RU2175210C2 - Article storage apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: mechanical engineering. SUBSTANCE: apparatus has casing with row of containers, holders, electromagnet and position sensors. Casing has cells equipped with guides for inserting-withdrawing of containers, container detectors, flexible members arranged opposite containers and tenons arranged at different levels. Container has slot to be mated with respective tenon, and groove adapted for biasing container with flexible member to holder and for sliding along holder end. Holder is formed as beaded pin. Other end of pin is adapted for engagement with position sensor, and pin bead is adapted for engagement with spring-loaded blocking plank connected to electromagnet. Construction of apparatus allows articles to be automatically retrieved with following delivery and returning of article for storage after usage, with only one electromagnetic drive being used for article retrieval. Articles are placed correctly without keying identification code into specific cells in storage apparatus. EFFECT: simplified construction, convenient usage and maintenance, minimum costs for repair in case of failure of electromagnet. 4 cl, 9 dwg

Description

 The invention relates to devices designed to store items subject to special preservation, such as keys, badges, storage media, their automatic selection with subsequent issuance and return after use to the place.

 Improvement of devices for storing items is currently being carried out in a direction characterized by the fact that the individual user of the item should be able to accurately place his item in the space reserved only for him without entering an identification code, and the mechanism for holding items in the store and their delivery from it should to represent not a series, as is customary, of separate expensive electromagnetic drives for each of the items, but to be the same for the entire series of items. At the same time, the device should not be inferior to analogues in the reliability of operation, be easier to manufacture, more convenient to operate.

 A device for storing items according to the patent of the USSR N 1827035, class. G 11 B 23/03, 07/07/93, in the case of which a holder (container) for objects is installed, having a wedge-shaped guide. The device is equipped with an electromagnet and spring-loaded clamps mutually perpendicular, interacting with a slider having a wedge-shaped groove at the end, in contact with which the holder is inserted into the housing until it is fixed in the wedge-shaped groove. To remove the holder from the case, you need to click on the outer end of the holder and the slider will push the holder out of the case. The disadvantage of this device is that its mechanism with an electromagnetic drive is designed to service only one item. A unit assembled from a number of similar devices does not guarantee an error-free installation of an object in its intended cell, and therefore it is possible that the object will be released when it is issued to the wrong person.

 Closest to the proposed technical solution is a device for storing and issuing items according to the patent of the Russian Federation N 2058591, class. G 07 C 9/00, G 07 F 11/48, 04/20/96.

 The device comprises a housing, a number of containers with items to be stored, straps holding containers in the housing, a number of electromagnets controlling a number of holding straps, and a number of position sensors of containers in the housing. To issue an object by a signal from the control unit, the corresponding electromagnet is triggered, the corresponding bar is attracted to its core and frees one of the containers from holding. This container, mounted on a common axis for all containers, tipping over comes out of the case, after which the item is removed from the container. The container returns to its place after returning the item to it.

 The disadvantage of this device also lies in the fact that for each of the containers an individual electromagnetic drive is designed. In addition, the installation of the container in place requires a set of identification code, which leads to the complexity of the device, its high cost.

 The objective of the invention is to develop a device that ensures error-free installation of an item in storage in a designated place only for it without a preliminary set of identification code and allows the use of a single electromagnetic drive to service a whole series of items both during storage and delivery.

 The device for storing objects contains a housing with a number of containers, holding elements, an electromagnet and position sensors, and differs in that the housing has cells with guides for input-output of containers, sensors for the presence of containers, elastic elements mounted opposite the containers, and with rigidly mounted on at different levels with spikes, each of the containers has a groove that mates with the spike of only one of the cells, and a groove made in the front part along the container input in the form of a sheer wall, and in the back - in in the form of an inclined with the possibility of pressing the plumb wall with an elastic element to the holding element and sliding along the inclined wall of the end face of the holding element, made in the form of a pin, which has a supporting flange, is axially spring-loaded with the possibility of interaction with the container and the position sensor and is freely installed in one of the row the existing grooves of the locking bar inserted into the device, which, spring-loaded to the stop, is connected in the longitudinal direction with the electromagnet and is able to interact with Rotating planes with opposite planes of the collar of the pins.

 The invention meets the condition of novelty, since the prior art did not reveal a tool that has features that are identical to all the features contained in the claims.

 A spike rigidly installed in a cell at a certain level along its height is designed to limit progress when any container is introduced into this cell, except for the only one in which a groove is made at the level of this spike. Such a simple solution, as the movable connection of the groove with the spike, provides an absolutely unmistakable placement of the item to be stored in a cell intended only for it without using an identification code. Due to the presence in the cells of the usual guides for containers, a free, without jamming, entry of the groove of the container into the spike of the cell is provided. The sheer wall of the container groove, into which the pin can enter at one end, does not allow the elastic element, which provides a fairly rigid installation of the container in the cell, to push the container out of the case when an unauthorized container is attempted to be removed. The inclined wall of the groove allows you to advance the container at any time until the elastic element is completely compressed, but the latter unhinderedly ejects the cell container only when the container is recessed by the container when the spring recessed by the container does not allow the locking bar to return to the container holding position. The ability of the locking bar to fix one of the holding pins in the locked position of the containers, and the other in the unlocked position by grasping the collars of the pins on one side or the other, makes it possible to issue only the authorized item. The revealed ability to control a number of retaining elements by means of a bar at the same time made it possible to create a design using only one electromagnet, which significantly simplifies and reduces the cost of the device.

 Comparison of the proposed technical solution not only with the prototype, but also with other solutions in this field and related fields, there is no design that contains three rows of equal number, but different in the functions performed, with the possibility of linear reverse movement in mutually perpendicular planes, provided that the elements of the second row (pins in this solution), which are able to move independently of one another, impede the movement of the elements of the first row (containers) or allow the motion of these elements, also moving independently of one another, and the elements of the third row (the edges of the grooves of the locking bar) are made on a single moving object and, when moving in one of the directions, prevent the elements of the second row from moving in any direction, and when moving in the opposite direction all elements of the second row are released from retention.

 The device also differs in that there is a ledge at the base of the housing cells in front of the pins operating zone, a ledge is made at the base of each container with the possibility of joining with the housing ledge, the cells in the zone of the pins are delimited by plates, and the grooves for the pins are limited by the side walls of the containers. The ledges, plates and walls are designed to protect against penetration into the area of the pins by means of thin plates and other similar “tools” in order to steal the container by means of unauthorized blocking of the pin.

 The device also differs in that the spikes are fixed in the plates delimiting the cells. The installation of spikes in the plates achieves the dual use of the latter and ensures a compact design.

 The device is also different in that there is a slot in the dead end of the cells to discharge possible debris in the form of small objects. Items such as buttons, coins, etc., thrown into temporarily empty cells, can be dropped into the slot by containers introduced into the device.

 The invention is illustrated by drawings.

 In FIG. 1 shows one of the cells of the device before the final installation of a partially inserted container into it; in FIG. 2 - section aa of figure 1; in FIG. 3 is a section BB of FIG. 2 with a view of the relationship between the holding pins and the locking bar; in FIG. 4, 5 and 6 show the sequential installation of the container for storage; in FIG. 7, 8 and 9 (as well as FIG. 1), the time of issue of one of the containers is explained.

 The device for storing items contains two parts (for ease of assembly) 1 and 2 of the housing with a number of containers 3, holding elements made in the form of pins 4, an electromagnet 5, sensors 6 of the position of the containers. In the upper part of the case there are cells 7 with guides 8 for input-output of containers, sensors 9 for the presence of containers in the device, elastic elements, for example, in the form of springs 10, and with spikes 11 rigidly installed at different levels. Each of the containers 3 has a groove 12 mating with the spike of only one of the cells, and the groove 13. The groove is made in the front part (along the container input) in the form of a sheer wall 14, and in the back part - in the form of an inclined wall 15, so that it is possible to spring the sheer wall with a spring 10 to pin 4 (FIG. 6) and possibly the sliding ability (Fig. 7) of the inclined wall along the end face “a” of the pin while moving the container inside the cell. The pin has a flange “B”, is spring-loaded (by a spring 16) in the axial direction with the possibility of interaction with the container 3 and the position sensor 6. All the pins are freely installed in the grooves 17 (Fig. 3) of the locking plate 18. The locking plate is spring-loaded (by a spring) 19) to the stop 20 and is connected in the longitudinal direction with the electromagnet 5, being able to interact with opposite planes with (Figs. 8 and 9) opposite planes of the shoulders "in" pins 4.

 The device operates in the installation mode of the item for storage, in the mode of direct storage and in the mode of delivery of the item.

 The installation of one of the containers 3 with the item in it can be carried out only in the designated compartment due to the spike 11 located on the same level (see Figs. 1 and 2) in one of the cells 7 and the groove 12 on the container to be installed. After allowing the container to move further into the cell by means of a spike, the container 3 (Fig. 4) slopes 21 onto the upper end of the spring-loaded pin 4 and depresses the pin (Fig. 5) until its lower end contacts the sensor 6, which signals the installation of the container. Further pushing of the container (FIG. 6) entails snapping the pin into the groove 13 of the container. In this case, the spring 10 presses the container with sufficient rigidity by means of a sheer wall 14 (position designation in Fig. 5) against the pin. The sensor 9 detects the presence of the container in the cell.

 The position of the holding pins 4 and the locking plate 18 during storage of containers, as well as with temporarily empty cells, is shown in FIG. 2 and 3, where the pins are freely located in the grooves 17 of the strap, and the strap itself is pulled by a spring 19 to the stop 20 with an inactive electromagnet 5. With a de-energized electromagnet, you can push the container into the cell as much as you like, but it will return to its original position (Fig. 6) by snapping the pin 4 into the groove 13, and the sensor 6 - to signal the attempts of unauthorized removal of the container.

 With the authorized dispensing of the container, the container 3 pushed by pressing the finger (Fig. 7) deep into the cell 7 compresses the spring 10 and, by slanting 15 on the end face “a” of the pin 4, moves the latter, compressing the spring 16, to its lowest position before interacting with the sensor 6. The electrical circuit for interrogating sensors (the circuit is known, is not described here) analyzes the permissibility of dispensing a container and, if dispensing is permitted, an electromagnet 5 is activated (Figs. 8 and 9). The operation of the electromagnet causes the displacement of the strap 18 to the right. In this case, the collar "in" the pin, which is in the lowest position, is blocked by the bar at the top, and the collars "in" the pins, which are in the highest position, are blocked by the same bar 18 from the bottom. Thus, at the moment of dispensing one of the containers, both the pin that freed up the container to be dispensed from being held out and each of the pins that continue to hold the other containers at that moment or do not allow the containers to be temporarily installed in empty cells become blocked. After releasing the container to be dispensed from the finger, this container is pushed out of the cell by the spring 10 (Fig. 1) so that it can be removed from the device. The issuance of the container is fixed by the sensor 9, after which the electromagnet 5 is de-energized, and the spring 19 returns the locking bar 18 to its original position, and the entire series of retaining pins 4 is released from blocking.

 In order to protect containers from theft by penetrating through gaps or through temporarily empty cells with a thin plate or other home-made tool into the area of the holding pins, it is provided: at the entrance to the container, at the base of the cells - ledge 22, and at the base of the container - ledge 23 with the possibility of docking with a ledge 22; between cells, in the area of the pins - delimiting cells of the plate 24; the grooves 13 have their side walls. The delimiting plates 24 serve, moreover, as the holders of the spikes 11, thereby maintaining the compactness of the device. In order to avoid accumulation of debris in the form of objects such as buttons, small coins, etc., thrown into them a slot 25 is provided at the bottom of the upper part 1 of the housing, into which debris can be dumped by containers introduced into the cells. The space 26 in the lower part 2 of the housing is provided for placement of the electrical circuit.

 Such distinguishing features of the proposed design, such as the possibility of reliable installation for storing an item in the designated compartment without using an identification code and the ability to use a single electromagnetic drive to control the device when handing it out, allow us to develop a store characterized not only by the simplicity of structural elements and their relationships , but also with increased convenience of its operation and lower repair costs in case of replacement of a failed electromagnet.

Claims (4)

 1. A device for storing items containing a housing with a number of containers, holding elements, an electromagnet and position sensors, characterized in that the housing has cells with guides for input-output of containers, sensors for the presence of containers, elastic elements mounted opposite the containers, and rigidly mounted at different levels by spikes, each of the containers has a groove that mates with the spike of only one of the cells, and a groove made in the front part along the container input in the form of a sheer wall, and in the back her - in the form of an inclined with the possibility of pressing the plumb wall with an elastic element to the holding element and sliding along the inclined wall of the end face of the holding element, made in the form of a pin having a supporting collar, spring-loaded in the axial direction with the possibility of interaction with the container and the position sensor and freely installed in one from a number of available grooves of the locking bar inserted into the device, which, spring-loaded to the stop, is connected in the longitudinal direction with an electromagnet and can interact Twist with opposite planes with opposite planes of the flanges of the pins.  2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that there is a ledge in the base of the housing cells in front of the area of operation of the pins, a ledge in the base of each container can be joined with a ledge of the housing, the cells in the zone of the pins are delimited by plates, and the grooves for the pins are limited by side walls containers.  3. The device according to one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the spikes are fixed in the plates delimiting the cells.  4. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that in the dead end of the cells there is a slot for discharging possible debris in the form of small objects.

Images