may be provided (Claim 2).
[0009]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a control block diagram of the vending machine. In FIG. 1, the control unit 13 includes a keyboard 14 on which the operator of the vending machine sets various data, a coin mech 15 that selects and counts the money inserted by the user, and a product (beverage) to be purchased. A plurality of product selection buttons 16 to be selected, a cap button 17 for selecting whether or not a cap is required, the cup storage mechanism 2, the cup transport mechanism 3, the beverage ingredient box 4, the hot water tank 5, the stirring mechanism 6, and the cap mounting mechanism. 7 etc. are connected. After the necessary money is inserted from the coin mech 15 and the product selection button 16 is pressed, the beverage is prepared and carried out in the order already described.
[0010]
Here, from the keyboard 14, whether to enable (in principle, operate) the cap mounting mechanism 7 or disable (in principle, not operate) the cap mounting mechanism 7 is set in the control unit 13. On the other hand, the cap button 17 is pressed by the user depending on whether or not the cap is required, and the control unit 13 determines whether the product selection button 16 is pressed without pressing the cap button 17 regarding the validity / invalidity of the cap mounting mechanism 7. Then, the cap mounting mechanism 7 is controlled as set from the keyboard 14, and if the cap button 17 is pressed prior to the product selection button 16, the cap mounting mechanism 7 is controlled against the setting from the keyboard 14. Is programmed. This relationship will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
[0011]
That is, in FIG. 2, the control unit 13 checks the setting of whether or not the cap is attached after preparing the beverage at the station (3) (FIG. 6) (S1). (S2). If it is pushed (YES), after the cap is attached (S3), the cup is conveyed to the product outlet (S4). On the other hand, if the cap button 17 is not pressed in S2 (NO), the cup is taken out to the product outlet without attaching the cap (S4). If the setting is “Yes” in S1, it is checked whether the cap button 17 is pressed (S5), and if it is pressed (YES), the cup is carried out to the product outlet without attaching the cap ( S4). On the other hand, if the cap button 17 is not pressed in S5 (NO), after the cap is attached (S3), the cup is conveyed to the product outlet (S4).
[0012]
As shown in FIG. 2, in the illustrated vending machine, when the vending machine operator sets the cap attachment as a rule, the cap 10 is attached as a rule unless the user presses the cap button 17. On the other hand, if the user pushes the cap button 17 and desires no cap while the cup is unloaded, the cup 1 is unloaded without the cap 10 being attached. On the other hand, if the vending machine operator sets the cap attachment as a rule, the cup 1 is taken out without attaching the cap 10 as a rule unless the user presses the cap button 17, and the user removes the cap button 17. If the user wishes to have a cap by pressing, the cap 10 is attached and the cup 1 is unloaded.
[0013]
3 and 4 show a guidance display regarding cap mounting, and FIG. 5 is a front view of the vending machine with this guidance display. As shown in FIG. 5, the guidance display 18 shown in FIG. 3 is printed (marked) on the front (door) of the vending machine in the vicinity of the cap button of the vending machine without a cap. In this case, the message “I want to press the cap button 17 if a cap is desired” is displayed. 4 is a sticker (label) 19 that is common to vending machines with and without caps, as shown in FIG. 5, and is affixed to the front of the vending machine. FIG. 6 is a sticker 20 for changing the vending machine of FIG. 5 to in principle with a cap. If pasted on the “with cap” display 18a in the guidance display 18 of FIG. If the user wants to press the cap button 17, it can be changed. In FIG. 5, reference numeral 21 denotes an electric lighting plate displaying the type of beverage, 22 denotes a product outlet, 23 denotes a coin insertion slot, and 24 denotes a coin return slot.
[0014]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the cup beverage vending machine of the present invention includes a cap mounting mechanism for mounting a cap on a cup, and can optionally set the presence or absence of cap mounting, while having a cap button that can cancel the setting contents, Depending on the vending machine operator's intention, in principle, it is possible to pre-determine whether or not there is a cap depending on the installation conditions of the vending machine. It is possible to achieve efficient sales with high convenience.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a control block diagram of a cup beverage vending machine showing an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing cap mounting control of the vending machine shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a guide display of cap attachment applied to the vending machine of FIG. 1;
4 is a sticker attached to the vending machine shown in FIG.
5 is a front view of the vending machine with the guidance display of FIG.
6 is a sticker pasted on a part of the guidance display of FIG.
FIG. 7 is a plan view conceptually showing an example of a cup beverage vending machine.
8 is a diagram for explaining a cap mounting principle of the cap mounting mechanism in FIG. 7;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cup 2 Cup storage mechanism 3 Cup conveyance mechanism 4 Beverage raw material box 5 Hot water tank 6 Raw material stirring mechanism 7 Cap mounting mechanism 8 Product outlet 9 Cap storage cylinder 10 Cap 11 Shutter 12 Shutter 13 Control unit 14 Keyboard 15 Coin mech 16 Product selection Button 17 Cap button 18 Information display 19 Sticker 20 Sticker

Claims (2)

When the product selection button is pressed, in a cup beverage vending machine that provides the selected beverage in a cup,
A cap mounting mechanism for mounting a cap on the cup containing beverage, setting means for setting whether or not the cap is mounted, a cap button for selecting whether or not the cap is mounted, and the product selection button are pressed. If the cap button is not pressed before, the cap is loaded as set by the setting means, or the cup containing beverage is transported to the product outlet without being mounted, and the product selection button is pressed Contrary to the setting by the setting means, if the cap button has been pressed before, the control means for transporting the cup containing drinks to the product outlet without wearing the cap or wearing the cap is provided. A cup beverage vending machine characterized by that. 2. A cup beverage vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a guidance display for cap button operation is provided in the vicinity of the cap button.

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