JPH09319935A - Automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic vending machine capable of improving operability in the replenishment of commodities, without reducing the number of commodities to be stored. SOLUTION: In the automatic vending machine 1 provided with a vending machine body 2 for storing a commodity rack 5, forming a plurality of commodity columns in its inside and a body door 3 for opening the front aperture 2a of the body 2 as an opening door type through a hinge 4 and constituted of arranging the rack 5 close to the hinge side inner surface of the body 2, the rack 5 is constituted opposed to the hinge side corner, so as to be rotated obliquely ahead around the corner.

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 for cigarettes and the like, and more particularly to an automatic vending machine in which product racks each having a plurality of product columns are arranged in front and rear rows.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 12 shows a conventional cigarette vending machine. As shown in the figure, this vending machine 100 is composed of a vending machine body 101 and a body door 103 that opens and closes a front opening 102 of the vending machine body 101 in the form of an open door. Inside the vending machine body 101, the first rack 104 is provided on the front side.
The second rack 105 is arranged side by side on the left and right, and the third rack 106 is arranged on the rear side so as to fill the width thereof. Product column 1 on each rack 104, 105, 106
A plurality of 07 are arranged side by side, and usually different products A are accommodated in each. In this case, the third rack 106 is fixedly provided in the vending machine body 101, but the second rack 105 is configured to be rotatable diagonally forward around the front left end, and the first rack 104 is the first rack 104. It is configured to be slidable in the left-right direction along the three racks 106. In this case, each product column 107 of the third rack 106 extends in the vertical direction up to the height of the column 106, and mainly stores standard-size hot-selling products (cigarettes) A. The first rack 104 and the second rack 105 also have a plurality of product columns 10 in the vertical direction.
7 is built in (not shown), and many kinds of special size products (cigarettes) A such as long size are stored.

In the case of replenishing (loading) the product A in such a structure, first, the second rack 105 is rotated forward to move the third rack 105 located behind the second rack 105.
The product column 107 of the rack 106 is replenished with the product A, then the first rack 104 is moved to the position of the second rack 105, and the third rack 10 located behind the first rack 104.
Item A of item 6 is replenished with item A. When the replenishment of the product A to the third rack 106 is completed, the first rack 10
4 and the second rack 105 are returned to their original positions, and the product A is displayed in the product column 107 of the first and second racks 104 and 105.
Replenish.

[0004]

In the conventional vending machine 100 as described above, the product column 10 of the first rack 104 is provided.
When the product A is replenished in item 7, the main body door 103 becomes an obstacle and the replenishment work becomes difficult. In particular, in the vending machine 100 installed at a corner of the wall body, the main body door 103 has an angle of 9
Since it only opens about 0 degrees, the main body door 103 overhangs the thickness of the main body door 103 toward the front opening 102 side of the vending machine main body 101,
As for the product column 107 on the right side of the first rack 104, the main body door 103 interferes with the product column 107, which makes it difficult to perform the refilling work. However, such a problem can be solved by omitting the product column 107 on the right side of the first rack 104. However, if this is done, the number of products A accommodated will decrease. Further, if the first rack 104 is moved to the second rack 105 side at the time of replenishment, such a problem is solved. However, in such a case, since the second rack 105 is rotated and the product A cannot be replenished to the second rack 105, many types of product A
When the item A is prepared at hand and is to be replenished, it is necessary to first select the item A for the first rack 104 from the item A at hand. Therefore, it takes time to replenish the product A, which makes it difficult to perform the replenishment work.

On the other hand, by moving the first rack 104,
When replenishing the commodity column 107 of the third rack 106 located behind the rack 104 with the commodity A, the first rack 10
4 is slidable just by hitting the stopper. Therefore, the vending machine main body 101 side and the first
Replenishment of the product A due to the pulling force of the harness for connecting the rack 104 side (particularly remarkable in the winter because the PVC covering material becomes hard), the bounce when the first rack 104 moves, the inclination of the vending machine 100 itself, and the like. First rack 104 during work
However, there was a problem that it moved toward the original position, making it difficult to refill.

[0006] It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic vending machine capable of improving workability in replenishing products without reducing the number of products stored.

[0007]

A vending machine according to claim 1 is a vending machine main body that houses a product rack having a plurality of product columns and a front door opening of the vending machine main body via a hinge. In a vending machine equipped with a main body door that opens and closes, and the product rack is arranged closer to the inner side of the hinge side of the vending machine main body, with the main body door open, the product rack is centered on the side opposite to the hinge. It is characterized in that it can be rotated obliquely forward.

According to this structure, the main body door is opened and the commodity rack is rotated obliquely forward around the portion opposite to the hinge, whereby the rotated commodity rack is opened in front of the main body. Can escape from the door. That is, when replenishing the product, the product rack can be rotated to a position away from the main body door. Further, since the product rack can be arranged as close as possible to the hinge-side inner side surface of the vending machine body within a range where the product rack can escape from the main body door, the number of stored products does not decrease as a whole. .

It is preferable that the automatic vending machine according to claim 1 further comprises interlocking means for pivoting the product rack in conjunction with opening of the main body door.

According to this structure, when the main body door is opened, the product rack can be automatically rotated diagonally forward through the interlocking means. Therefore, when replenishing the product, the product rack is rotated. It is possible to save labor and further simplify the work of replenishing products.

In the vending machine according to claim 1 or 2,
With the product rack as the first rack, the second rack is arranged on the side of the first rack, and further on the rear side of the first rack and the second rack, the third rack is arranged along these racks. It is preferable that the second rack be configured so as to be rotatable diagonally forward around the portion opposite to the first rack, and that the first rack be configured to be slidable along the third rack.

According to this structure, the first rack and the second rack
On the third rack arranged along these behind the rack,
When replenishing merchandise, if the second rack is rotated diagonally forward, it is possible to replenish merchandise to the portion of the third rack located behind the second rack, and then the first rack. If it is slid, it becomes possible to replenish products to the third rack located behind the first rack. After that, if the first rack and the second rack are returned to their original positions, it is possible to replenish the first rack and the second rack with products at the same time.

An automatic vending machine according to a fourth aspect comprises a vending machine main body for housing a front rack and a rear rack each having a plurality of product columns, and a main body door for opening and closing a front opening of the vending machine main body. , The front rack is formed narrower in the left-right direction with respect to the rear rack, and the front rack is retracted in the left-right direction between the stationary position and the retracted position for retracting from the stationary position. It is characterized by further comprising a movement restricting means for restricting the movement of the front rack at the position.

According to this structure, the movement restricting means allows
By restricting the movement of the front rack that has moved from the steady position to the retracted position, even if the front rack in the retracted position is subject to the inclination of the vending machine itself or the pulling force of the harness, the front rack moves to the steady position side. Movement can be blocked. Therefore, when the front rack is moved to the retracted position and the product column of the rear rack is replenished with products, the front rack does not get in the way.

In the automatic vending machine according to claim 4, the movement restricting means is composed of a magnet attached to one of the front rack and the supporting member on the main body of the vending machine and a magnetic body attached to the other, It is preferable that either one of the bodies is swingably attached in a direction orthogonal to the suction direction.

According to this structure, since the movement restricting means is composed of the magnet and the magnetic body, when the front rack is moved to the steady position, the magnetic body is attracted to the magnet and the front rack bounces at the retracted position. Never come back. Further, since either the magnet or the magnetic body is swingably attached in the direction orthogonal to the adsorption direction, even if the magnet and the magnetic body do not face each other in parallel to each other, at the moment of adsorption. Since one side oscillates following the other, an appropriate suction state is established. Therefore, even if manufacturing variations occur in the magnet and the magnetic body, or even if the mounting is not performed accurately, the magnet can function properly and the position of the front rack can be properly regulated. it can.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION An automatic vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
This vending machine is a cigarette vending machine, and FIG. 1 is a structural diagram thereof. As shown in the figure, this vending machine 1
Is composed of a vending machine body 2 and a body door 3 that opens and closes a front opening 2a of the vending machine body 2. The main body door 3 is opened and closed in the form of a hinged door around a bracket hinge 4 provided at the right end portion thereof. In the main body 2 of the vending machine, the first rack 5 is provided at the front.
The second rack 6 and the second rack 6 are arranged side by side, and the third rack 7 is arranged in the rear portion so as to fill the width thereof. A plurality of product columns 8 are arranged side by side in each of the racks 5, 6 and 7, so that different products A can be accommodated therein. The product columns 8 can be formed in the first rack 5 and the second rack 6 in a plurality of stages even in the vertical direction.

Each product column 8 extends vertically,
Merchandise A is loaded (supplemented) from the opening portion on the front surface and accommodated in a stack. At the lower end of the product column 8,
A conveyor type bend mechanism 9 is arranged so as to support the stacked products A from below. When the sales order is issued, the bend mechanism 9 is driven to dispense the products A one by one from the lowest order. The dispensed product A is guided to the sales outlet 12 via the front chute 10 or the rear chute 11.

As shown in FIG. 2, the third rack 7 has a total of twelve product columns 8 arranged side by side and is fixedly provided at the rear part of the vending machine body 2. The second rack 6 has a total of six product columns 8 arranged side by side and is arranged in the front part of the vending machine body 2. The second rack 6 is rotatably attached to the vending machine body 2 via a pair of upper and lower hinges (see FIG. 1) 13 and 13 provided at the left end of the second rack 6 and is rotatable about the hinges 13 and 13. Then, it is pulled out from the vending machine body 2 to the outside obliquely forward. Then, when the second rack 6 is maximally rotated, the substantially left half portion of the third rack 7 is opened, and the product A to the product column 8 in the left half portion of the third rack 7 is opened.
Can be replenished. The second rack 6 is configured so that it can be locked when the vending machine body 2 is in a fixed position and when it is rotated to the maximum extent.

On the other hand, the first rack 5 has a total of four product columns 8 arranged side by side, and is arranged in the front part of the vending machine body 2 so as to be aligned with the second rack 6. In this case, the first rack 5 and the second rack 6 are arranged with a gap allowing the rotation of the second rack 6, and the first rack 5 is placed as close as possible to the inner right side surface of the vending machine body 2. Further, the second rack 6 is arranged as close as possible to the inner surface on the left side of the vending machine body 2. As a result, the dead space is prevented from occurring in the vending machine body 2 as much as possible, and the number of products A accommodated can be increased.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, the first rack 5 comprises a rack body 14 and a support frame 15 for supporting the rack body 14. The first rack 5 is slidable in the left-right direction as a whole and is supported by the support frame 15. Rack body 14 for frame 15
Is configured to be rotatable around the left end rear part.

The support frame 15 is a right side surface of the rack body 14,
It is a box formed to cover the rear surface and both upper and lower sides,
A pair of rollers 2 is provided at the center of the upper surface via a support plate 21.
2, 22 are attached, and a bent piece 23 is formed at the front part of the lower surface. The pair of rollers 22, 22 engages with a guide rail 24 provided on the top plate of the vending machine body 2, and
The bent piece 23 is engaged with the guide rail portion 25a of the frame 25 passed between the side plates of the vending machine body 2, and the first rack 5 has the guide rail 24 and the guide rail portion 25.
Guided up and down by a, it is configured to be slidable in the left-right direction between the steady position and the left movement end position. Then, in the state where the first rack 5 is slid to the left movement end position, the substantially right half portion of the third rack 7 is opened, and the third rack 7 is opened.
It is possible to replenish the product column 8 in the right half part of the product A.

A pair of upper and lower hinges 26, 26 are attached to the rear end of the left end of the support frame 15, and the rack body 14 is attached to the support frame 15 via the hinges 26, 26. A torsion coil spring 27 is attached to each hinge 26, and the rack main body 14 is rotationally biased in a direction to be pulled out from the vending machine main body 2, that is, diagonally forward (see FIG. 3). Further, the pin 2 is provided on the lower surface of the rack body 14.
8 is provided, and the pin 28 is engaged with an arcuate guide hole 29 formed in the bottom plate of the support frame 15 (see FIG. 6). The rack body 14 is regulated at the pivoting end position (replenishment position) in the diagonally forward direction by the guide hole 29, and the replenishment position is obstructed by the body door 3 when replenishing the first rack 5 with the product A. It is set to a position that does not

On the other hand, inside the body door 3, the rack body 1
Pusher 3 that pushes the right end of the rack body 14 corresponding to 4
0 is attached. The pusher 30 is the rack body 1
The push roller 31 is in contact with the upper end of the front surface of the No. 4 and the arm 32 that rotatably supports the push roller 31 and fixes the push roller 31 to the main body door 3. When the main body door 3 is closed with respect to the first rack 5 in the replenishment position, the push roller 31 causes the rack main body 1 to move.
Rack body 1 against the torsion coil spring 27.
4 is rotated to a normal position facing the front. Further, when the main body door 3 is opened from the closed state, the torsion coil spring 27 causes the rack main body 14 to rotate to the replenishment position facing the diagonally left front. That is, the torsion coil spring 27 and the pusher 30
The rack main body 14 rotates between the steady position and the refill position in conjunction with the opening and closing of the main body door 3. Note that the interlocking means may be composed of a link or the like.

A method of replenishing (loading) the product A will be briefly described with reference to FIG. First,
After the key operation, the main body door 3 is opened. When the main body door 3 is opened, the rack main body 1 of the first rack 5 is accompanied by this.
4 rotates to the refill position. In this state, the second rack 6
The respective product columns 8 of the first rack 5 face the front, and the respective product columns 8 of the first rack 5 face the diagonally left front.

Here, the second rack 6 is pivoted largely to open the left half of the third rack 7, and the left half of the third rack 7 is replenished with the product A. Then, the first rack 5 is slid to the left to open the right half of the first rack 5, and the right half of the third rack 7 is replenished with the product A. In this way the third
After completing the replenishment of the product A to the rack 7, the first rack 5
Is moved to the original position on the right, and the second rack 6 is returned to the original position by rotation. And finally, after replenishing the first rack 5 and the second rack 6 with the product A, the main body door 3
To block. When the main body door 3 is closed, the first door
The rack 5 is pushed to return to the normal position. The first
The replenishment of the product A to the rack 5 and the second rack 6 is performed by the third
You may go ahead of the rack 7.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the second rack 6 is configured to be rotatable and the first rack 5 is configured to be slidable. The product A can be replenished to (the product column 8 of) the third rack 7 located behind the device 6. Further, by rotatably configuring the first rack 5, the direction of the first rack (rack body 14) 5 can be changed so that the thick body door 3 can escape, and the product column 8 of the first rack 5 can be changed. It is possible to replenish the product A in a reasonable state without reducing the number. In particular, even when the main body door 3 is not opened 90 degrees or more due to the installation environment, the replenishment of the product A can be performed without difficulty, and the replenishment work of the product A can be smoothly performed.
Further, since the rotation of the first rack (rack main body 14) 5 is interlocked with the opening and closing of the main body door 3, the labor of rotating the first rack 5 is saved, and the replenishment of the product A is further performed. Work can be carried out smoothly.

In the above embodiment, the first rack may be manually rotatable. Also, the rotating structure of the first rack is applied to the product rack of the vending machine having a single product rack or to the product rack on the bracket hinge side of the vending machine having two product racks on the left and right. can do.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the vending machine 1 in this embodiment, the third rack 7 is fixedly attached to the vending machine body 2, and the second rack 6 is rotatably attached, but the first rack 5 is simply It is attached so that it can slide in the left-right direction.

That is, the first rack 5 is provided with a pair of rollers 42, via a support plate 41 provided upright on the upper surface thereof.
42 is attached to the pair of rollers 42, 4
2 engages with a guide rail 43 provided on the vending machine body 2. In addition, the bending plate 4 is provided on the lower surface of the first rack 5.
4 is attached, and this bending plate 44 is engaged with the guide rail portion 45a of the frame (supporting member) 45 that is passed between the side plates of the vending machine body 2. As a result, the first rack 5 has the guide rail 43 and the guide rail portion 45.
Guided by a, it is configured to be slidable in the left-right direction between a steady position and a retracted position (left moving end position) for replenishing the third rack 7 with the product A. Further, the first rack 5 is restricted in its rightward movement by the movement restricting means 17 in the retracted position.

As shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the movement restricting means 17 includes a magnet 51 and a receiving plate 52 attracted by the magnet 51. The magnet 51 is attached to the frame 45 side, and the receiving plate 52 is It is attached to the first rack 5 side. The receiving plate 52 is made of a magnetic material such as a steel plate, and is attached to the front surface of the lower surface of the first rack 5 while being fastened together with the bending plate 44. Backing plate 52
The contact plate portion 52a is disposed so as to face the magnet 51, and when the first rack 5 is moved to the retracted position, the contact plate portion 52a is attracted to the magnet 51. In addition, the backing plate portion 52 a has the first plate via the receiving plate 52.
When the rack 5 is abutted against the magnet 51, it flexes slightly to absorb the abutting impact of the first rack 5.

On the other hand, the magnet 51 includes a magnet body 53 made of a permanent magnet and the like, and a magnet body 53.
And a holder 54 that holds the holder. The holder 54 is fixed to the tip of the support plate 55. The support plate 55 is formed with a pair of front and rear elongated holes 55a, 55a, and the support plate 55 is attached to the bracket 57 by two stepped screws 56, 56 loosely inserted in the respective elongated holes 55a. The bracket 57 is attached to the frame 45. Each long hole 55a of the support plate 55 is extended in the left-right direction, and by the stepped screw 56 loosely inserted therein,
A slight movement of the magnet 51 in the left-right direction and a slight swing in the front-rear direction can be permitted.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, when the first rack 5 moves to the retracted position, the magnet 51 is moved.
Retracts slightly while adsorbing the receiving plate 52 within the range of movement by the elongated hole 55a. At that time, the magnet body 53 of the magnet 51 and the backing plate portion 52 of the receiving plate 52
When facing a in parallel with a, the magnet 51 adsorbs the receiving plate 52 and retracts. When not facing in parallel, the magnet 51 swings following the receiving plate 52 and The receiving plate 52 is sucked while retracting. And
When the receiving plate 52 is attracted to the magnet 51, the first rack 5 is fixedly held in the retracted position unless a force capable of separating the receiving plate 52 from the magnet 51 is applied to the first rack 5. With such a configuration, it is possible to absorb variations in manufacturing of the magnet 51 and the receiving plate 52 and unsatisfactory mounting accuracy, and the magnet 5 of the receiving plate 52 can be absorbed.
Adsorption to 1 can be appropriate. That is, the first rack 5 can be reliably held in the retracted position.

The minute movement and swing structure of the magnet 51 is due to the magnet body 51 and the holder 5.
4 and between the holder 54 and the support plate 55, or the support plate 55 may be omitted and configured between the holder 54 and the bracket 57. On the contrary, the magnet 51 side may be fixed and the receiving plate 52 side may have the minute movement and swing structure as described above.

Here, a method of replenishing (loading) the product A in the vending machine 1 of the second embodiment will be briefly described with reference to FIG. After opening the main body door 3, the second rack 6 is largely rotated to open the left half of the third rack 7, and the left half of the third rack 7 is replenished with the product A. Then, the first rack 5 is slid to the left. When the first rack 5 is moved to the retracted position, the receiving plate 52 is attracted to the magnet 51, and the first rack 5 is fixedly held at the retracted position. In this state, the right half portion of the third rack 7 is opened, and the right half portion is replenished with the product A. Then the first
The rack 5 is moved to the steady position and the second rack 6 is moved.
To return to the original position, the second rack 6 and the third rack
The product A is replenished in the rack 7.

As described above, according to the second embodiment, the third
When the right half of the rack 7 is replenished with the product A, the movement restricting means 17 holds the first rack 5 in the retracted position, so that the pulling force of the harness and the inclination of the vending machine body 2 As a result, the first rack 5 does not move to the right, and it is not necessary to hold the first rack 5 when replenishing the right half of the third rack 7 with the product A. Therefore, it is possible to easily and smoothly replenish the product A.

In this embodiment, a magnet is used as the movement restricting means, but if the first rack is capable of restricting the movement at the retracted position, the movement restricting means may be a simple protrusion or groove. It may be composed of any material.

[0038]

As described above, according to the automatic vending machine of claim 1, when replenishing merchandise, the merchandise rack can be rotated to a position away from the main body door, so that the main body door becomes an obstacle. There is no. Therefore, it is possible to improve workability in replenishment of products without reducing the number of stored products.

Further, according to the automatic vending machine of claim 4, when the front rack is moved to the retracted position and the commodity column of the rear rack is replenished with the commodity, the front rack does not interfere. It is possible to improve workability in replenishing products.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a structural diagram of a cigarette vending machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the vending machine according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view around a first rack.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the first rack.

FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway side view of the first rack.

FIG. 6 is a partially cutaway plan view of the first rack.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the vending machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the vending machine according to the second embodiment with a main body door omitted.

FIG. 9 is a vertical sectional view of the vending machine according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a front view around the movement restricting means.

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing the operation of the movement restricting means.

FIG. 12 is a structural diagram of a conventional cigarette vending machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Vending Machine 2 Vending Machine Main Body 2a Front Opening 3 Main Body Door 4 Bracket Hinge 5 1st Rack 6 2nd Rack 7 3rd Rack 8 Product Column 14 Rack Body 15 Support Frame 17 Movement Restricting Means 24 Guide Rail 27 Torsion Coil Spring 30 Pusher 43 Guide rail 45 Frame 51 Magnet 52 Support plate 55 Support plate 55a Long hole A Product

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A vending machine main body for accommodating a product rack having a plurality of product columns built therein, and a main body door for opening and closing the front opening of the vending machine main body through a hinge in the form of an open door. In an automatic vending machine arranged close to the hinge-side inner surface of the vending machine body, the product rack can be rotated diagonally forward around a portion on the side opposite to the hinge with the main body door opened. A vending machine characterized by being configured as. 2. The vending machine according to claim 1, further comprising interlocking means for rotating the commodity rack in conjunction with opening of the main body door. 3. A second rack is arranged on the side of the first rack with the commodity rack as a first rack, and further on the rear side of the first rack and the second rack along these racks. A third rack is provided, the second rack is configured to be rotatable obliquely forward around a portion opposite to the first rack, and the first rack is arranged along the third rack. The vending machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the vending machine is configured to be slidable. 4. A vending machine main body for housing a front rack and a rear rack each having a plurality of product columns built therein, and a main body door for opening and closing a front opening of the vending machine main body. On the other hand, in the vending machine in which the front rack is formed to be narrow in the left-right direction, and the front rack is slidable in the left-right direction between the steady position and the retracted position for retracting from the steady position, An automatic vending machine, which is provided with a movement restricting means for restricting movement of the front rack. 5. The movement restricting means is composed of a magnet attached to one of the front rack and the supporting member on the side of the vending machine body and a magnetic body attached to the other of the front rack and the vending machine body. 5. The vending machine according to claim 4, wherein either one is swingably mounted in a direction orthogonal to the suction direction.