JPH03278295A - Commodity take-out port for cup-type automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make it possible to surely check the completion timing of cooking by forming an opening/closing door on a commodity take-out port and electrically displaying cooking execution or cooking completion on the closed door. CONSTITUTION:When a user is waiting for the completion of cooking while observing the inside of the opening/closing door 3, characters of 'COOKING COMPLETED' can not be confirmed because a lamp 12 is OFF during the cooking. When the cooking has been completed, the lamp 12 is turned on and incident light from an end face 11 to the door 3 is propagated while being totally reflected by the inside of the door 3 and reflected on a recessed part 10 to be a reflection part so as to be directed to the outside 7 of the door 3, so that the user can check the lighting characters of 'COOKING COMPLET ED'.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] Industrial applications The present invention relates to a cup-type vending machine.

A product takeout port 1 of a conventional cup-type vending machine is provided with an opening/closing door 3 pivotally supported by a shaft 2, as shown in FIG. The cup 4 containing the beverage is delivered to a cup station facing the product takeout port 1, and the user opens the door 3 by bowing the handle 5 of the door 3 with his left hand and takes out the cup 4 with his right hand. It is configured as follows.

Beverage preparation methods include pouring the cooked beverage into the cup 4 dispensed from the cup dispenser to the cup station, or moving the cup around to the raw material tank and receiving the raw material dispensed from the cup 4. There is a device in which boiling water is poured into the cup, the cup is mixed, and the cup 4 containing the cooked beverage is carried to the cup station. Regardless of the cooking method, it takes several tens of seconds from the start of cooking to the completion of cooking, and it is dangerous for users to insert their hands into the cup station during this time. The electric lock 6 prevents the opening/closing door 3 from being opened until the process is completed.

In order to display to the user that cooking is in progress, conventionally a plurality of light emitting diodes 8a to 8e are arranged on the customer service surface 7 near the product outlet 1, and as the cooking time progresses, the light emitting diodes 8a to 8e 8a to 8e are lit in order from bottom to top, and when cooking is complete, the front portions of light emitting diodes 8a to 8e are blinked to notify the user that the door 3 is now open and the product can be taken out. It is composed of

Problem to be Solved by the Invention Users who are waiting for the timing to take out a product are usually looking into the opening/closing door 3, so in this conventional configuration, the user's viewpoint is This creates a situation in which the user repeatedly moves back and forth between the position where he or she looks into the opening/closing door 3 and the position where he or she looks at the light emitting diodes 8a to 8e, causing irritation to the user.

An object of the present invention is to provide a product takeout device that allows a user to clearly recognize the timing of completion of cooking just by looking into the opening/closing door.

Means for Solving the Problems The product takeout device according to claim 1 is provided with an opening/closing door at the product taking out port, and an electric display section is provided on the closed door to display a cooking in progress state or a cooking completed state. It is characterized by:

In addition, the product takeout device according to claim 2 is provided with an opening/closing door molded with translucent material at the product takeout port and having a reflective portion formed with a convex portion or a concave portion on the inner surface, and a closing door. The present invention is characterized in that a light source section is provided close to an inner end surface of the opening/closing door at a position.

According to the structure of the first aspect, since the electric display section is provided on the opening/closing door, for example, "Cooking in progress" can be displayed on the opening/closing door during cooking.

According to the structure of claim 2, when the opening/closing door is in the closed state,
The light that enters the end face of the door from the light source propagates through the door while being totally reflected, and when it reaches the reflection part, the optical path of some of the light is bent to the outside of the door and is reflected. You can recognize when cooking is in progress or when cooking is complete depending on the shape of the part.

EXAMPLE Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be explained based on FIGS. 1 and 2. Components having the same functions as those in FIG. 3 showing the conventional example will be described with the same reference numerals.

1 and 2 show an embodiment according to claim 2. FIG. A recessed portion 10 as a reflective portion is provided on the inner side 9 of the opening/closing door 3. The recess 10 here is provided with a cut along the outline of the words "cooking complete". In addition, a lamp 12 as a light source is provided on the fixed side close to the end surface 11 of the closed door 3, and the lamp 12 is used when the cooking is completed and when the door 3 is opened. It remains lit until it returns to the closed state.

With this configuration, when the user looks into the opening/closing door 3 and waits, the lamp 12 is off during cooking, so the message "Cooking 5 - Complete" as shown in Fig. 1 is displayed. Although it is not possible to confirm this, the lamp 12 lights up when the cooking is completed, so the light 13 that enters the door 3 from the end face 11 propagates through the inside of the door 3 while being totally reflected.
The light is reflected toward the outside 7 of the door 3 at the recess 10, and the user can confirm that the words "Cooking Complete" are illuminated as shown in FIG.

Therefore, the user can recognize the timing of completion of cooking just by looking through the opening/closing door 3, and there is no need to move the viewpoint as in the conventional method.

In the above embodiment, the lamp 12 lights up when cooking is complete, and the recessed part has a notch with the characters "cooking complete"; however, if the lamp 12 is configured to light up during cooking, the recessed part A notch with the text "Cooking in progress" is formed.

In each of the above embodiments, the reflecting section is formed of a concave portion, but the same effect can be achieved even if it is formed of a convex portion. Specifically, the characters "cooking complete"
Or the light 13 that forms a convex part with a 7-shaped cross section along the "cooking" line and propagates while being totally reflected inside the opening/closing door 3.
is reflected toward the outside 7 of the opening/closing door 3 at this convex portion.

6- In the above embodiment, the lamp 12 was provided on the fixed side and the necessary display was performed using the propagation and reflection of the light 13 inside the opening/closing door 3. Therefore, the opening/closing door 3 on the rotating side from the fixed side However, if wiring is allowed from the fixed side to the opening/closing door 3, which is the rotating side, the electric display part can be connected to the opening/closing door 3 as described in claim 1. A similar effect can be obtained by attaching the device and configuring it to display the words "cooking complete" or "cooking in progress" or an icon. In this case, as the electric display section, a liquid crystal display alone or a liquid crystal display with a backlight, a light emitting diode display, etc. can be used.

Effects of the Invention According to the structure described in each claim as described in ``2'', it is possible to reliably recognize the timing of completion of cooking just by looking into the opening/closing door. Since there is no need to move the viewpoint back and forth between two points with a display section provided nearby, operability is good.

According to the configuration described in claim 2, since no electrical wiring is required from the fixed side to the opening/closing door side, the configuration is simple and stable operation can be expected over a long period of time.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of an embodiment of the product takeout device according to claim 2, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a front view of a conventional product takeout device. be. ■...Product outlet, 3...Opening/closing door, 4...Cup, 7...Customer service surface, 9...Inside of opening/closing door, 10...
Recessed part [reflecting part], 11... end face of opening/closing door, ■2...
Lamp [light source part], 13... light.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In a vending machine that dispenses a cup containing a cooked beverage from a cup station provided at a position facing a product takeout port, an opening/closing door is provided at the product takeout port, and the opening/closing door is provided with an opening/closing door. A product removal device equipped with an electric display that indicates whether cooking is in progress or when cooking is complete. 2. In a vending machine that dispenses a cup containing a cooked drink from a cup station located facing the product outlet, the product outlet is molded with a translucent material and has a convex or concave part on the inner surface. A product takeout device includes an opening/closing door having a reflective section formed therein, and a light source section provided close to an inner end surface of the opening/closing door in a closed state.