JPH06301850A - Controller for automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To automatically calculate the number of commodities to be replenished by throwing in a commodity to a one-commodity rolling path. CONSTITUTION:An automatic vending machine provided with a housing rack 1 in which the commodity is housed is equipped with a detecting means 2 which detects a contact sound with a track segment in the housing rack 1 when a thrown-in commodity drops from the housing rack 1, a measuring means 3 which measures a time while a sound detection signal from the detecting means 2 occurs, a setting means 4 which sets the filled number of commodities at every housing rack 1, a storage means 5 which stores the fully filled number of commodities set by the setting means 4, and a control part 6 which converts the required number of commodities to be replenished in the housing rack 1 from the measured time of the measuring means 3 and the set number of commodities of the storage means 5 and notifies of the required number of commodities to be replenished.

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 surely replenishing merchandise when accommodating the merchandise in an automatic vending machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional vending machine for selling cans or bottles, a person who replenishes merchandise stores or copies the number of merchandise to be accommodated in each accommodation shelf, and when replenishing merchandise, the The number of products required to be replenished was calculated by checking the number of products remaining in the product storage shelf. There is also a method of counting the number of replenished products by providing a system for grasping the required number of replenishment of products in advance or a loading port sensor for recognizing the products at a product loading port of a product storage shelf of a vending machine.

[0003]

However, a person who replenishes merchandise stores or copies the number of merchandise to be accommodated in each accommodation shelf, and confirms the number of merchandise remaining in the merchandise accommodation shelf of the vending machine. In many cases, the number of items required to be replenished was incorrect, which placed a burden on the person who replenished the product. In addition, a system that grasps the required number of items to be replenished in advance is often far from the place where the vending machine is installed, and after obtaining the required number of items to be replenished from the system, the items are replenished to the vending machine. In the meantime, if the product is being sold, the required replenishment number obtained from the system is not useful, and as a result, the required number of replenishment items is calculated by checking the number of products remaining in the vending machine as described above. I have to
Further, the insertion port sensor has a drawback that it is very expensive and the mounting position of the sensor is limited. The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and if the number of full products is input, only one product is put in the storage rack, and it is necessary to automatically replenish the product on the spot. It is an object of the present invention to provide a control device for a vending machine that calculates and informs the number.

[0004]

A first aspect of the present invention is a track segment in which a product loaded from an upper loading slot is vertically and continuously arranged between side plates which are upright and face each other. In the vending machine that is housed in the product rolling passage that meanders and runs vertically by the
Detecting means (2) for detecting a contact sound with the track segment in the storage shelf (1) when the inserted product falls in the storage shelf (1), and a sound detection signal from the detection means (2) Measuring means (3) for measuring the time during which the product is generated, and setting means (4) for setting the number of full articles of each of the storage shelves (1).
A storage means (5) for storing the number of full products set by the setting means (4), the storage time (5) based on the measurement time of the measuring means (3) and the number of products set in the storage means (5). It is characterized in that it further comprises a control unit (6) for converting the required number of product replenishment to 1) and notifying the required number of product replenishment.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a product inserted from an upper insertion opening meanders vertically by a track body segment which is vertically and continuously arranged between side plates which face each other and face each other. In a vending machine that is housed in a running product rolling passage to form a storage rack (1), a track segment in the storage rack (1) when a loaded product drops in the storage rack (1). Detecting means (2 ') for detecting contact vibration with the measuring means, measuring means (3) for measuring the time during which the vibration detecting signal from the detecting means (2') is generated, and the storage rack (1). Setting means (4) to set the number of full products
And a storage means (5) for storing the number of full products set by the setting means (4), the number of vibrations obtained by the detection means (2 ′), and the vibration based on the measurement time of the measurement means (3). The frequency is calculated, and the vibration frequency and the storage means (5)
A control unit (6 ') for converting the required number of products to be replenished to the storage shelf (1) from the set number of products to notify the required number of products to be replenished.
It is characterized by having and.

[0006]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the detection means (2) detects the sound generated when the product naturally falls on the storage shelf (1), and the detection signal from the detection means (2) is used to detect the product. The storage shelf (1) stored in the storage means (5) is set by the setting means (4) by measuring the time from the time of loading until reaching the lowest point of the storage shelf (1) by the measuring means (3). ), The control unit (6) having a built-in data table for converting the required number of product replenishment from the number of products desired to be stored in
Convert the required number of products to be replenished, and display and print.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the detection means (2 ') detects the vibration generated when the product naturally falls on the storage shelf (1), and the detection signal from the detection means (2') The measuring means (3) measures the time from when the product is loaded until the lowest point of the storage shelf (1) is reached. The storage frequency is calculated by the control unit (6 ') based on the number of vibrations obtained by the detection unit (2') and the measurement time, set by the setting unit (4), and stored in the storage unit (5). The control section (6 ') having a built-in data table for converting the required number of product replenishment from the number of products desired to be stored in (1) and the vibration frequency converts the required number of product replenishment to display and print.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The embodiments shown in the drawings will be described in detail below. FIG. 3 is a control block diagram showing a first embodiment of the device of the present invention. Reference numeral 50 indicates a product storage shelf of an automatic vending machine for can or bottle products, and 51 indicates a control device of the automatic vending machine. The product storage shelf 50 stores a product and meanders to meander and runs vertically; and an input port 11 located above the product rolling passage 10 for loading a product.
A sound detection sensor 12 provided inside the product storage shelf 50 for detecting a sound generated when a product passes through the product rolling passage 10, and a product located below the product rolling passage 10 when the product is taken out from the product rolling passage 10. It comprises a product unloading mechanism 14 for opening and closing the product stopper 13.

The merchandise rolling passage 10 is formed in a plurality of substantially semicircular circular arcs that guide the merchandise downwardly following the loading port 11, and the inner circular arc surface serves as the merchandise rolling surface 15 of the raceway segment 15. , 16. And orbital segment 1
Nos. 5 and 16 are arranged so as to soften the impact when a falling product comes into contact with the product. Reference numeral 17 denotes a stored product, and the input port 11 is provided with a slope so that the product input side is raised, so that the product can automatically enter the product rolling passage 10 by its own weight only by placing the product in the input port. Has become.

The control device 51 is capable of inputting the full number of products to be stored and the input instruction of various input / output data for each passage and size of the product storage shelf 50 required for the present invention. 20 and a RAM 21 for storing the number of full products input by the keyboard 20 and an electric signal output from the sound detection sensor 12, the product rolling passage 10 from the insertion of the product to the completion of storage of the product. The product rolling passage 10 based on the timer 22 which measures the time transmitted and outputs an electric signal, the number of full products set by the keyboard 20 and the measured time obtained by the timer 22 (which can be converted into the total number of replenishable products). It is possible to convert the number of replenished products required for the control, and a control unit 24 having a built-in ROM 23 for storing a program for the entire control, and an electric power output from the control unit 24. And a display unit 25, printing unit 26 for printing a product refill number required by an electric signal outputted from the control unit 24 for displaying the items replenished number required by the Patent.

With such a structure, the movement of the product after the product is loaded will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 shows the product storage shelf 50. After the product is loaded through the loading slot 11, the product is brought into contact with the uppermost rear plate 30 of the track segment 16 for guiding the product, and then the product is placed. The uppermost front plate 31 of the guided track segment 15 is contacted to generate a sound, and then the rear plate 32 immediately below the rear plate 30 is contacted to generate a sound, and then the front plate immediately below the front plate 31. 33 to make a sound, and then to make a sound by making a sound by making a sound by making contact with a rear plate 34 just below the rear plate 32, and making a sound by making a contact with a front plate 35 just below the front plate 33 to reach the lowest point. When the product arrives, the product stops moving and is housed in the product rolling passage 10.

That is, the product is A → B → C → in FIG.
It falls naturally while moving from D → E → F → G. here,
The sound detection sensor 12 is provided on the rear plate 3 on the uppermost side when a product is loaded.
The electric signal is output by detecting the sound alternately generated from the front plate and the rear plate which come into contact with the product due to the moving and falling of the product from 0 to the lowest point of the front plate 35.

The control unit 24 converts the measured time obtained by the timer 22 and the number of full products read from the RAM 21 into the number of replenished products by the ROM 23 in the control unit 24, and the display unit 25 and the printing unit 26 receive an electric signal. Is output, the required number of product replenishments is displayed on the display unit 25, and the print unit 26 is printed.

The control operation of the present invention will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in step S1 as an initial setting, it is confirmed whether or not the number of full products is set in each of the product rolling passages 10 of the product storage shelf 50 by the keyboard 20, and if not set (N), the start is left as it is. If it is set (Y), the process proceeds to step S2 and RA
The set value is stored in M21. Next, the process proceeds to step S3, and it is confirmed whether or not a sound is generated when the product is loaded through the slot 11. If there is a sound (Y), the process proceeds to step S4 and the timer 2
Start time measurement at 2. If there is no sound (N), the step S3 remains as it is.

Next, in step S5, it is determined whether or not the sound generated when the product travels through the product rolling passage 10 is muted. If the sound is not muted (N), the time is measured in step S5. If the sound is muted (Y), step S
6 and the time measurement by the timer 22 is finished.

Next, in step S7, the measurement time and RA
Based on the number of full products in M21, the control unit 24 reads the data in the ROM 23 and converts the number of replenished products, and then proceeds to step S8 to output an electric signal from the control unit 24 to the display unit 25 and the printing unit 26. Then, the display 2
5, and the printing unit 26 prints. In this way
This flow ends as the product replenishment number confirmation work at the time of product replenishment is completed.

FIG. 6 is a control block diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention. The parts having the same functions as those in FIG. 3 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. 6 is different from FIG. 4 in that the product storage shelf 52 is provided with a vibration sensor 40 that detects vibration and outputs an electric signal in place of the sound detection sensor 12, and the control unit 41 of the control device 53. The frequency is calculated from the number of vibrations and the vibration time obtained by the vibration sensor 40 and the timer 22 by
This is a point to be calculated by using the ROM 42 for converting the number of full products stored in the M21 and the frequency to convert the number of full products (a data table for converting the number of full products in advance from the frequency and full number of products is provided in the ROM).

In the present embodiment, the vibration sensor 40 detects the vibration generated when a product is loaded from the loading slot 11 and alternately comes into contact with the track segments 15 and 16 and falls naturally. Output an electric signal. The timer 22 puts the product into the loading slot 1 by this electric signal.
Product rolling passage 1 from the time of loading from 1 to the completion of storage
It measures the time transmitted through 0 and outputs the measured time to the control unit 41. The control unit 41 recognizes the number of vibrations based on the electric signal from the vibration sensor 40, calculates the vibration frequency from the measurement time obtained by the timer 22, and converts it into the number of replenished products using the ROM 42.

The control operation of this apparatus will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The same operation as that in FIG. 5 is designated by the same reference numeral, and the step S
Since 1 and step S2 are the same operations as in FIG. 5, their description is omitted. In the next step S10, the occurrence of vibration when the product is inserted through the product insertion port 11 is confirmed, and if there is vibration (Y), the process proceeds to step S11 to start time measurement and vibration frequency measurement. If there is no vibration (N), the step S10 remains as it is.

Next, in step S12, it is determined whether or not the vibration generated when the product passes through the product rolling passage 10 has disappeared. If the vibration has not disappeared (N), the time is measured in step S12. When the vibration disappears (Y), the process proceeds to step S13, and the timer 22 finishes the time measurement and the vibration frequency measurement.

Next, in step S14, the controller 41
Then, the vibration frequency is calculated from the time and the number of vibrations obtained in step S13, and in the next step S15, the control unit 41 calculates the number of full products in the RAM 21 set in step S1 and the vibration frequency obtained in step S14. , R
The data in the OM 42 is read out and converted into the number of replenished products. Since the operation after the next step S8 is the same as that in FIG. 5, the description thereof will be omitted.

[0022]

As described above, according to the control devices according to the first and second embodiments, when the full number of products is set for each product rolling passage of the product storage shelf and the products are replenished, When each product is put into the product rolling passage only once, its drop time,
Alternatively, the number of vibrations is detected, the number of replenished products is calculated, and the control unit displays and prints, so that the number of replenished products for each product rolling passage in the product storage shelf can be automatically and accurately confirmed, and sales management can be performed. It becomes easier and the work efficiency of the person who replenishes the product can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram for responding to a claim of the first invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for responding to a claim of the second invention.

FIG. 3 is a control block diagram showing an embodiment of the control device of the first invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the movement of the product after the product is put in.

5 is a flowchart showing a control operation of the apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a control block diagram showing an embodiment of the second invention.

7 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the apparatus of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Storage Shelf 2, 2'Detecting Means 3 Measuring Means 4 Setting Means 5 Storage Means 6, 6 ', 24, 41 Control Parts 50, 52 Product Storage Shelf 51, 53 Control Device 10 Product Rolling Passage 11 Inserting Port 12 Sound Detection Sensor 13 Product stopper 14 Product unloading mechanism 15,16 Orbital segment 17 Housed product 20 Keyboard 21 RAM 22 Timer 23,42 ROM 25 Display section 26 Printing section 40 Vibration sensor

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A merchandise roll in which merchandise loaded from an upper loading slot meanders and runs vertically by a track segment which is vertically continuous between facing upright side plates and is opposed to front and back. In a vending machine that is housed in a moving passage to form a storage rack (1), when a loaded product falls on the storage rack (1), contact with a track body segment in the storage rack (1) A detection means (2) for detecting a sound, a measurement means (3) for measuring a time during which a sound detection signal from the detection means (2) is generated, and a full number of products for each of the storage shelves (1) Setting means (4), a storage means (5) for storing the number of full products set by the setting means (4), a measurement time of the measuring means (3) and the storage means (5). Convert the required number of items to be replenished to the storage shelf (1) from the set number of items, Control apparatus for an automatic vending machine, characterized in that a control unit for notifying the charge required number (6). 2. A product roll in which a product loaded from an upper loading slot meanders and runs up and down by a track segment which is arranged vertically and continuously between side plates facing each other and facing each other. In a vending machine that is housed in a moving passage to form a storage rack (1), when a loaded product falls on the storage rack (1), contact with a track body segment in the storage rack (1) Detecting means (2 ') for detecting vibration, measuring means (3) for measuring the time during which a vibration detecting signal from the detecting means (2') is generated, and a product for each of the storage shelves (1) Setting means (4) for setting the full number, storage means (5) for storing the full number of products set by the setting means (4), the number of vibrations obtained by the detecting means (2 ′) and the The vibration frequency is calculated from the measurement time of the measuring means (3) and An automatic vending machine, comprising: a control unit (6 ') for converting the required number of products to be replenished into the storage shelf (1) from the number of products set in the storage means (5) and notifying the required number of products to be replenished. Machine control device.