KR20000010282U - Watering Equipment of Cup Beverage Vending Machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A water supply apparatus of a cup beverage vending machine for supplying water to a mixing bowl selected from a plurality of mixing bowls arranged in a row is disclosed. The water supply apparatus includes a water supply tank in which water is stored; A water supply hose extending from the water supply tank; A water supply valve for controlling water supply through the water supply hose; And a conveying portion for conveying the end of the water supply hose to the upper side of the selected mixing bowl. The conveying unit is installed to be movable in parallel with respect to a plurality of mixing bowls, one side of the rack member is formed of a rack; A fixing bracket for fixing the end of the water supply hose to the rack member; Pinions engaged with the rack of the rack member; And a drive motor for rotating the pinion. According to this, the pinion is rotated by the drive motor, and the end of the feed hose is transferred to the upper side of the selected mixing bowl by moving the rack member engaged with the pinion.

Description

Watering Equipment of Cup Beverage Vending Machine

The present invention relates to a vending machine for selling cup beverages such as coffee. More particularly, the present invention relates to a water supply device capable of supplying water to a plurality of mixing bowls with one water supply hose.

In a typical cup beverage vending machine, when a buyer inputs coins or bills and selects a beverage, powdered raw materials and water are supplied to a mixing bowl, mixed, and then supplied to a cup through a beverage supply hose.

By the way, such a cup beverage vending machine is able to sell a large number of beverages (approximately three to five kinds) of beverages, including coffee, and is provided with a number of mixing bowls corresponding to the number of kinds of beverages. . This is because the taste of the beverage may be altered if different beverages are mixed with water in the same mixing bowl.

Therefore, the water supply apparatus of the conventional cup beverage vending machine has a plurality of water supply hoses connected from the water supply tank to each mixing bowl. The water supply of such a cup beverage vending machine is schematically illustrated in FIG.

In the drawing, reference numeral 22 denotes a water supply tank, and a heater 23 for warming water is provided therein. A plurality of feed hoses 24 extend from the feed tank 22 to the top of the plurality of mixing bowls 12. Each of the water supply hoses 24 is provided with a water supply valve 26. In the figure, reference numeral 14 denotes a reservoir tank for replenishing water in the water supply tank 22.

When the selling operation is started, the cup C is supplied from the cup supply device (not shown) to the cup outlet, and the raw material of the selected beverage is supplied from the raw material supply device 16 to the mixing bowl 12 corresponding thereto. Then, water is supplied from the water supply tank 22 to the mixing bowl 12 through the water supply hose 24 by opening a water supply valve 26 corresponding to a beverage selected from the plurality of water supply valves 26. The finished and mixed beverage in the mixing bowl 12 is supplied to the cup C through the beverage supply hose 18.

However, since the conventional cup beverage vending machine has a plurality of water supply hoses installed in the water supply device, the internal structure of the vending machine becomes complicated, and as a result of the interference of the water supply hose during maintenance and replenishment of raw materials for the raw material supply device. Due to the disadvantages incurred a lot of inconvenience in working. In addition, there are disadvantages in that the layout design of the component parts is restricted.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a water supply device of a cup beverage vending machine that can supply water to a plurality of mixing bowls with one water supply hose.

1 is a view showing a schematic configuration of a typical cup beverage vending machine.

Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a water supply device of a cup beverage vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

112; Mixing bowl 114; Water tank

116; Raw material supply apparatus 122; feed tank

124; Feed hose 126; Water supply valve

131; Sensing groove 132; Rack member

133; Rack 134; fixed bracket

136; Pinion 137; Drive motor

138; Detection switch

The above object is to supply water to a mixing bowl selected from a plurality of mixing bowls arranged in a line, the water supply tank is stored; A water supply hose extending from the water supply tank; A water supply valve for controlling water supply through the water supply hose; It is achieved by a feeder of a cup beverage vending machine according to the present invention, comprising a feeder for conveying the end of the feeder hose to the top of the selected mixing bowl.

The conveying unit is installed to be movable in parallel with respect to a plurality of mixing bowls, one side of the rack member is formed of a rack; A fixing bracket for fixing the end of the water supply hose to the rack member; Pinions engaged with the rack of the rack member; And a drive motor for rotating the pinion.

The transfer unit may further have a position detection unit for detecting the position of the water supply hose. At this time, the position sensing unit and a plurality of sensing grooves formed along the longitudinal direction of the rack member to correspond to the position of the plurality of mixing bowl; The sensing stage has a sensing switch that is energized by being located in the sensing groove.

According to this, the pinion is rotated by the drive motor, and the end of the feed hose is transferred to the upper side of the selected mixing bowl by moving the rack member engaged with the pinion.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a water supply device for a cup beverage vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the water supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a water supply tank 122, a water supply hose 124, a water supply valve 126 and the transfer unit.

The inside of the water supply tank 122 is provided with a water level regulator 121 for maintaining a constant amount of water stored therein at all times, and a heater 123 for warming water. Reference numeral 114 denotes a reservoir tank for replenishing water to the water supply tank 122.

A water supply hose 124 extends from one side of the water supply tank 122, and a water supply valve 126 is provided on one side of the water supply hose 124.

A plurality of mixing bowls 112 for mixing water and raw materials are arranged side by side, and a transfer part is provided on the upper side thereof. Reference numeral 132 is provided as a rack member so as to be movable in parallel with respect to the plurality of mixing bowls 112, and a rack 133 is formed on one side of the bottom surface thereof. The end of the water supply hose 124 is fixed to the rack member 132 by a fixing bracket 134.

The pinion 136 is engaged with the rack 133 of the rack member 132, which is rotated by the drive motor 137.

In addition, the number of sensing grooves 131 corresponding to the number of the mixing bowl 112 is formed on the upper surface of the rack member 132 to correspond to the position of the mixing bowl 112. The sensing groove 131 forms a position sensing unit together with a sensing switch 138 whose sensing end contacts the upper end of the rack member 132. The sensing switch 138 is energized when its sensing stage is located in the sensing groove 131 of the rack member 132 to send a signal to a control unit (not shown) that controls the overall operation of the vending machine.

When the selling operation is started, the pinion 136 is rotated by the drive motor 137, and the rack member 132 engaged with the pinion 136 is moved. Accordingly, the water supply hose 126 fixed to the rack member 132 is also moved through the fixing bracket 134. When the feed hose 126 is moved above the selected mixing bowl 112, the drive motor 137 is stopped and the rack member 132 is also stopped. Then, the feed valve 126 is opened so that the water in the feed tank 122 is supplied to the mixing bowl 112 through the feed hose 124. The water supplied to the mixing bowl 112 is mixed with the raw material supplied by the raw material supply device 116 and then supplied to the cup C.

Here, the water supply hose 124 can be accurately transferred to the upper side of the selected mixing bowl 112 by counter-counting the number of times the sensing switch 138 is energized when the rack member 132 is moved. That is, if the sensing switch 138 is energized when the rack member 132 is moved, the controller increases or decreases the counter value according to the rotation direction of the driving motor 137, and the counter value corresponds to the selected mixing bowl 112. When the value is reached, the drive motor 137 is stopped. In this way, the water supply position at the next sale can be accurately conveyed to the upper side of the selected mixing bowl 112 regardless of where the water supply hose 124 is located.

The present invention as described above can supply the water of the water supply tank to a plurality of mixing bowls with one water supply hose by using a transfer unit for moving the water supply hose. Therefore, the structure of the vending machine is simpler, the cost can be reduced by reducing the number of parts, and there is an advantage that the operation is convenient even during maintenance and replenishment of raw materials for the raw material supply body. In addition, there is an advantage that the degree of freedom is improved in the arrangement design of the component.

In the above, specific preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made by any person having ordinary knowledge in the field to which the present invention belongs without departing from the gist of the present invention claimed in the scope of utility model registration claims. It will be possible.

Claims (4)

It is for supplying water to the mixing bowl selected from a plurality of mixing bowls arranged in a line, A water tank where water is stored; A water supply hose extending from the water supply tank; A water supply valve for controlling a water supply through the water supply hose; And a means for conveying an end of the water supply hose to an upper side of the selected mixing bowl. The method of claim 1, wherein the transfer means A rack member installed to be movable in parallel with respect to the plurality of mixing bowls and having a rack formed at one side thereof; A fixing bracket for fixing an end of the water supply hose to the rack member; A pinion engaged with the rack of the rack member; And The water supply device for a cup beverage vending machine, characterized in that it has a drive motor for rotating the pinion. 3. The water supply apparatus of the cup beverage vending machine according to claim 2, wherein the conveying means further has means for detecting a position of the water supply hose. The method of claim 3, wherein the position detecting means, A plurality of sensing grooves formed along a length direction of the rack member so as to correspond to positions of the plurality of mixing bowls; And The water supply device for a cup beverage vending machine, characterized in that the sensing stage has a sensing switch energized by being located in the sensing groove.