JPS6339804Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a beverage vending machine that can selectively dispense hot beverages and cold beverages into cups.

[Conventional technology]

Some beverage vending machines of this type first produce hot beverages and then produce cold beverages.
That is, in the case of selling hot beverages, hot beverages are supplied to cups as they are through a so-called hot beverage supply route. On the other hand, in the case of cold beverage sales, hot beverages are cooled through a so-called cold beverage supply route and supplied to cups as cold beverages.

By the way, conventionally, switching between the hot beverage supply route and the cold beverage supply route is as described below.
This is done using an electromagnetically driven switching device. With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the configuration of such a vending machine will be described using a coffee beverage vending machine as an example.

Coffee, sugar,
Cream provided. At the same time, hot water is poured into the mixing bowl 4 from the hot water supply tank 5. When the purchaser selects, for example, hot coffee, the flow path switching device 6 operates and the communication path is interposed between the ports 6a and 6b.

As the flow path switching device 6, those shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are known. In FIG. 6, when hot coffee is selected, the flow path switch 6
rotates counterclockwise to connect ports 6a and 6b. Referring also to FIG. 5, hot coffee exiting port 6b is poured into cup 8 through conduit 7 on the hot side (hot beverage supply path).

When the purchaser selects iced coffee, as shown in FIG. 7, the flow path switching device 6 rotates clockwise to connect the ports 6a and 6c. Such a flow path switching device is, for example, disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application No. 60-71988.
It is shown in the publication No.

Returning to FIG. 5, from the port 6a to the flow path switching device 6
The hot coffee that left port 6c via
The iced coffee is poured into the cup 8 through the cold side conduit (cold beverage supply path) 9. The cold line 9 is cooled via an evaporator 11 by the operation of a cooling unit 10 with a compressor.

[The problem that the idea attempts to solve]

However, in the case of the above-mentioned rotary flow path changer, due to its structure, beverage ingredients including sugar and cream scatter and come into contact with the rotating shaft, and the sticky nature of the sugar causes the rotating mechanism to move. Defects often occur (when water evaporates from raw materials for beverages such as coffee,
The adhesive force increases, and a sticking phenomenon appears in the operating part of the rotating mechanism, resulting in malfunction. ). Such malfunction causes a deviation in the rotation angle. and,
If the rotation angle deviates even slightly, the flow path changer 6 will no longer be able to completely communicate between the ports 6a and 6b or 6c, and a portion of the beverage exiting the flow path changer 6 will be transferred to the port 6b or 6c. This will spill out of the port 6c. Beverage spilled outside in this way scatters and stains the inside of the vending machine, which has the drawback of requiring a great deal of effort and time to clean.

Therefore, the technical problem of the present invention is to provide a beverage vending machine that is less prone to malfunction when switching between a hot beverage supply route and a cold beverage supply route.

Another technical object of the present invention is to provide a beverage vending machine in which beverages do not leak out even if a malfunction occurs in switching between a hot beverage supply route and a cold beverage supply route.

[Means to solve the problem]

According to the present invention, a mixing bowl for mixing and discharging beverage raw materials and hot water, and a first supply path for pouring the hot beverage from the mixing bowl into a cup;
A beverage comprising: a second supply path for cooling the hot beverage from the mixing bowl and pouring it into a cup; and a mechanism for switching and supplying the hot beverage from the mixing bowl to either the first or second supply path. In the vending machine, the switching mechanism includes a first outlet for guiding the hot beverage from the mixing bowl to the first supply path and a second outlet for guiding the hot beverage from the mixing bowl to the second supply path. parts and
A first position that is slidably provided on the upper opening edge of the distribution member and that is interposed between the hot beverage outlet and the first outlet as the distribution member slides, and the hot beverage outlet and the second outlet. a funnel-shaped member that is movable between a second position interposed between the funnel and a plate member capable of covering the guide portion of the slide; A beverage vending machine characterized by comprising a mechanism for driving the beverage to the first or second position is obtained.

[Effect]

In the switching mechanism according to the present invention, the funnel of the funnel-shaped member is located at any position between the first position and the second position so that the receptacle thereof can receive the beverage from the hot beverage outlet of the mixing bowl. be. Also, the funnel-shaped member is moved with the outlet of the funnel being within the upper opening of the distribution member. During this movement, the plate member of the funnel-shaped member covers the guide portion of the slide.

〔Example〕

Next, an embodiment of the beverage vending machine according to the present invention will be described.

Referring to FIG. 2, similar to the conventional example described above, coffee, sugar, and cream are supplied to the mixing bowl 4 from the coffee raw material container 1, the sugar container 2, and the cream container 3, and hot water is further supplied from the hot water supply tank 5. Injected.

Directly below the hot beverage outlet 41 of the mixing bowl 4, a switching mechanism 20 according to the present invention is provided. The switching mechanism 20 includes a hopper-shaped outlet 22
and a distribution member 21 having an outlet 23; a funnel-shaped member 30 slidably provided using the upper opening edge of the distribution member 21; and the funnel-shaped member 30 is driven according to the purchaser's selection. It consists of a mechanism (described later). Wax member 30
is driven to be in either a first position interposed between the hot beverage outlet 41 and the outlet 22 or a second position interposed between the hot beverage outlet 41 and the outlet 23. Ru. In this way, the third
As shown in Figure a, when the funnel-shaped member 30 is in the first position, the hot beverage is led out only to the hot side conduit 7, and as shown in Figure 3b, when it is in the second position, the hot beverage is discharged. It is led out only to the cold side conduit 9.

As can be seen from FIGS. 3a and 3b, the receptacle of the funnel 33 of the funnel-shaped member 30 is in a position where it can receive the hot beverage from the hot beverage outlet 41 in any position. On the other hand, the funnel 33 moves with its outlet located within the upper opening of the distribution member 21.
Therefore, even if the stop position of the funnel-shaped member 30 is slightly shifted, the beverage from the hot beverage outlet 41 will not leak to the outside.

The switching mechanism 20 will be explained in detail with reference to FIG.

The distribution member 21 has a hopper-shaped outlet 2 at the bottom.
2 and 23 are arranged side by side, and each has a flange 2 at the upper opening edge on both sides in the longitudinal direction.
4, and each of these flanges 24 is provided with a convex portion 25 in the longitudinal direction. A substrate 50 extending in the longitudinal direction is integrally provided at one end of the distribution member 21. The board 50 has a through hole 51
is provided. A ring 52 for forming a weir on the upper surface of the substrate 50 is provided in the through hole 51 . A drive motor 70 is provided on the lower surface side of the substrate 50 so that a rotating shaft 71 is located at the center of the through hole 51 . On the other hand, a cam member 72 is rotatably provided on the upper surface side of the substrate 50 and connected to a rotating shaft 71 . The cam member 72 has two circular cam plates 74 and 75 on a shaft 73 that can be loosely fitted into the through hole 51.
It consists of Notches 741 and 751 are formed on the outer peripheries of the cam plates 74 and 75, respectively, at positions spaced apart from each other by 180 degrees. One end of a drive arm 76 is rotatably connected to the upper cam plate 74.

The funnel-shaped member 30 has a through hole 32 provided in a flat plate 31 having the same width as the dimension from the edge of one flange to the edge of the other flange of the distribution member 21, and a funnel 33 vertically provided through the through hole 32. It is something. Note that the upper part of the funnel 33 is the flat plate 31.
The weir 34 is provided so as to slightly protrude from the upper surface of the holder. On both side edges of the flat plate 31, shaped members 35 into which the flanges 24, 24 of the distribution member 21 can be fitted are formed by bending.
The funnel-shaped member 30 is attached to the flange 2 of the distribution member 21.
4 and 24 as rails, and is assembled to the distribution member 21 so as to be slidable on the convex portion 25. As a result, the rail is covered with the flat plate 31. flat plate 31
The other end of the drive arm 76 is rotatably connected to the drive arm 76 .

Note that a notch is provided in the end wall of the distribution member 21 on the side opposite to the substrate 50 to enable the assembly of the wax-shaped member 30. After the wax member 30 is assembled, this notch is closed by attaching the cover plate 27 to the end wall of the distribution member 21 via the packing 26. The cover plate 27 is attached using resin pins 28. Inside the distribution member 21, a partition plate 29 is provided between the outlet ports 22 and 23.
It is provided at a height close to the lower end of the funnel-shaped member 30.

The substrate 50 is also provided with two microswitches 81 and 82 superimposed at positions adjacent to the cam member 72. That is, the micro switch 81
is provided so that it is turned off when its actuating piece abuts the outer periphery of the cam plate 74 and engages with the notch 741, and similarly, the micro switch 82 is provided so that its actuating piece abuts the outer periphery of the cam plate 75. provided. These micro switches 81 and 82 are covered with a cover 83 made of PVC. The protrusion 53 serves as a weir to prevent beverage from flowing into the microswitch 82 when the beverage is splashed onto the substrate 50 from the hot beverage outlet 41 of the mixing bowl 4.

The operation will be described with reference also to FIG. 4, which shows a perspective view of the switching mechanism 20 after assembly.

The case where the funnel 33 is on the outlet port 23 side, that is, in the second position described above, will be described. In this state, the actuating piece of the micro switch 82 is engaged with the notch 751 of the cam plate 75. Here, when the purchaser selects iced coffee, the selection signal is output, but the drive motor 70 is not driven because the micro switch 82 is turned off. As a result, the hot beverage from the hot beverage outlet 41 of the mixing bowl 4 is led out from the outlet 23 to the cold side conduit 9 via the funnel 33. on the other hand,
When hot coffee is selected, the drive motor 70 is started based on the selection signal and the ON signal of the micro switch 81. As a result, the cam member 72 rotates, and the cam member 72 rotates from the outlet port 23 side of the funnel-shaped member 30 to the outlet port 23 side via the drive arm 76.
Driven to the 2nd side. Then, when the outlet of the funnel 33 passes through the partition plate 29 and is located on the outlet 22 side, that is, the above-mentioned first position, the cam plate 74
The actuating piece of the micro switch 81 engages with the notch 741 of the micro switch 81, and the micro switch 81 is turned off.
Drive motor 70 stops. Needless to say, the micro switch 82 is on at this time. If iced coffee is selected in the next sales operation, the drive motor 70 starts, but if hot coffee is selected, the drive motor 70 remains stopped.

Such control of the drive motor 70 can be easily realized, for example, by a logic circuit configuration that multiplies the hot coffee/iced coffee selection signal and the ON signals of the microswitches 81 and 82. Also,
It is also possible to perform control by distinguishing these signals using a microcomputer. In addition, the cam member 7
It goes without saying that the funnel-shaped member 30 is designed to move between the first position and the second position with a rotation of 2 180°. Furthermore, the distribution member 20
In this case, a partition plate 29 is provided so that the routes of hot drinks can be reliably distributed. It is also clear that both the dispensing member 20 and the funnel-like member 30 have their upper openings and outlets designed to prevent hot beverage stagnation and overflow.

[Effect of idea]

The switching mechanism according to the present invention has the following effects.

Since the beverage falls naturally and there is no overflow, malfunctions caused by sticky beverages such as sugar do not occur.

Since the switching mechanism uses a drive motor, movement is reliable.

In order to reduce the contact area between the funnel-like member and the sorting member, the funnel-like member slides on a protrusion on the flange of the sorting member, so the funnel-like member moves smoothly. In addition, since the protrusion is covered with the funnel-like member, there is almost no adhesion of beverage, and even if the beverage overflows, the beverage does not remain on the protrusion, so no malfunction occurs.

The funnel-shaped member is such that the funnel receptacle is always in a position where it can receive the beverage from the hot beverage outlet;
Moreover, since the outlet of the funnel moves within the upper opening of the dispensing member, even if the funnel-shaped member is slightly displaced, the beverage will not leak outside and be scattered.

Functional parts such as the drive motor and micro-switch are equipped with dams to prevent drinking water from flowing in even if it occurs, and the micro-switch in particular is provided with a cover to ensure sufficient durability. .

The funnel-shaped member can be easily removed from the sorting member by removing the resin pin, and can be cleaned and
This is effective for maintenance such as repairs.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is an exploded view of the main parts of an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 schematically shows the configuration of a switching mechanism and its surroundings in order to explain the operation of an embodiment of the present invention. Figures 3a and 3b are diagrams schematically showing the switching mechanism to explain its operation, Figure 4 is a perspective view of the main part of an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 5 is a diagram of the conventional switching mechanism. FIGS. 6 and 7 are diagrams schematically showing the switching mechanism and its surrounding mechanisms; FIGS. 6 and 7 are diagrams schematically showing the switching mechanism in FIG. 5; In the figure, 20 is a switching mechanism, 21 is a distribution member,
22, 23 are outlet ports, 29 is a partition plate, 30 is a wax member, 33 is a wax, 70 is a drive motor, 7
2 is a cam member, 74 and 75 are cam plates, 81 and 82
is a micro switch.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A mixing bowl for mixing and discharging beverage raw materials and hot water, a first supply path for pouring the hot beverage from the mixing bowl into the cup, and a second supply path for cooling the hot beverage from the mixing bowl and pouring it into the cup.
A beverage vending machine having a supply path and a mechanism for switching and supplying the hot beverage from the mixing bowl to either the first or second supply path, wherein the switching mechanism is configured to switch the hot beverage from the mixing bowl to either the first or second supply path. a distribution member having a first outlet for guiding the beverage to the first supply path and a second outlet for guiding the beverage to the second supply path; , with this sliding, between a first position interposed between the hot beverage outlet and the first outlet and a second position interposed between the hot beverage outlet and the second outlet. and a mechanism for driving the funnel-shaped member to the first or second position in response to a selection signal. A beverage vending machine characterized by: