JPH08161613A - Automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide an automatic vending machine in which decision of an article to be purchased by a purchaser is made simply and dispersion in number of quantities of sold articles is minimized to the utmost. CONSTITUTION: A front door 3 of an automatic vending machine 1 is provided with a 1st display shelf 5 with plural kinds of outer packages 4 of condoms, plural article selection buttons 6, and a 2nd display shelf 7. A transparent window 14 is placed to a front face of the 1st display shelf 5 of a housing 2 of the automatic vending machine 1 and also a transparent window 15 made of a transparent synthetic resin material is placed to a front face of the 2nd display shelf 7. Condoms are respectively displayed at positions corresponding respectively to the plural outer packages 4 displayed in the 1st display shelf 5 in the inside of the 2nd display shelf 7. An opaque shutter 17 is arranged behind the transparent window 15 movably in vertical direction, and the condoms in the inside of the 2nd display shelf 7 are visible externally or shut from the outside of the automatic vending machine 1 by opening 7 closing the shutter 17.

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, and more particularly to an automatic vending machine that sells products stored in a container such as a condom.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various kinds of products such as soft drinks or cigarettes are sold in vending machines. Condoms are sold as one type of product. Condoms are now used as a part of youth fashion, and they come in a wide variety of shapes and colors. When selling such a condom with a vending machine, the vending machine must be installed in front of the store, facing the passage, etc., through which an unspecified number of pedestrians, including young adults such as children, pass. In view of the large number of items, only the outer box of the condom is displayed without displaying the actual condom. In such a conventional vending machine for condoms, the purchaser decides and purchases the product by simply looking at the outer box of the product.

[0003]

The outer box displayed in the vending machine naturally does not clearly and visually show the shape and color of the stored products. Therefore, the purchaser needs to read the description of the product written on the outer box and decide the desired condom, and there is a problem that the decision of the product is troublesome.

In such a condom vending machine, the lowest priced condom has the highest sales volume, and the higher the price, the lower the sales volume tends to be. This is due in part to the fact that condom purchasers have to rely only on outer boxes that are not very different in appearance as criteria for determining the type. For this reason,
There is a problem that the sales volume varies depending on the product of the vending machine.

The inventions of claims 1 and 2 have been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to make it easy for the purchaser to decide the product to be purchased and to sell the product to be sold. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vending machine capable of suppressing variations in quantity as much as possible.

[0006]

An automatic vending machine according to a first aspect of the present invention is an automatic vending machine that sells products stored in a container, and includes a first display shelf that displays containers for the products to be sold. A second housing for displaying the product at a position corresponding to the container of the product displayed on the first display shelf, the housing being disposed in the vicinity of the first display shelf;
The display shelf and the selection shielding unit that shields the product on the second display shelf from the outside or makes them visible, and normally shields the product on the second display shelf from the outside, are provided. The above object can be achieved.

The vending machine according to the invention of claim 2 is the same as that of claim 1.
In the vending machine according to the item (1), there is provided a switching unit that switches the selection shielding unit in response to the input of money so that the product on the second display shelf can be visually recognized from the outside. The above object can be achieved.

[0008]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the product to be sold in the vending machine of the present invention is displayed in the first display rack of the housing of the vending machine in the container storing the product. In the housing, a second display shelf is arranged close to the first display shelf, and the product is displayed at a position of the second display shelf corresponding to the container of the product displayed on the first display shelf. Selective shielding means is provided in association with the second display rack. The selective shielding means normally shields the product on the second display shelf from the outside or makes it visible.

[0009] With this, it is possible to make the products sold at the vending machine normally invisible to the general public. On the other hand, the purchaser of this product can confirm the product displayed on the second display shelf by the selection shielding means. As a result, when deciding a product to purchase, it is possible to avoid deciding the product based on an element that does not directly represent the product, such as the appearance of the container, so that the product can be easily determined.

Further, since the purchaser can confirm the product when deciding the product to be purchased, not only the price of the product but also the shape, color, etc. of the product can be used as a factor for determining the product. Appeal can be combined. This makes it possible to purchase a relatively high-priced product other than the low-priced product rather than determining the purchased product based on only the container and price of the product. As a result, it is possible to suppress variations in the sales quantity of the sold products as much as possible.

[0011]

1 is a perspective view showing a normal standby state of an automatic vending machine 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a vending machine 1.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state of inserting money into the vending machine, FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the vending machine 1 near the second display shelf in the one operating state, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of two display shelves, FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the vending machine 1, and FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the vending machine 1. Hereinafter, the configuration of the vending machine 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The vending machine 1 of this embodiment sells a condom as an example.

In the vending machine 1 of the present embodiment, the vending machine 1 is installed facing a passageway or the like where an unspecified number of pedestrians including unadults such as children pass, such as the front of a store. In many cases, the actual condom that is a commodity is not displayed, and only the outer box that is the container is displayed, so that the purchaser can confirm the condom stored in the outer box. It is what

The vending machine 1 of this embodiment is the vending machine 1
Is provided with a housing 2 that defines the outer appearance of the housing 2. The housing 2 is provided with a front door 3 that can be opened and closed. A first display shelf 5 that displays a plurality of exterior boxes 4 corresponding to a plurality of types of condoms is provided on the front surface of the front door 3. The front surface of the first display shelf 5 is sealed by a transparent window 14 made of a transparent synthetic resin material. Below the first display rack 5, a plurality of product selection buttons 6 are arranged at positions corresponding to the respective outer boxes 4 displayed on the first display rack 5, and below the selection button 6, the second display rack 7 is displayed. Is provided. The configuration of the second display shelf 7 will be described later.
Further, as an example, a light emitting means such as an LED (light emitting diode) is installed inside the selection button 6 and a sellable lamp for identifying a sellable product corresponding to the amount of money is turned on when the money is inserted, or If there is a sold-out item, the sold-out lamp is turned on.

Below the second display rack 7, as an example for displaying the amount of coins inserted, an amount indicator 8 consisting of a 4-digit day segment, a return lever 9 operated when refunding change, Coin slot 10, banknote slot 11,
The change port 12 where the change is refunded, and the product outlet 1
3 is provided.

The structure around the second display shelf 7 is shown in FIG.
And with reference to FIG. 4, it demonstrates below. A transparent window 14 is provided on the front surface of the first display rack 5 of the housing 2 of the vending machine 1.
And a transparent window 15 made of a transparent synthetic resin material is also installed on the front surface of the second display shelf 7. Second display shelf 7
Inside, the condoms 16 housed in the respective exterior boxes 4 are respectively displayed at positions corresponding to the plurality of exterior boxes 4 displayed on the first display shelf 5. Behind the transparent window 15, an opaque shutter 17 having a size covering the transparent window 15 is arranged so as to be vertically movable. As an example of the shutter 17, one end of a guide wire 18 is fixed to both ends in the width direction, and the other end of the guide wire 18 is connected to a rod 2 of an electromagnetic plunger 19 via a pulley 21.
It is fixed at the tip of 0.

The shutter 17 includes an electromagnetic plunger 19
When the rod 20 is contracted and the rod 20 is contracted, the second display shelf 7 is opened to the outside by pulling it up in FIG. 3, and the condom 16 inside the second display shelf 7 is confirmed from the outside through the transparent window 15. It will be possible. When the electromagnetic plunger 19 is de-energized, the shutter 17 moves downward by its own weight, for example, to shield the second display shelf 7 from the outside, and the condom 16 cannot be seen from the outside. Alternatively, the shutter 17
A spring may be provided to bias the shutter 17 so that the shutter 17 is closed.

The electrical configuration of the vending machine 1 will be described below with reference to FIG. Inside the front door 3, a plurality of columns 22 are arranged in six rows as an example. Inside the column 22, an outer box containing a condom is stacked and stored. For each column 22, column numbers 1 to 6 are stored.
Is set. The sold-out lamp 23 is installed for each column 22. The sold-out lamp 23 is turned off in the standby state when there is a product inventory in the internal column 22, and is lit when there is no product inventory.

The sellable lamp 24 for each column 22
Is installed. The sellable lamp 24 is turned off during standby, and is turned on when the sold-out lamp 23 is not turned on as described above, and when money of more than the selling price of the corresponding product is inserted. To do. The selection button 6 is provided for each column 22.

The vending machine 1 of this embodiment includes a microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as a microcomputer) 25. The microcomputer 25 is provided with a CPU (central processing circuit) 26, an I / O (input / output) port 27, a timer 28 and a memory 29. This microcomputer 26
The selection button 6, sold-out lamp 23, available-for-sale lamp 24, coin mech 30, bill Bali 31, amount indicator 8, return lever 9 via the I / O port 27.
And the electromagnetic plunger 19 is connected.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the vending machine 1. 1 to 6, the vending machine 1
The operation will be described below. In the vending machine 1 according to the present embodiment, in the normal standby state, the electromagnetic plunger 19
The power supply to the second display shelf 7 is blocked by the shutter 17 as shown in FIG. 3, and the condom 16 cannot be seen from the outside. The sold-out lamp 23 is turned on or off depending on whether or not there is a product in each column 22.

At step a1 in FIG. 6, the vending machine 1 is in a standby state waiting for the insertion of money. When coins are inserted, the process proceeds to step a2, and the microcomputer 25 energizes the electromagnetic plunger 19. As a result, the rod 20 retracts and the shutter 17 rises from the closed state of FIG. 3 to the open state of FIG. In this state, the condom 16 displayed on the second display shelf 7 can be confirmed from the outside. Thereby, the purchaser can determine the type of the condom 16 to be purchased based on not only the outer box 4 displayed on the first display shelf 5 but also the actual condom 16 and the shape or color thereof. it can. In addition, the input amount is displayed on the amount display 8.

At step a3, the automatic vending machine 1 is set to the vending state. This sellable state is, for example, turning on the sellable lamp 24 corresponding to the condom 16 having a selling price equal to or less than the amount of coins thrown in. In step a4, it is determined whether the return lever 9 has been operated. If this determination is negative, the process proceeds to step a5, and the lit sellable lamp 24
It is determined whether or not the selection button 6 corresponding to is pressed. If this judgment is negative, the process returns to step a4 and waits for the operation of either the return lever 9 or the selection button 6. Any of the selection buttons 6 in step a5
When it is detected that is operated, the process is step a6.
The condom 16 corresponding to the operated selection button 6 is moved from the column 22 to
The individual pieces are taken out and dropped into the take-out port 13 for the products. Thereafter, in step a7, the microcomputer 25 sets the electromagnetic plunger 19
Cut off the power supply to. This causes the shutter 17 to move to the position shown in FIG.
From the open state to the closed state in FIG. As a result, the vending machine 1 returns to the standby state in step a1.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step a4 that the return lever 9 has been operated, the process proceeds to step a.
8, the inserted money is returned from the bill insertion slot 11 and the change slot 12. After this, the process is the same as in step a.
7, the shutter 17 is closed as described above.

As described above, in the vending machine 1 according to the present embodiment, the condom 16 sold by the vending machine 1 is kept invisible in the ordinary standby state from the general public including children. Can be On the other hand, the purchaser of the condom 16 can check the outer box 4 displayed on the first display shelf 5 and can check the condom 16 itself displayed on the second display shelf 7 by inserting money. You can Thus, when determining the condom 16 to be purchased, the type of the condom 16 can be determined by checking not only the outer box 4 but also the condom 16 itself, so that the condom 16 to be purchased can be easily determined.

Further, when the condom 16 to be purchased is decided, the purchaser can confirm the condom 16 itself. Therefore, not only the price of the condom 16 but also the shape and color of the condom 16 are factors that determine the condom 16 to be purchased. As described above, it is possible to combine the appealing power of the condom 16 as a product with the purchaser. This makes it possible to purchase a relatively high-priced condom 16 other than the low-priced condom 16 rather than the condom 16 to be purchased based on only the outer box 4 of the condom 16 and the price. As a result, it is possible to suppress variations in the sales volume of the condoms 16 that are sold as to product prices.

Further, the vending machine 1 of the present embodiment is not limited to the case of actually purchasing, but can also perform only the operation of confirming the shape or color of the condom 16 stored in the outer box 4. Therefore, the purchaser can determine the type of the condom 16 to be purchased in the future in advance and can promptly purchase the product at the time of actual purchase, thereby increasing the purchaser's willingness to purchase in the future.

The present invention is not limited to the vending machine 1 that sells the condom 16 as in the above-mentioned embodiment, but a wide variety of products are usually sold in a container. It can be implemented for vending machines that sell merchandise.

As another embodiment of the present invention, instead of the shutter 17, a liquid crystal display is fixed to the back surface of the transparent window 15, and a drive voltage is applied to the liquid crystal display by the electric control of the microcomputer 25. The liquid crystal display may be switched between a light transmitting state and a light blocking state by applying or blocking. This also makes it possible to set the second display shelf 7 to either a state in which it can be observed from the outside or a state in which it is shielded from the outside. Further, in the case of the light blocking state, a display for advertising some kind may be displayed instead of the black display.

Further, as another embodiment, the shutter 1
Instead of being automatically operated by the electromagnetic plunger 19 or the like, 7 may be manually opened / closed from the outside. In this case, the electromagnetic plunger 19 and the connection wirings accompanying it in the above embodiment are unnecessary. In addition, slits may be provided at both ends of the transparent window 15 in the left-right direction, and the operation lever fixed to the shutter 17 may be projected to the outside from this slit. Alternatively,
The shutter 17 may be arranged in front of the transparent window 15.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, the product on the second display shelf is normally shielded from the outside or visible by the selection shielding means provided in association with the second display shelf. I am trying to. As a result, it is possible to make the products sold at the vending machine normally invisible to the general public. On the other hand, the purchaser of this product can confirm the product displayed on the second display shelf by the selection shielding means. As a result, when deciding a product to purchase, it is possible to avoid deciding the product based on an element that does not directly represent the product, such as the appearance of the container, so that the product can be easily determined.

In addition, since the purchaser can confirm the product when deciding the product to be purchased, not only the price of the product but also the shape, color, etc. of the product can be used as a factor for determining the product. Appeal can be combined. This makes it possible to purchase a relatively high-priced product other than the low-priced product rather than determining the purchased product based on only the container and price of the product. As a result, it is possible to suppress variations in the sales quantity of the sold products as much as possible.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a normal standby state of an automatic vending machine 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where the vending machine 1 is charged with money.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a second display shelf in the one operating state of the vending machine 1.

FIG. 4 is a second view of the vending machine 1 in the other operation state.
It is a sectional view near a display shelf.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the vending machine 1.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the vending machine 1.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Vending Machine 2 Housing 3 Front Door 4 Exterior Box 5 First Display Shelf 6 Selection Button 7 Second Display Shelf 9 Return Lever 16 Condom 17 Shutter 19 Electromagnetic Plunger 25 Microcomputer

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A vending machine for selling products stored in a container, the housing having a first display shelf for displaying the container of the product to be sold, and the housing in the housing in the vicinity of the first display shelf. And a second display shelf that displays the product at a position corresponding to the container of the product displayed on the first display shelf, and the product on the second display shelf is shielded from the outside, or An automatic vending machine which is visible and which is normally provided with selective shielding means for shielding the product on the second display shelf from the outside. 2. The selective shielding means corresponding to the input of money,
The vending machine according to claim 1, further comprising a switching unit that switches the product on the second display shelf so that the product is visible from the outside.