JPH0589339A - Elevator type automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To eliminate the variation of a stopping position due to installing environment such as ambient temperature and humidity or the deterioration of the performance of the brake of a motor, etc., and to making the stopping position of a commodity carrying part correct by measuring beforehand the movement data of the commodity carrying part, and drive-controlling a commodity storage part on the basis of the movement data at the time of the next sale of a commodity. CONSTITUTION:A control part is connected to a main control part 50 to control an automatic vending machine main body, and executes control operation by a program, and is provided with a CPU 51 acting as a measuring means, a calling means and a control means in common. The CPU 51 is connected to a ROM 52 in which the program for operation is stored and a RAM 53 whose storage is backed up by a battery even at the time of the disconnection of power supply and so on through an address bus and a data bus. Then, after stitching on the power supply, the commodity carrying part is operated once, and the movement data is measured, and is stored in storage areas 52,53 by the CPU 51, and at the time of the next sale of the commodity, the movement data is called out of the storage areas 52,53 by the CPU 51, and the commodity carrying part is drive-controlled by the CPU 51 on the basis of this movement data.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic vending machine that conveys a product to a product outlet through a product conveyor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1-246695, there is known an automatic vending machine which conveys a product, which is stored in a plurality of upper and lower storage shelves, to a product dispensing outlet by a vertical transport mechanism. There is.

[0003]

In such a configuration, the vertical transport mechanism is driven by a drive unit such as a motor, but the vertical transport mechanism moves by inertia until a drive stop signal is sent to the motor until the vertical transport mechanism stops. Will end up. In addition, the inertial travel distance changes due to the installation environment such as ambient temperature and humidity and the deterioration of the motor brake performance. However, in order to speed up the vertical transport mechanism and prevent mischief, in the configuration in which the roof portion is provided above the vertical transport mechanism, the stop position must be accurately set.

In view of the above, the present invention has an object to accurately stop the vertical transport mechanism even if the vertical transport mechanism is inertially moved or the inertial movement distance is changed.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention comprises a plurality of upper and lower storage units for storing and transporting products by type, and moving to a storage unit for storing a selected product by operating a selection switch. In an elevator vending machine equipped with a product transfer unit that receives and sells sold products to the sales outlet, after turning on the power, the product transfer unit is temporarily operated and the movement data is measured. A storage area for storing, a calling means for calling movement data from the storage area at the time of next product sale based on the operation of the selection switch, and a control means for driving and controlling the product transport unit using the movement data. is there.

[0006]

According to the present invention having such a configuration, after the power is turned on, the product transport section is once operated to measure the movement data by the measuring means and stored in the storage area, and the next commodity is moved from the storage area by the calling means at the time of sale. And the drive means controls the drive of the product transport unit by the control means based on the moved data.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Each of the drawings shows an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 12 is an overall perspective view of an elevator type vending machine body 1 with a front door 2 open. Although not shown, a selection switch for selecting a product, a product display unit, a money slot, and a sales port 3 are provided on the outer surface of the front door 2, and control for controlling each unit of the vending machine is provided inside the front door 2. The part 4 is stored.

[0008] Inside the front door 2 of the vending machine opened, a storage section 20 for storing products and a sales outlet 3 for the products are provided.
An up-and-down transport mechanism 40 that vertically transports the product, a product receiving section 6 that includes a mischief prevention door 5 and that receives the product transported by the up-and-down transport mechanism 40 and engages with the selling port 3. Although not shown, the interior is cooled or heated. And a heat exchanger that The storage unit 20 stores the products according to the type of the products, and the product storage racks 21 with the upper and lower stages of 5 which are provided with the transverse feed transport mechanism for laterally transporting the stored products, and vertically stack the products and discharge the products from the lower side to the left and right. It is composed of the serpentine racks 31 provided in a plurality of rows.

Each commodity storage rack 21 is provided with a conveyor belt 22 which is a lateral conveyance mechanism, a conveyor motor 23 for driving the conveyor belt 22, and a detection switch 24 for detecting an article. Although not shown, the serpentine rack 31 is provided with a product discharge device that is provided in the lower part and discharges the products one by one; a conveyor belt 22 that is a conveyor mechanism that conveys the discharged products to the vertical unloading mechanism 40; Belt 22
And a conveyance motor 23 for driving the.

The vertical transport mechanism section 40 stores the product in the storage section 20.
A product transport unit 41 that receives a product from a product and transports the product to the product receiving unit 6, and an elevator motor 43 that drives the product transport unit 41 via a driving force transmission chain 42.
It comprises a pulse counter 44 using an optical sensor 55 for detecting the amount of movement and the amount of overrun of the product transport section 41.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the present invention. A control unit 4 is connected to a main control unit 50 which controls the vending machine main body 1 in an integrated manner, executes a control operation by a program, and calls a measuring means. A central processing unit (CPU) 51 that serves both as a means and a control means is provided. The CPU 51 has a ROM 52 storing an operating program via an address bus and a data bus, and a battery stores the data even when the power is turned off. Backed up RAM53, I / O
The interface 54 is connected. Also, CPU5
An optical sensor is directly connected to 1, and a response speed is increased in the CPU 51 by directly receiving a signal from the optical sensor 55. The I / O interface 54 includes a switch unit 56, an elevator motor 43, and a carry motor 23.
And are connected.

The optical sensor 55 outputs a signal O by a slit of a blade 47 provided coaxially with the elevator motor 43.
A pulse consisting of N and OFF is output to the CPU 51. The slit is set to output one pulse each time the product transport unit moves about 0.6 cm. The switch unit 56 outputs signals such as the detection switch 24 and the selection switch to the CPU 51 through the I / O interface 54.

Elevator motor 43 and transport motor-2
3 is driven when a signal indicating a driving direction and a driving direction is input from the CPU 51 through the I / O interface 54. FIG. 5 shows a storage format of the RAM 53, and the RAM 53 has at least the following three storage areas.

Storage areas 53a, 53c, 53e, 53f
Is a buffer storage unit, which is a rack code buffer 5 for storing the codes of the product storage rack 21 and the serpentine rack 31 for storing the products selected by the selection switch.
3a, a pulse count buffer 53b that stores the number of pulses measured by the optical sensor 55, a timer count buffer 53c that stores a time countdown, position data that indicates the movement distance and the movement direction that indicate the position of the rack that stores the selected product. The buffer 53e, the stop position data buffer 5 that stores the number of pulses up to the position for transmitting the stop signal calculated by the position data and the number of overrun pulses
3f etc. are provided.

The storage area 53d is an area for storing the number of overrun pulses, and has six addresses equal to the number of tables in FIG. 2 described later. The storage area 53g is a temporary storage unit for calculation that temporarily stores the value after each data is calculated. It should be noted that the travel distance and the overrun are 1 pulse to 0.
It is stored as a pulse number of 6 cm.

FIG. 4 shows the storage format of the ROM 52. The ROM 52 has at least the following four storage areas in addition to the operating program. Storage area 52
Reference numeral a is a selection switch and a storage section 20 for storing a product to be sold by operating the selection switch.
Rack codes of 1 and the serpentine rack 31 (for the product storage rack 21, each has one rack code, and for the serpentine rack 31, it corresponds to the transport mechanism 22. This is an area for storing the correspondence with one rack code, which is composed of 6 rack codes in total, and has n addresses equal to the number of selection switches.

The storage area 52b is an area for storing the correspondence between the rack code and the moving distance of the product conveying section 41, and has the same number of addresses as the number of rack codes (six in this embodiment). The storage area 52c is an area for storing the correspondence between the rack code and the moving direction of the product transport unit, and stores data indicating upward movement or downward movement as 1-bit "1" or "0". It has a number of addresses (six in this example) equal to the number of rack codes.

The memory area 52d is an area for storing the initial setting value of the overrun, and the value obtained by converting the overrun into the number of pulses is stored (2 is stored in this embodiment). The movement data is mainly stored in the storage areas 52a, 52b, 5
2c and 53d. In this embodiment, the configuration is such that the overrun is rewritten, but the stop position after the overrun is subtracted may be stored and rewritten.

FIG. 2 is a table stored in the RAM 53 showing the overrun set from the moving distance and the moving direction, and FIG. 3 is stored in the ROM 52 showing the moving distance and the moving direction corresponding to the rack code. It's a table.
The operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. First, in step S1, the storage area 53 for storing the overrun is the value called from the storage area 52d for performing the initial setting and storing the initial setting overrun.
The number of write overrun pulses is set to 2 for all addresses of d (1.2c because one pulse is 0.6 cm).
m). Then, in step S2, the product storage rack 21
The conveyance motor 23 is driven to detect sold-out. That is, when there is a product on the conveyor belt 22, the product on the conveyor belt 22 is conveyed, so that the product operates the detection switch 24, stops the conveyor motor 23, and outputs a signal indicating that the product exists.
It is possible to sell by transmitting to the main control unit 50 via the interface 54 and the CPU 51. Further, if the detection switch 24 does not operate even if the conveyor belt 22 makes a half turn, the conveyor belt 22 is stopped and a signal indicating that there is no product is transmitted to the main controller 50 via the I / O interface 54 and the CPU 51. The control unit 50 stops the sale of the product corresponding to the product storage rack 21 that has received the signal of no product. When the sold-out detection on all product storage racks 21 is completed, step S
In step 3, the CPU 51 transmits a drive signal and a drive direction signal in the ascending direction to the elevator motor 43 through the I / O interface, and drives the elevator motor 43 in the ascending direction of the vertical transport mechanism 40. In step S4, when the product transport unit 41 approaches the upper limit position, the elevator motor 43
Send a stop signal to. The fact that the product transport unit 41 has approached the upper limit can be obtained by counting the number of pulses that the pulse counter 44 turns on and off.

In step S5, 500 is stored in the timer count buffer 53c, the timer is set, and in step S6, the number of pulses consisting of ON and OFF of the optical sensor 55 of the pulse counter 44 is counted to detect the overrun, and the pulse is detected. It is stored in the count buffer 53b. In step S7, the timer counter set in step S5 is decremented by 1 every 1 msec, and in step S8, the timer count buffer 5 is counted down.
It is determined whether the data in 3c is 0. Step S8
If it is judged not to be 0 in step S6, the process returns to step S6 to continue the detection of the overrun, and if it is judged to be 0, the process proceeds to step S9 and the overrun pulse measured in step S6 and stored in the pulse count buffer 53b. The number is stored in the register that stores the overrun pulse a ₂ when the overrun buffer 53d rises by 10 cm or more. It should be noted that 500 is stored in step S5, and the overrun is set to 5 after 500 msec from the transmission of the stop signal of the drive motor on the assumption that the overrun is completed.
Although the measurement is performed for 00 msec, it is possible to easily change the measurement time depending on the degree of overrun.

Then, in step S10, the CPU 5
1 transmits a drive signal and a drive direction signal in the descending direction to the elevator motor 43 through the I / O interface 54 to return the product transport unit 41 to the standby position. It should be noted that the same control is performed when descending as when ascending. After the above setting, the sale of the product is detected by the selection switch in step S11, and step S1
2 from the storage area 52a of the ROM 52 to step S11
The rack code corresponding to the selection switch selected in is detected and stored in the rack code buffer 53a. The storage area 5 of the ROM 52 is also based on the detected rack code.
The moving distance is detected from 2b, the moving direction is detected from the storage area 52c, and the result is stored in the position data buffer 53e.

In step S13, the number of overrun pulses is called from the storage area 53d of the RAM 53 based on the position data consisting of the moving distance and the moving direction,
In step S14, the calculation result which is the stop position (see FIG. 6) obtained by subtracting the overrun from the moving distance is stored in the stop position data buffer 53f. In step S15, the CPU 51 transmits a drive signal and a signal indicating the moving direction to the elevator motor 43 to drive the elevator motor 43 and drive the product transport unit 41. When the elevator motor 43 is driven, the optical sensor 55 detects the rotation of the blade 47 in step S16, and the pulses are counted and stored in the pulse count buffer 53b. The number of pulses in the pulse count buffer 53b and step S14
The stop position data stored in the stop position data buffer 53f are compared in step S17. If they are the same, the process proceeds to step S18, and a stop signal is transmitted to the elevator motor 43.

After the stop signal is transmitted, the product transport unit 41 overruns due to inertia, but since the overrun number is calculated and subtracted in advance, the product transport unit 41 can be stopped at a substantially desired stop position. However, the number of overruns changes from moment to moment due to deterioration of the performance of the brakes driven by the surrounding environment and stop signals, so we want to store the latest number of overruns. Furthermore, since the speed and inertia also change depending on the length and direction of the moving distance, it is desirable to store the number of overruns for each moving distance and moving direction.

Therefore, after transmitting the stop signal in step S18, 500 is stored in the timer count buffer and the timer is set in step S19 in the same manner as in steps S5, SS6, S7, and S8 described above, and step S20 is set.
, The optical sensor 55 of the pulse counter 44 is turned on,
Overrun is detected by counting the number of OFF pulses and stored in the pulse count buffer 53b. In step S21, the timer counter set in step S5 is decremented by 1 every 1 msec, and in step S22, the timer count buffer 5 is counted down.
It is determined whether the data in 3c is 0. Step S2
If it is determined in step 2 that it is not 0, the procedure returns to step S20 to continue detecting the overrun, and if it is determined that it is 0, the procedure proceeds to step S23 and the overrun measured in step S20 and stored in the pulse count buffer 53b. R is the number of pulses and the number of overruns is called in step S13.
The data is stored in the storage area 53d of the AM 53.

When the product transport section 41 stops, step S1
1 and stored in the rack code buffer 53a. Rack conveyor belt 2 corresponding to the rack code
The second conveyor motor 23 is driven to laterally convey the conveyor belt 22. In step S25, the drive of the detection switch 24 is detected. When the detection switch 24 is driven, the process proceeds to step S26, and the drive of the carry motor 23 is stopped.

In step S27, the product transport section 41 storing the products reverses the moving distance and the moving direction corresponding to the rack code stored in the rack code register (if the upward direction is (1), the downward direction is (0), and the downward direction is (0). If it is the direction (0), the position data buffer 5 stores the position data as the upward direction (1).
3e, and the step S28 detects the number of overruns stored in the storage area of the RAM 53 based on the position data stored in the position data buffer 53e in step S27, and moves the detected number of overruns. The stop position is calculated by subtracting from the distance and stored in the stop position data buffer 53f.

In step S29, the elevator motor 43 is driven based on the drive signal transmitted from the CPU 51 and the moving direction stored in the position data buffer 53e in step S27 to drive the product transport section 41 to the product discharge standby position. In step S30, the optical sensor 55 counts the moving distance by counting the slits provided in the blade 47, and stores it in the pulse count buffer 53b.
In step S31, the stop position stored in the stop position data buffer 53f in step S28 is compared with the movement distance stored in the pulse count buffer 53b in step S30, and if the numbers are the same, step S3
2 and sends a stop signal to the elevator motor 43.
After sending the stop signal, steps S19, S20, S21, S2
Similarly to step 2, 500 is stored in the timer count buffer 53c and the timer is set in step S33, and the optical sensor 5 of the pulse counter 44 is set in step S34.
The overrun is detected by counting the number of pulses consisting of ON and OFF of 5, and the pulse count buffer 53
Store in b. In step S35, the timer counter set in step S33 is decremented by 1 every 1 msec, and it is determined in step S36 whether the data in the timer count buffer 53c is 0. If it is determined in step S36 that it is not 0, the process returns to step S34 to continue detecting the overrun, and if it is determined that it is 0, the process proceeds to step S37 and the overrun stored in the pulse count buffer 53b measured in step S34 is stored. The number of pulses is stored in the storage area 53d of the RAM 53 that called the overrun number in step S27.

Then, the process proceeds to A and the product is on standby.

[0029]

According to the present invention, since the movement data of the product transport unit is measured in advance after the power is turned on and the product storage unit is drive-controlled based on the movement data at the time of the next product sale, the installation environment such as ambient temperature and humidity is set. It is possible to eliminate variations in the stop position that have changed due to deterioration of the performance of the motor brake, etc., and it is possible to make the stop position of the product transport unit accurate.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a table chart diagram of the number of over-run pulses according to a moving distance and a moving direction.

FIG. 3 is a table chart diagram of position data by a rack code.

FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing a storage format of a ROM.

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing a storage format of a RAM.

FIG. 6 is a schematic side internal view of a vending machine showing a relationship among a moving distance, an overrun, and a driving distance.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an operation.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation.

FIG. 11 is an overall perspective view of the vending machine according to the embodiment of the present invention when the front door is opened.

FIG. 12 is a schematic front internal configuration diagram of the vending machine according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Vending Machine Main Body 6 Product Receiving Section 20 Storage Section 41 Product Conveying Section 51 Control Means 51 Calling Means 51 Measuring Means

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A multi-tiered storage unit for storing and transporting products by type, moving to a storage unit for storing a selected product by operating a selection switch, receiving the product, and selling the received product In an elevator type vending machine equipped with a product transport unit for transporting to the mouth, after the power is turned on, a measuring means for operating the product transport unit once to measure movement data necessary for the product transport unit to move, and the movement data. And a calling means for calling movement data from the storage area at the time of selling the next product based on the operation of the selection switch, and a control means for driving and controlling the product transport unit using the movement data. Elevator type vending machine characterized by.