JP7257131B2 - goods vending machine - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a structure for circulation of temperature-controlled air inside a warehouse in a goods vending machine that automatically sells goods.

2. Description of the Related Art An article vending machine is used that stores a plurality of types of articles on a shelf provided in a box-like cabinet and automatically carries out an article selected by a purchaser. For example, the goods vending machine (vending machine) described in Patent Document 1 is provided with a bucket (catcher bucket) that moves vertically in front of a plurality of shelves arranged vertically in a cabinet, so that the purchaser can The selected item is pushed forward from the shelf by the carry-out mechanism, and the item is carried out to the bucket that has moved forward of the shelf. The bucket loaded with the article is moved to a lower position opposite to the article outlet provided at the bottom of the article vending machine, and the purchaser can take out the article from the article outlet. .

Further, Patent Literature 2 discloses a circulation structure of temperature-controlled air for temperature-controlling the inside of a product vending machine (vending machine). In the article vending machine of Patent Document 2, a heat exchanger such as an evaporator is provided below a storage room (commodity storage), and a duct is provided behind the storage room, so that temperature-controlled air heat-exchanged by the evaporator flows into the storage room. It is configured to move upward at the front of the chamber, pass through the cabinet from front to back, and circulate back to the evaporator via a rear duct.
Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a configuration of an article vending machine (automatic vending machine) divided into an upper chamber heated by a heater and a lower chamber cooled by a cooling device by a heat insulating partition plate. . In such a vending machine, for example, the upper chamber is heated to about 55° C. for hot beverages, and the lower chamber is cooled to about 5° C. for cold beverages.

JP 2008-176497 A Japanese Patent No. 3720889 JP-A-2000-331232

By the way, in recent years, in goods vending machines that store a plurality of types of goods, not only combinations such as hot and cold drinks, but also combinations such as boxed lunches that are lower than the temperature of the hot drink but higher than the temperature of the cold drink. There is a demand to be able to store different types of articles at different temperatures, such as those requiring storage at different temperatures and ordinary cold beverages.

In a product vending machine that regulates the temperature of the interior of the warehouse to different temperatures, for example, as in Patent Document 2, a single heat exchanger provided below the chamber is used to circulate the temperature-controlled air. Although the interior is kept at the same set temperature, due to heat entering from the outside, the temperature in the upper part of the chamber may become high and the temperature in the lower part of the chamber may become low. It is difficult to precisely maintain the desired set temperature individually.

Although it is possible to maintain different desired set temperatures by dividing the inside of the refrigerator and providing individual heat exchangers, at least two heat exchangers are required, which increases the cost of parts and increases heat dissipation. There is a risk that the installation space for the exchanger will increase, leading to an increase in the size of the entire article vending machine or a reduction in the size of the storage room.

For example, as in Patent Document 3, when heating and cooling the upper and lower chambers with a heater and a cooling device, although each can be maintained at a desired temperature, the temperature is lower than the heating set temperature and the cooling set temperature. High temperatures are difficult to set and maintain accurately.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and provides a goods vending machine in which two compartments can be set to different desired temperatures with a single heat exchanger with a simple structure. intended to

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the goods vending machine of the present invention comprises: a rectangular box-shaped cabinet having an open front surface and a warehouse for storing goods therein; a door portion closing the front surface of the cabinet; and a heat exchanger that exchanges heat with the air circulating in the storage chamber to control the temperature of the storage chamber, wherein the storage chambers are vertically separated from each other by partition walls. It is divided into an upper storage chamber and a lower storage chamber set to a temperature zone, and a first air intake port sucks temperature-controlled air from the upper storage chamber and guides it to the heat exchanger. A second air intake port is arranged on at least one of the surfaces of the storage chamber and draws the temperature-controlled air from the lower storage chamber and leads it to the heat exchanger. It is characterized in that it is arranged on at least one of the other of the faces .

Also, preferably, the second intake port is provided on the front surface of the lower storage compartment, and the first intake port is provided on either or both of the left and right surfaces of the upper storage compartment.

Further, preferably, a first air outlet for discharging temperature-controlled air from the heat exchanger to the upper storage chamber is arranged on the rear surface of the upper storage chamber, and a first outlet for discharging temperature-controlled air from the heat exchanger to the lower storage chamber. A second outlet for discharging the temperature-controlled air may be arranged on the rear surface of the lower compartment.

Also preferably, the heat exchanger is disposed below the lower compartment and extends vertically rearwardly of the lower compartment and adjacent to each other between the heat exchanger and the upper compartment. comprising a first duct and a second duct, wherein the first duct has the first outlet at the top;
The second duct has an opening to the upper compartment at its upper part and has the second outlet facing the lower compartment, and the second duct is provided with the second outlet. It is preferable to provide a flap that suppresses movement of the temperature-controlled air upward from the outlet.

Preferably, a plurality of shelves arranged vertically in the storage room to hold the articles, and a carrying-out mechanism for carrying forward the articles held on the shelves from the shelves based on a sales command. and an outlet provided below the shelf of the cabinet, which is arranged in front of the shelf inside the cabinet so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and which receives articles carried forward from the shelf by the carrying-out mechanism. and an auxiliary partition wall that divides the space in front of the shelf in which the bucket moves at the upper and lower positions of the partition wall, wherein the auxiliary partition wall divides the upper storage chamber and the lower storage chamber. A fan may be provided to circulate air between them.

According to the present invention, by supplying and circulating temperature-controlled air from the heat exchanger provided in the cabinet to each of the upper storage chamber and the lower storage chamber, the temperature zones of the upper storage chamber and the lower storage chamber are different from each other. can be set to

A first intake port that draws temperature-controlled air from the upper chamber and leads it to the heat exchanger is arranged on one of the front and rear surfaces or the left and right surfaces of the chamber, and draws temperature-controlled air from the lower chamber and directs it to the heat exchanger. Since the second intake port for guiding is arranged on the other of the front and rear surfaces or the left and right surfaces of the storage compartment , the flow path of temperature-controlled air connecting the upper storage compartment and the heat exchanger via the first intake port. , and a flow path for temperature-controlled air that connects the lower compartment and the heat exchanger via the second intake port can be installed separately. This makes it possible to individually set the air volume of the temperature-controlled air circulating in the upper chamber and the air volume of the temperature-controlled air circulating in the lower chamber.

In addition, since the first air inlet and the second air inlet are arranged on mutually different surfaces of the storage compartment, the flow paths of the temperature-controlled air passing through the respective air inlets can be flowed without interfering with each other. A large area can be set, and the temperature of the upper storage compartment and the lower storage compartment can be efficiently controlled.

As a result, it is possible to set the upper storage compartment and the lower storage compartment to different desired temperatures with a single heat exchanger in a compact configuration.

It is a perspective view showing a schematic external shape of the article vending machine of the present embodiment. It is a longitudinal section showing the internal structure of the article vending machine of this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the inside of the cabinet for explaining the positions of ducts for cooling air circulation; FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the cabinet for explaining the shape of the rear duct; FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the interior of the cabinet for explaining the opening of the duct; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement of fans and evaporators in a lower duct; FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the cabinet showing circulation paths of cooling air; FIG. 10 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the upper part of the cabinet for explaining the circulation path of the temperature-controlled air in the upper compartment when the internal partition is installed under the second shelf. FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the upper part of the cabinet for explaining the circulation path of the temperature-controlled air in the upper compartment when the internal partition is installed in the lower part of the first shelf. FIG. 11 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a cabinet showing circulation paths of cooling air in a goods vending machine of another embodiment;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic external shape of the goods vending machine of this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the internal structure of the goods vending machine.

As shown in FIG. 1, an article vending machine 1 includes a main unit 2 for storing articles and an operation unit 3 .

The main unit 2 is formed in a box shape with an open front and has a box-shaped cabinet 4 provided with a door 5 (door part) covering the front opening. Inside the cabinet 4, an article storage section 6 (warehouse) for storing articles is provided.

The operation unit 3 is arranged adjacent to the side of the main unit 2, and includes an article selection switch, and a billing unit for accepting banknotes, coins, etc., paying out change, or making payments using electronic money, etc. ing. The operation unit 3 transmits a sales command to the main unit 2 when the fee is settled in the billing unit and the item is selected by the selection switch.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a transparent plate 10 made of transparent glass or resin is provided on the front upper portion of the door 5 of the main unit 2 so that the inside can be viewed. A rectangular article outlet 11 (outlet) is provided at the lower portion of the door 5 . A rectangular plate-shaped outlet shutter 12 is provided at the article outlet 11 . The outlet shutter 12 is supported by the upper edge of the article outlet 11 so as to be swingable in the front-rear direction. The outlet shutter 12 closes the article outlet 11 at a closed position extending in the vertical direction, and the article outlet 11 is opened by swinging the lower portion rearward from this closed position.

The article storage section 6 inside the cabinet 4 is configured by arranging a plurality of (for example, six) shelves 13a to 13f which are spaced apart in the vertical direction and which are open at the front. The lowermost shelf 13f in the article storage section 6 has a large storage space in the vertical direction, and stores relatively large articles such as 500 ml PET bottle beverages. The storage space is small in the direction and stores relatively small items. Shelves 13a to 13f are inserted from the front and arranged in cabinet 4 with door 5 open.

Further, the article storage section 6 of the present embodiment is detachably provided with an internal partition wall 40 formed of a heat insulating material in a flat plate shape. When the internal partition wall 40 is mounted inside the cabinet 4 , the article storage section 6 is partitioned by the internal partition wall 40 into two upper and lower storage chambers, an upper storage chamber 6 a and a lower storage chamber 6 b. These two chambers 6a and 6b are set to have different temperature zones. For example, of the six shelves 13a to 13f, the upper storage chamber 6a, which includes the first shelf 13a and the second shelf 13b from the top to the second, is set to have an internal temperature of about 20°C. While boxed lunches and the like are stored, the lower storage chamber 6b having lower four shelves 13c to 13f is set at an internal temperature of 4° C. and beverages and the like are stored. On the other hand, when the internal partition wall 40 is removed from the cabinet 4, the article storage section 6 becomes one storage room and is set to substantially the same temperature range.

The internal partition wall 40 is inserted from the front into rails (not shown) provided on the left and right inner wall surfaces of the cabinet 4 and arranged in the cabinet 4 . The cabinet 4 is provided with rails so that the internal partition wall 40 can be selectively positioned under any one of the three shelves 13a, 13b, 13c from the top.

Further, each of the shelves 13a to 13f is provided with a plurality of unloading mechanisms 14 arranged in the horizontal direction. The carry-out mechanism 14 is composed of, for example, a mechanism for rotating a spiral metal rod and a belt conveyor. Articles are stored in the shelves 13a to 13f by arranging them in the front-rear direction for each carry-out mechanism 14, and by the operation of an arbitrary carry-out mechanism 14, the articles are carried out in such a manner that they are pushed out one by one to the front of the shelves 13a to 13f. .

Between the front ends of the shelves 13a to 13f and the transparent plate 10, which is the front surface of the door 5, a space in which the bucket 30 moves (hereinafter referred to as a bucket moving space 21) is provided.

The bucket 30 has substantially the same length as the shelves 13a to 13f in the horizontal direction, and is arranged so as to be vertically movable in the bucket moving space 21. As shown in FIG. The bucket 30 is vertically moved by an actuator (not shown) provided inside the cabinet 4, and can be moved to a position where the rear end of the bottom plate 31 of the bucket 30 is approximately the same height as the bottom plates of the shelves 13a to 13f. In addition, when the bucket 30 is moved to the lowest position, the top plate 32 of the bucket 30, which will be described later, is movable so as to be positioned below the bottom face of the lowermost shelf 13f. The position of the bucket 30 that has moved to the lowest position is the standby/retrieval position. At this standby/retrieval position, the item unloading port 11 is positioned in front of the bucket 30. By opening the unloading port shutter 12, the bucket 30 It is possible to reach inside.

Further, the bucket movement space 21 inside the cabinet 4 is provided with an auxiliary partition wall 41 that vertically partitions the bucket movement space 21 . The auxiliary partition wall 41 is formed in a plate shape from transparent resin or the like. The auxiliary partition wall 41 is arranged so as to be vertically movable in the bucket movement space 21 along guides (not shown) provided on the left and right inner wall surfaces of the front portion of the cabinet 4, for example. When the bucket 30 is positioned below the auxiliary partition wall 41 , the auxiliary partition wall 41 is positioned at the same vertical position as the internal partition wall 40 , and partitions the bucket moving space 21 vertically. Therefore, the auxiliary partition wall 41 is provided so that the upper storage chamber 6 a and the lower storage chamber 6 b do not communicate with each other in the bucket moving space 21 . On the other hand, when the bucket 30 moves upward from below the auxiliary partition 41, the auxiliary partition 41 rests on the top plate 32 of the bucket 30 and moves above the internal partition 40 together with the bucket 30. This allows the bucket 30 to move toward the upper storage chamber 6a.

Inside the main unit 2, a machine room 22 is provided below the article storage section 6. As shown in FIG. The machine room 22 is equipped with a condenser 23a, a fan 23b for the condenser, and a compressor 23c, which are cooling devices for circulating a refrigerant. The front and rear parts of the machine room 22 communicate with the outside. A lower duct 24 is provided between the machine room 22 and the lowermost shelf 13f. The lower duct 24 is provided with an evaporator 23d (heat exchanger) in the cooling device and a fan 23e for the evaporator 23d. The fan 23e is arranged behind the evaporator 23d and generates an air flow from the front of the lower duct 24 to the rear. A heat insulating material is provided inside the cabinet 4 except for the machine room 22 in order to suppress heat exchange with the outside. Moreover, it is desirable that the transparent plate 10 of the door 5 has a high heat insulating property.

A rear portion of the lower duct 24 communicates with a rear duct 25 extending vertically behind the article storage portion 6 . Furthermore, an upper duct 26 extending in the front-rear direction is provided above the article storage section 6 .

A front opening of the upper duct 26 opens toward the upper portion of the bucket moving space 21 . Further, at the upper edge of the front opening of the upper duct 26, a baffle plate 27 is provided that is inclined downward at an angle of, for example, 45 degrees toward the front.

On the other hand, a back panel 28 is provided at the front end of the lower duct 24 . The back panel 28 extends vertically and partitions the lower duct 24 and the bucket movement space 21 in front thereof. Further, the upper portion of the back panel 28 has a sloped portion 28a that slopes upward and rearward. A plurality of ventilation holes 28c are provided in the inclined portion 28a. The ventilation holes 28c are holes each having a diameter of several millimeters, which are provided in a plurality in the front, rear, right, and left directions at intervals of, for example, approximately 1 cm over substantially the entire area of the inclined portion 28a.

The space from the bucket moving space 21 that guides the air in the lower storage chamber 6b to the lower duct 24 to the vent hole 28c of the back panel 28 corresponds to the second intake port of the present invention.

An electric heater 45 is provided in the upper duct 26, and a heater fan 46 is provided to generate an air flow in the upper duct 26 from the rear to the front.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the inside of the cabinet 4 for explaining the positions of the ducts for cooling air circulation. FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the interior of the cabinet 4 as seen from the rear to explain the shape of the rear duct 25. As shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the interior of the cabinet 4 for explaining the opening of the duct. In FIGS. 3 to 5, illustrations of the shelves 13a to 13f, the partition wall that vertically partitions the article storage section 6 and the lower duct 24, the back panel 28, and the bucket 30 are omitted.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, in addition to the lower duct 24, the rear duct 25 and the upper duct 26, the cabinet 4 further includes side ducts 50a and 50b on the left and right sides of the article storage section 6, respectively. ing.

The side ducts 50a and 50b are arranged to extend vertically along the left and right side walls of the cabinet 4, and have a left side duct 50a and a right side duct 50b. The left and right side ducts 50a and 50b have rectangular lower openings 51a and 51b that open toward the lower duct 24, respectively. The left and right side ducts 50a, 50b have four side openings 52a, 52b, 52c, 52d that face the upper compartment 6a or the lower compartment 6b. The side openings 52a, 52b, 52c, and 52d are arranged side by side in the vertical direction. placed in the vertical position between The second side opening 52b positioned second from the top is arranged at a vertical position between the first shelf 13a and the second shelf 13b second from the top. The third side opening 52c located third from the top is arranged at a vertical position between the second shelf 13b and the third shelf 13c third from the top. The fourth side opening 52d, which is the lowest of the side openings 52a, 52b, 52c, and 52d, is located vertically between the third shelf 13c and the fourth fourth shelf 13d from above. placed in

The rear duct 25 is divided into three left and right, and a left rear duct 25a (first duct)
, a central rear duct 25b (second duct) and a right rear duct 25c (first duct). Each of the rear ducts 25a, 25b, 25c opens to the upper duct 26 at its upper end and opens to the lower duct 24 at its lower end. The openings 56 at the upper ends of the left rear duct 25a and the right rear duct 25c correspond to the first outlets of the present invention. Of the three rear ducts 25a, 25b, and 25c, the central rear duct 25b positioned at the center in the left-right direction has three rectangular rear openings 53a facing the article storage section 6, that is, opening forward. , 53b and 53c. The rear openings 53a, 53b, 53c have substantially the same horizontal length as the central rear duct 25b, and are arranged side by side in the vertical direction. Of the three rear openings 53a, 53b, 53c, the uppermost first rear opening 53a is arranged between the first shelf 13a and the second shelf 13b. A second rear opening 53b located second from the top is arranged between the second shelf 13b and the third shelf 13c. Of the rear openings 53a, 53b, 53c, the third rear opening 53c, which is the lowest, is arranged between the third shelf 13c and the fourth shelf 13d. Further, the central rear duct 25b is provided with a rear opening 57 facing the article storage section 6 above the first shelf 13a.

On the other hand, among the three rear ducts 25a, 25b, and 25c, the left rear duct 25a located on the left side and the right rear duct 25c located on the right side are directed toward the article storage section 6 between the lower duct 24 and the upper duct 26. does not have an opening that opens

Rear flaps 54a, 54b, 54c for opening and closing the rear openings 53a, 53b, 53c are provided at the rear upper edge portions of the rear openings 53a, 53b, 53c, respectively. The rear flaps 54a, 54b, and 54c have substantially the same left-right width as the central rear duct 25b, and their lower portions rotate back and forth within the central rear duct 25b with their upper portions as the center of rotation.

The lower ends of the rear flaps 54a, 54b, 54c are biased forward by a spring (not shown) or the like. The rear flaps 54a, 54b, and 54c are configured to be shorter in vertical dimension than the rear openings 53a, 53b, and 53c. Therefore, even if the rear flaps 54a, 54b, and 54c close the rear openings 53a, 53b, and 53c, the rear openings 53a, 53b, and 53c are not completely closed, and the rear flaps 54a, 54b, and 54c are not completely closed. There are openings. Therefore, the rear openings 53a, 53b, 53c are configured to be in a normally open state in which at least a portion thereof is open. Rear flaps 54 a , 54 b , 54 c are pivotable rearward until their lower ends contact the rear wall of cabinet 4 . When the lower ends of the rear flaps 54a, 54b, 54c are in contact with the rear wall, the rear flaps 54a, 54b, 54c vertically shield the central rear duct 25b at the contact position.

Side flaps 55a, 55b, 55c and 55d for opening and closing the side openings 52a, 52b, 52c and 52d are provided at the upper edges of the side openings 52a, 52b, 52c and 52d, respectively. The side flaps 55a, 55b, 55c and 55d are configured such that the side openings 52a, 52b, 52c and 52d are closed by springs (not shown) or the like.

upper side openings 52a, 52b closest to the internal partition 40 when the internal partition 40 is selectively inserted into the lower portion of any one of the upper to third shelves 13a, 13b, 13c; Side flaps 55a, 55b, 55c, 55d are pivoted sideways so that 52c, 52d are opened, and lower rear flaps 54a, 54b, 54c closest to internal bulkhead 40 contact the rear wall. It is configured to be rotated rearward. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, when the internal partition wall 40 is installed between the second shelf 13b from the top and the third shelf 13c from the top, the left and right side flaps 55b rotates outward in the left-right direction to open the second side opening 52b, while the rear flap 54b, which is the second from the top, rotates rearward to widen the second rear opening 53b. It impedes the upward movement of cooling air from the rear flap 54b in the central rear duct 25b.

Inside the cabinet 4, temperature sensors 58a, 58b, 58c are provided near the upper sides of the first shelf 13a, the second shelf 13b, and the third shelf 13c, respectively.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement of the fan 23e and the evaporator 23d inside the lower duct 24. As shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a view of the inside of the lower duct 24 as viewed from above.

As shown in FIG. 6, the fan 23e provided behind the evaporator 23d in the lower duct 24 is composed of four fans 23f to 23i arranged side by side. Further, the lower duct 24 is provided with partition walls 60a, 60b, and 60c for guiding the cooling air. A partition wall 60a that separates the front and rear of the evaporator 23d is formed by lower openings of side ducts 50a and 50b that communicate with the cooling air that has passed through the ventilation holes 28c of the back panel 28 in front of the lower duct 24 and the sides of the lower duct 24. It is configured such that the cooling air that has passed through the portions 51a and 51b is guided forward of the evaporator 23d. The partition 60b is provided between the evaporator 23d and the fan 23e so that the cooling air that has passed through the evaporator 23d is divided and guided to the two fans 23h and 23i on the right side and the two fans 23f and 23g on the left side. is configured to The partition wall 60c is provided between the fan 23e and the rear duct 25, and the two central fans 23g and 23h out of the four fans 23f, 23g, 23h and 23i direct cooling air to the rear of the lower duct 24. Wind is directed to the central rear duct 25b. A part of the cooling air led rearward by the left fan 23f is led to the central rear duct 25b, while the remaining part is led to the left rear duct 25a. A part of the cooling air led rearward by the right fan 23i is led to the central rear duct 25b, while the rest is led to the right rear duct 25c.

The four fans 23f to 23i are operated and controlled by a control unit (not shown) provided inside the cabinet 4. FIG.

The control unit controls cooling equipment including four fans 23f, 23g, 23h, and 23i and an electric heater 45 based on the values detected by temperature sensors 58a, 58b, and 58c and the temperature set by a temperature setting device (not shown). And by controlling the operation of the heater fan 46, the temperature of each of the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b is controlled. For example, when lunch boxes are stored in the upper chamber 6a and beverages are stored in the lower chamber 6b, the upper chamber 6a is set to 20°C and the lower chamber 6b is set to 4°C.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of the cabinet 4 showing circulation paths of cooling air. FIG. 7 is a diagram in which the cooling air circulation paths are added to FIG. 4 by arrows. 8 and 9 are vertical cross-sectional views of the upper part of the cabinet 4 for explaining the hot air circulation path in the upper compartment 6a. 8 shows the case where the internal partition 40 is installed under the second shelf 13b, and FIG. 9 shows the case where the internal partition 40 is installed below the first shelf 13a.

As shown in FIG. 7, the compressor 23c and the fan 23b of the cooling device are operated, and the fan 23e (23f to 23i) in the lower duct 24 is operated to cool the air through the evaporator 23d. Wind flows from the lower duct 24 into the lower part of the rear duct 25 (25a, 25b, 25c). The cooling air flowing into the left rear duct 25a and the right rear duct 25c of the rear duct 25 moves from the upper openings 56 of the left rear duct 25a and the right rear duct 25c to the upper duct 26, and the upper duct 26 moves forward from the rear and flows into the upper portion of the bucket movement space 21.例文帳に追加Since the bucket moving space 21 is vertically partitioned by the auxiliary partition wall 41, the cooling air flowing into the upper part of the bucket moving space 21 moves rearward above the internal partition wall 40, It flows into the side opening 52b which opens above 40 . In FIG. 7, since the auxiliary partition wall 41 is installed in the lower part of the second shelf 13b which is the second from the top, the second side opening which is the second from the top among the side openings 52a to 52d 52b opens. Then, the cooling air moves downward inside the left and right side ducts 50a and 50b and moves to the front surface of the evaporator 23d of the lower duct 24. As shown in FIG. Thus, in the upper storage chamber 6a above the internal partition wall 40, the cooling air is circulated using the left rear duct 25a, the right rear duct 25c, and the left and right side ducts 50a and 50b. The articles stored on the first shelf 13a and the second shelf 13b inside are cooled. As shown in FIG. 7, when the auxiliary partition 41 is installed at the lower part of the second shelf 13b from the top, the side opening 52b opening above the internal partition 40 is The rear openings 53b and 53c, which correspond to the first intake port and are opened below the internal partition wall 40, correspond to the second blowout port of the present invention.

On the other hand, the cooling air flowing into the central rear duct 25b of the rear duct 25 is divided vertically by the rear flap 54b, which is opened rearward by the internal partition wall 40, so that the central rear duct 25b is opened. The upward movement of the rear flap 54b is restricted. As a result, all of the cooling air that has flowed into the central rear duct 25b flows into the lower storage chamber 6b, and in particular, most of it flows into the lower storage chamber 6b from the lower rear opening 53b that is closest to the internal partition wall 40. As shown in FIG. The cooling air flowing into the lower storage chamber 6b moves forward in the lower storage chamber 6b, moves downward in the bucket movement space 21, and flows into the front portion of the lower duct 24 through the ventilation holes 28c of the back panel 28. . In this way, in the lower storage chamber 6b below the internal partition 40, cooling air is circulated using the space below the auxiliary partition 41 in the central rear duct 25b and the bucket moving space 21, and the lower storage chamber 6b The articles stored on the inner shelves 13c to 13f are cooled.

In addition, the control unit compares the current temperature with the set temperature, and stops the left and right fans 23f and 23i and activates the electric heater 45 and the heater fan 46 when it is necessary to heat the upper compartment 6a. Let

As shown in FIG. 8, when the internal partition wall 40 is installed under the second shelf 13b, the air in the upper duct 26 heated by the electric heater 45 is discharged from the front opening of the upper duct 26. It moves to the bucket moving space 21 above the auxiliary partition 41, moves the upper storage chamber 6a from the front to the rear, and opens the first rear opening 53a or the rear opening above the internal partition 40. It passes through the opening 57 and the central rear duct 25 b above the internal partition wall 40 and moves to the rear of the upper duct 26 . By stopping the left and right fans 23f and 23i and activating the electric heater 45 and the heater fan 46 in this manner, the upper storage chamber 6a above the internal partition wall 40 is moved to the central rear portion above the internal partition wall 40. Hot air is circulated using the duct 25b to heat the articles stored on the first shelf 13a and the second shelf 13b in the upper compartment 6a.

As shown in FIG. 9, when the internal partition wall 40 is installed under the first shelf 13a, the air in the upper duct 26 heated by the electric heater 45 is discharged from the front opening of the upper duct 26. It moves to the bucket moving space 21 above the auxiliary partition 41, moves the upper storage chamber 6a from the front to the rear, and opens the rear opening 57, which is a rear opening above the internal partition 40, and the internal partition 40. It passes through the central rear duct 25b above and moves to the rear of the upper duct 26. In this manner, even when the internal partition 40 is installed under the first shelf 13a, the left and right fans 23f and 23i are stopped and the electric heater 45 and the heater fan 46 are operated. In the upper storage chamber 6a above, warm air circulates using the central rear duct 25b above the internal partition wall 40 to heat the articles stored on the first shelf 13a in the upper storage chamber 6a.

8, the left and right side flaps 55b for opening and closing the left and right second side openings 52b are shown, and in FIG. 9, the left and right side flaps 55a for opening and closing the left and right first side openings 52a. are pushed open into the side ducts 50a, 50b. However, since the left and right fans 23f and 23i in the lower duct 24 are stopped, cooling air is not supplied from the left and right rear ducts 25a and 25c to the upper compartment 6a via the upper duct 26. In other words, the air does not flow through the left and right rear ducts 25a and 25c, the upper duct 26, the first or second side openings 52a and 52b, the left and right side ducts 50a and 50b, and the lower duct 24 in that order. The air circulating in the upper compartment 6a cannot exit through the first or second side openings 52a, 52b. Therefore, even if the first side opening 52a or the second side opening 52b is open, the electric heater 45 can heat the upper compartment 6a. Further, the central rear duct 25b is closed (closed) at that position because the rear flaps 54a and 54b for opening and closing the first or second rear openings 53a and 53b are pushed open into the central rear duct 25b. Therefore, cooling temperature controlled air cannot be supplied from the lower duct 24 into the upper compartment 6a.

As described above, in this embodiment, the rear duct 25 for supplying cooling air to the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b is provided at the rear of the cabinet 4, and cooling air is supplied from the upper storage chamber 6a to the side of the cabinet 4. Since the side ducts 50a and 50b for discharging are provided, the cooling air flows from the upper chamber 6a to the lower duct 24 having the evaporator 23d independently of the cooling air circulation path of the lower chamber 6b. can be circulated. By controlling the rotation speeds of the four fans 23f, 23g, 23h, and 23i, the air volume of the cooling air circulating in the upper chamber 6a and the air volume of the cooling air circulating in the lower chamber 6b are controlled, The temperature of the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b can be efficiently set. In particular, since the rear duct 25 and the side ducts 50a and 50b are arranged on different surfaces (the rear side and the left and right sides of the cabinet 4), a large passage cross-sectional area can be secured for each, and the cooling efficiency can be improved. can be done.

Then, the upper compartment 6a and the lower compartment 6b, which are set to different temperatures, can be cooled using one evaporator 23d provided in the lower duct 24, respectively. Therefore, compared to newly providing an evaporator for the upper compartment 6a in the upper part of the cabinet 4, the number of parts can be reduced and the cost can be suppressed. can be improved.

In addition, this invention is not limited to said embodiment.

For example, in the above embodiment, the side ducts 50a and 50b are provided on the left and right sides of the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b, but only one of the left and right side ducts may be provided.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the rear flaps 54a to 54c may be configured to be rotated by an actuator, and may be configured to control the angle of rotation of the actuator. By controlling the rearward rotation angles of the rear flaps 54a to 54c to be large, the rear opening where the rearwardly rotated rear flaps 54a to 54c are disposed out of the cooling air moving upward in the central rear duct 25b. From 53a to 53c, the amount of cooling air flowing between shelves 13a to 13f and 13a to 13f where rear openings 53a to 53c are located increases.

Therefore, the control unit controls the rotation angles of the rear flaps 54a to 54c on which the temperature sensors 58a, 58b, and 58c are located based on the temperatures detected by the temperature sensors 58a, 58b, and 58c. It is possible to accurately control the temperature by controlling the inflow amount of the cooling air every 13c.

Alternatively, the rear flaps 54a to 54c may be rotated by a member such as a bimetal that deforms according to temperature. As a result, the rear flaps 54a to 54c can be rotated according to the preset temperature, and the cooling air flowing into the upper storage chamber 6a or the lower storage chamber 6b from the rear openings 53a to 53c can be easily configured. By controlling the air volume of each of the shelves 13a to 13c, the temperature can be controlled.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the auxiliary partition wall 41 may be provided with an auxiliary partition fan 65 for generating an air flow from the bottom to the top. By operating the auxiliary partition fan, cooling air can be supplied from the lower compartment 6b to the upper compartment 6a to cool the inside of the upper compartment 6a. In the vending machine equipped with the auxiliary partition wall fan 65, the left rear duct 25a and the right rear duct 25c, which guide the cooling air from the lower duct 24 to the upper storage chamber 6a, may be eliminated or the passage area may be reduced. good.

In addition, an auxiliary partition wall fan 65 is provided, and the rotation direction of the fan 23e is set so as to move the air from the rear to the front in the lower duct 24, and the cooling air is blown from the front in the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b. It may be moved rearward and discharged from the side ducts 50a, 50b.

Thus, even in a vending machine configured such that the cooling air moves from the front to the rear in the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b, the side ducts 50a and 50b direct the cooling air from the upper storage chamber 6a to the lower duct 24. It is possible to independently provide circulation paths for the cooling air in the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b. By controlling the rotational speeds of the fan 23e and the auxiliary partition wall fan 65, it is possible to control the temperatures of the upper storage chamber 6a and the lower storage chamber 6b.

In the above embodiment, the lower storage chamber 6b is cooled by the cooling device, but instead of the cooling device, a heating device such as a heater is used to circulate warm air so that the lower storage chamber 6b is different from the upper storage chamber 6a. The present invention may be applied to a product vending machine that heats to a certain temperature.

Also, the present invention can be applied to an article vending machine that stores and sells various articles such as beverages, sweets, lunch boxes, and the like. INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be widely applied to a product vending machine having a configuration in which a plurality of shelves are arranged in a vertical direction in a storage compartment within a cabinet, and which can be partitioned into upper and lower storage compartments by a partition wall.

1 goods vending machine 4 cabinet 5 door (door part)
6 Goods storage part (warehouse)
6a upper storage chamber 6b lower storage chambers 13a to 13f shelf 14 carry-out mechanism 21 bucket movement space (second intake port)
23d evaporator (heat exchanger)
25a left rear duct (first duct)
25b central rear duct (second duct)
25c right rear duct (first duct)
30 bucket 40 internal partition 41 auxiliary partition 52a, 52b, 52c, 52d side opening (first intake port)
53a, 53b, 53c rear opening (second outlet)
54a, 54b, 54c rear flaps (flaps)
56 opening (first outlet)
65 Auxiliary bulkhead fan (fan)

Claims (5)

a rectangular box-shaped cabinet having an open front surface and a storage room for storing articles inside;
a door portion that closes the front surface of the cabinet;
a heat exchanger provided in the cabinet for exchanging heat with air circulating in the storage chamber to control the temperature of the storage chamber,
The storage compartment is divided vertically by a partition wall into an upper storage compartment and a lower storage compartment set to different temperature zones,
A first intake port for sucking temperature-controlled air from the upper storage chamber and leading it to the heat exchanger is disposed on at least one of front and rear surfaces or left and right surfaces of the storage chamber, and A second intake port for sucking temperature-controlled air from a room and guiding it to the heat exchanger is arranged on at least one of the other of the front and rear surfaces or the left and right surfaces of the storage chamber. goods vending machine. The second air inlet is provided on the front surface of the lower compartment,
2. The article vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the first air intake port is provided on one or both of the left and right surfaces of the upper compartment. A first outlet for discharging temperature-controlled air from the heat exchanger to the upper storage chamber is arranged on the rear surface of the upper storage chamber,
3. The article vending machine according to claim 2, wherein a second outlet for discharging the temperature-controlled air from the heat exchanger to the lower compartment is arranged on the rear surface of the lower compartment. The heat exchanger is arranged below the lower compartment,
a first duct and a second duct extending vertically adjacent to each other between the heat exchanger and the upper storage chamber behind the lower storage chamber;
The first duct has the first outlet at the top,
The second duct has an opening at the top to the upper storage compartment and has the second outlet facing the lower storage compartment,
4. The goods vending machine according to claim 3, wherein the second duct is provided with a flap that suppresses movement of the temperature-controlled air upward from the second outlet. a plurality of shelves arranged vertically in the storage room for holding the articles;
a carry-out mechanism for carrying forward the article held on the shelf from the shelf based on a sales command;
An article is placed in front of the shelf inside the cabinet so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and receives an article carried forward from the shelf by the carry-out mechanism, to a take-out opening provided below the shelf of the cabinet. a carrying bucket;
an auxiliary partition wall that divides the space in front of the shelf in which the bucket moves at vertical positions of the partition wall,
5. The article vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary partition wall is provided with a fan for circulating air between the upper compartment and the lower compartment.

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