JPH062490U - Vending machine parts mounting structure - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] In an automatic vending machine for products such as cans and bottled beverages, it is possible to reduce the number of parts especially when a plastic molded product such as a guide plate is attached to the vending machine body using the shaft member. Provide a component mounting structure that is easy to assemble and is advantageous in terms of cost. A guide plate 20 having side walls 22 and 23 on one side and the other side, and a through hole 25a provided in each side wall.
When attaching such a part to the vending machine main body through the shaft member 27 which is inserted through the through hole, when the shaft member is inserted through the through hole, a part of the outer circumference of the shaft member is located between the side walls of the part. An annular convex portion 27a is provided along the side wall, and a tongue piece portion 26 that is elastically bent so that the annular convex portion of the shaft member can ride over is provided between the side walls of the components.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention is a vending machine for canned or bottled beverages, etc., which sells plastic molded products such as guide plates for guiding the loaded products toward a storage shelf (hereinafter referred to as a column) when refilling. This relates to the structure that is attached to the machine body with the shaft member.

[0002]

[Prior art]

 Conventionally, most of the guide plates for vending machines are plastic molded products. The guide plate is a member that guides the loaded products toward the column when the products are replenished, and is provided between the side plates on both sides of the vending machine body. 7 and 8 are both known as a structure for attaching the guide plate to the side plate. For convenience of description, both figures show a bottom perspective view and a bottom view of the guide plate viewed from the back side.

In the case of the mounting structure shown in FIG. 7, for example, a resin-made guide plate 1 molded in a rectangular shape has side walls 2 and 2 extending parallel to the longitudinal direction thereof, and the side walls 2 and 2 are orthogonal to each other. Several ribs 3 are provided on the back surface side in the direction of increasing the rigidity of the entire structure. In the vicinity of the rib 3, the shaft member 4 is inserted so as to cross the side walls 2 and 2, and the guide plate 1 is attached to the side plate (not shown) of the vending machine body via the shaft member 4. Shaft holes 5 and 5 are provided in the side walls 2 and 2 of the guide plate 1, and the shaft member 4 is inserted therein to lock the guide plate 1 to the side plate of the vending machine body. To prevent the shaft member 4 from slipping off in the guide plate 1, a notch 3a is provided substantially at the center of the rib 3, and a pin hole 4a is provided on the shaft member 4 side so as to face the notch 3a. The stopper pin 6 is inserted into the pin hole 4a, and the stopper pin 6 is engaged with the notch 3a of the rib 3 to prevent the shaft member 4 from coming off the guide plate 1.

In addition, in the mounting structure of FIG. 8, the shaft member 7 has a shape having a head portion 7a, and the shaft member 7 is inserted into the guide plate 1 and the side plates 8 on both sides thereof. The stopper ring 8 is locked at the tip of the shaft member 7 to prevent the shaft member 7 from coming off.

[0005]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 As is clear from each of the conventional examples shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, in a structure in which a plastic molded product such as a guide plate is attached to the main body of the vending machine by using the shaft member, the shaft member 4 (7) is It is necessary to use a stopper with a retaining pin 6 or a retaining ring 8 for retaining, which is disadvantageous in terms of assembly workability and cost as well as an increase in the number of parts. Also, when the device including the guide plate 1 and the shaft member 4 (7) needs to be disassembled, the fasteners such as the retaining pin 6 and the retaining ring 8 used until then cannot be easily removed. Many of them are uneconomical because they cannot be reused.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to mount a plastic molded product such as a guide plate on a vending machine body by using a shaft member in an automatic vending machine for products such as cans and bottled beverages. An object of the present invention is to provide a component mounting structure that can reduce the number of points, is easy to assemble, and is advantageous in terms of cost.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 In order to achieve this object, the component mounting structure for a vending machine according to the present invention is a shaft member for inserting a component having side walls on one side and the other side and having a through hole in each side wall into the through hole. When the shaft member is inserted into the through hole, the annular protrusion is provided along the part of the outer circumference of the shaft member so that it will be located between the side walls of the part when the shaft member is inserted through the through hole. Is provided with a tongue portion that is elastically bent so that the annular convex portion of the shaft member can ride over.

[0008]

[Action]

 During assembly, the shaft member is inserted through the through hole of the component from the predetermined direction so that the annular protrusion is located between the side walls of the component. At this time, the annular protrusion contacts the tongue of the component from one side. This contact force causes the tongue piece to bend and bend due to elasticity. The annular projection of the shaft member gets over this by the bending of the tongue portion. That is, after riding over, the annular convex portion enters between the side wall and the tongue piece portion on one side of the component, and the side wall and the tongue piece portion serve as a retaining portion of the shaft member. By the operations up to this point, the shaft member can be assembled to the parts with one touch.

[0009]

【Example】

 An embodiment of a component mounting structure for a vending machine according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show an example of an automatic vending machine having a serpentine type column (commodity storage shelf) to which the component mounting structure of the embodiment is applied. The vending machine body 10 has side plates 11 and 12 on both sides, and a plurality of stages of guide plates 20 into which different types of products 30 are put are provided so as to be sandwiched between these side plates 11 and 12. The product 30 is inclined with its rearmost end lowered from the product insertion opening side facing the front surface of the product 12, so that the inserted product 30 can be naturally rolled. Corresponding columns 41 to 41 are connected to the rear end of the guide plate 20.

The guide plate 20 is a component referred to in the present invention, and is made of, for example, a resin molded in a rectangular shape. As is apparent from FIG. 3 when viewed from the bottom surface direction, the guide plate 20 has side walls 22 and 23 extending parallel to the longitudinal direction on both sides of the bottom plate 21, and a number of side walls 22 and 23 orthogonal to the side walls 22 and 23 on the back surface side. Book ribs 24 are provided to increase the overall rigidity. The side walls 22, 23 of the guide plate 20 reinforced by the ribs 24 are provided with shaft holes 25a, 25b, and the support shaft (shaft member) 27 is inserted through both holes, so that the guide plate 20 can be installed in the vending machine body 10. It is adapted to be attached to the side plates 11 and 12. The portion where the guide plate 20 is attached to the main body 10 by the support shaft 27 is near the rear end. Both ends of the support shaft 27 are adapted to be fitted into mounting holes 12b provided in both side plates 11 and 12.

Referring again to FIG. 2, the portion of the guide plate 20 near the front portion is attached to the side plates 11 and 12 of the main body 10 by, for example, a pair of left and right positioning pins 28 and 28. Springs 29, 29 are mounted around the shafts of the positioning pins 28, 28 so that the positioning pins 28, 28 are attached by the springs 29, 29 in the direction of engaging with the positioning holes 12a formed in the side plates 11, 12. It is energized. Therefore, the guide plate 20 can be positioned by engaging the positioning pin 28 with the positioning hole 12a by the operation against the spring 29. Although the embodiment discloses the mechanism for engaging the positioning hole 12a with the positioning pin 28 and the spring 29 around the shaft, the installation location may be reversed depending on the relationship between the pin and the hole. In any case, the mechanism is not limited to the one shown.

Here, as shown in FIG. 3, one of several ribs 24 for reinforcing the guide plate 20 is formed with a tongue piece 26 protruding and having a size and shape capable of elastic bending. . As is apparent from FIGS. 4 to 6, the tongue piece portion 26 is provided with a slant surface portion 26a by obliquely cutting off the tip thereof, and the back surface of the slant surface portion 26a is a vertical check portion 26b.

On the other hand, on the support shaft 27, an annular convex portion 27 a is provided along the circumference at a part in the longitudinal direction by step processing. In the sense of achieving the present invention, the material is not limited to metal or plastic as long as the annular convex portion 27a can be processed and provided on the support shaft 27. Further, it is desirable that the annular convex portion 27a has an optimum size and shape for engaging and disengaging the tongue piece portion 26 on the guide plate 20 side.

Next, the operation mode and action of the embodiment having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIGS.

At the time of assembly, one end portion of the support shaft 27 is first inserted into the through hole 25 a provided in the side wall 22 on one side of the guide plate 20. Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the supporting shaft 27 is moved toward the through hole 25a of the other side wall 23 of the guide plate 20 located on the right side of the drawing.

As shown in FIG. 5, the movement of the support shaft 27 causes the annular protrusion 27 a to come into contact with the tongue piece 26 on the guide plate 20 side from the slope 26 a side. The contact force causes the tongue portion 26 to be elastically bent and bent. Due to the bending of the tongue piece portion 26, the annular convex portion 27a gets over the slope portion 26a.

As shown in FIG. 6, after getting over, the other end of the support shaft 27 is inserted into the through hole 25 a of the side wall 23, and the annular convex portion 27 a makes the vertical check portion between the other side wall 23 and the tongue piece 26. It enters between 26b. The annular protrusion 27a of the support shaft 27 abuts against the side wall 23 and the check portion 26b of the tongue piece 26, so that the support shaft 27 does not fall out of the guide plate 20 in a natural state. Up to this point, the guide plate 20 and the support shaft 27 can be assembled with one touch. Further, at the time of disassembling, by applying a force from the opposite direction to the support shaft 27, the annular convex portion 27a can get over the non-return portion 26b of the tongue piece portion 26.

In the operation diagrams of FIGS. 4 to 6, the fitting of the support shaft 27 with the side plates 11 and 12d of the vending machine main body 10 as shown in FIG. 2 is omitted.

In the embodiment, the sloped portion 26a is provided at the tip of the tongue piece 26 so that the annular protrusion 27a of the support shaft 27 easily gets over the tongue piece 26 on the guide plate 20 side. For example, a curved surface having a circular cross section may be provided instead of the inclined surface portion 26a, and the annular convex portion 27a may ride over this curved surface.

[0021]

[Effect of device]

 As described above, according to the component mounting structure of the vending machine of the present invention, in the case where the shaft member is inserted into a component such as a guide plate for assembly, the annular member provided on the shaft member is used. Due to the force of the convex part coming into contact with the tongue part of the component from one side, the annular convex part gets over this by utilizing the elastic bending of the tongue part, and the side wall and tongue part prevent the shaft member from slipping off. Since it becomes a part, the shaft member can be assembled to the component with one touch. That is, particularly when a plastic molded product such as a guide plate is attached to the vending machine body using the shaft member, the number of parts can be reduced, the assemblability is good, and the cost is reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a vending machine incorporating a component mounting structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the periphery of a guide plate as the component mounting structure of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of a guide plate as viewed from the bottom of the component mounting structure according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a partial bottom view showing a mode in which a shaft member is inserted into a guide plate as a component in the component mounting structure of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a partial bottom view showing a mode of inserting the shaft member in the embodiment as well.

FIG. 6 is a partial bottom view showing a mode of inserting the shaft member in the embodiment as well.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the periphery of a guide plate as a conventional component mounting structure.

FIG. 8 is a bottom view showing the periphery of a guide plate as a conventional component mounting structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... Vending machine main body, 11, 12 ... Side plate, 20 ... Guide plate (component), 22, 23 ... Side wall, 24 ... Reinforcing rib,
Reference numeral 25a ... Through hole, 26 ... Tongue piece portion, 27 ... Support shaft (shaft member), 27a ... Annular convex portion.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A structure in which a component having side walls on one side and the other side and having a through hole in each side wall is attached to a vending machine main body via a shaft member inserted through the through hole, the shaft member comprising: An annular convex portion is provided along the outer circumference of the shaft member so that it is located between the side walls of the component when it is inserted into the through hole. The annular convex portion of the shaft member is elastically bent between the side walls of the component so that it can pass over. It has a tongue part that makes it possible to mount parts on a vending machine.