JPH04373095A - Cooling/heating controller for automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the quality of merchandise from being lowered due to rapid cooling by starting the cooling after the lapse of fixed time counted with a timer in the case of switching from heating to cooling. CONSTITUTION:A merchandise code '1' is applied to merchandise to degrade the quality in the case of rapid cooling from a heated state, and a merchandise code '0' is applied to the other merchandise. When a cooling/heating changeover switch 2 is changed over and an inside heater 5 is turned off, the merchandise code is judged by a CPU 6. When the merchandise code is '1', a timer 6B starts counting. After the lapse of the fixed time, a compressor 4 is turned on and cooling is started.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for heating and cooling products in a vending machine.

0002

[Prior Art] For products that can be sold either hot or cold depending on the season, in order to switch from selling hot products to cold products, the heating device is stopped and the product is cooled. When a compressor is operated, the temperature inside the refrigerator is high, so the compressor operates continuously to rapidly cool the refrigerator.

0003

[Problem to be solved by the invention] However, depending on the product, the quality of the product may deteriorate if the warmed product is rapidly cooled down. Therefore, the operator must take the product out of the warehouse and let it adjust to room temperature. There was a problem in that the operator had to carry out the work to return the container to the refrigerator after the process was completed, resulting in extremely poor work efficiency for the operator. The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides a cooling/heating control device for a vending machine that automates the work of adjusting products to room temperature and prevents product deterioration due to rapid cooling. With the goal.

0004

[Means for Solving the Problems] The cooling/heating control device of the present invention includes a changeover switch for setting cooling/heating in each refrigerator, and an internal temperature control device for each refrigerator during cooling and heating. means for setting a product type code for the products stored in each warehouse to identify products whose quality deteriorates when immediately cooled from a heated state; and a timer for timing a certain period of time; and determining means for determining whether or not rapid cooling is possible by checking a product type code set for a product in the refrigerator when the interior of the refrigerator is switched from heating to cooling by the changeover switch, If rapid cooling is not possible according to the determination means, cooling is started after a certain period of time according to the timer has elapsed.

[0005]

[Operation] According to the above configuration, when a certain refrigerator is switched from a heating state to a cooling state by a changeover switch, the product type code set for the product in that refrigerator disables rapid cooling of that product. If so, the timer starts counting, and when the timer measures a preset certain period of time, the cooling device is turned on and the product is cooled. On the other hand, if the product can be heated quickly according to the product type code, the cooling device is turned on immediately after the heating device is stopped.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a control block diagram showing an embodiment of the control device of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 denotes an electronic thermostat that detects the temperature inside each refrigerator, and is provided in each refrigerator. 2 is a changeover switch for setting whether to cool or heat the inside of each refrigerator. 3 is a keyboard for setting the cooling temperature and heating temperature in each warehouse and setting the product type code of the product to be stored. In this example, a product type code of "1" is assigned to products whose quality deteriorates if they are rapidly cooled from a heated state, and a product type code of "0" is assigned to products that do not. . 4 is a compressor, and 5 is a heating heater provided in each refrigerator. 6 is a CPU for controlling each of the above-mentioned devices, and determines whether the product type code set for the product is not "1". The CPU 6 also includes a ROM 6A that stores a control program described below and a timer 6B that measures a certain period of time.

The operation of the control device having the above configuration will be explained according to the flowchart shown in FIG. In step S1, each refrigerator temperature is set using the keyboard 3, and in step S2, the product type code for each refrigerator is set using the keyboard 3, and then the process proceeds to step S3. Here, the state of the cooling/heating changeover switch 2 is read into the CPU 6, and in the next step S4, it is determined whether or not the changeover switch 2 has been changed from heating to cooling. Then, the heater 5 in the corresponding warehouse is turned off.

[0008] In step S6, it is determined whether the product type code for the product in the refrigerator that has been switched from heating to cooling is "1", and if the product type code is "1", a timer is set in step S7. 6B is started, and in step S9 it is determined whether or not the timer 6B has timed a preset fixed time. When the fixed time has been counted and the product has been adjusted to room temperature for a predetermined time, step S8 The process then proceeds to step S9, where the compressor 4 is turned on and cooling is started. On the other hand, the product type code is “
If the quality does not deteriorate even if the temperature is immediately cooled from the heated state at 0'', the process proceeds from step S6 to step S9 and is cooled.

[0009]

Effects of the Invention As explained above, in the present invention, when switching from heating to cooling, cooling is started after a certain period of time using a timer. Therefore, problems such as deterioration of product quality due to rapid cooling can be eliminated.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

[Fig. 1] A control block diagram showing an embodiment of the cooling/heating control device for a vending machine of the present invention.

[Figure 2] Flowchart showing the control operation of the device in Figure 1

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Electronic thermostat 2 Selector switch 3 Keyboard 4 Compressor 5 Heater 6 CPU 6A ROM 6B Timer

Claims (1)

[Claims] [Claim 1] A cooling/heating control device for a vending machine that can heat or cool products as needed, including a changeover switch for setting cooling/heating for each compartment, and a switch for setting cooling/heating for each compartment. Means for setting the internal temperature during cooling and heating; and means for setting a product type code for the products stored in each warehouse to identify products whose quality deteriorates if they are immediately cooled from a heated state. When the interior of the refrigerator is switched from heating to cooling using a timer that measures a certain period of time and the changeover switch, it is determined whether or not rapid cooling is possible by checking the product type code set for the product in the refrigerator. 1. A cooling/heating control device for a vending machine, comprising a determining means for determining, and when the determining means indicates that rapid cooling is not possible, the timer starts cooling after a predetermined period of time has elapsed.