US1053138A - Vending-machine. - Google Patents

Description

J. E. REESE.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16. 19-12.

Patented Feb. 11, 1913.

2 SHEBTSSHEBT 1v IN VEN TOR 5/: f. feeu'e J. E. REESE.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16. 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEBT 2 Patented Feb. 11, 1913.

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com: nnwann REESE, or LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, assrenon 'ro THE Accmim'r INSURANCE MACHINE COIPIPANY OF AMERICA, 01 ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPO- RATION OF MISSOURI.

VENDING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Yatent.

. Application filed April 16, 1912. Serial No. 691,119.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN E. Reese, a citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of Jefierson and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Vending- Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to machines for vending insurance policies and the like, and its object is to provide a novel and improved coin-controlled machine of this kind.

The policy or other paper to be issued is filled out by the purchaser after a coin-controlled closure is operated to expose-the policy, and after the policy is properly filled out, it is delivered from the machine by means of a delivery mechanism which is also coin-controlled. A record of the transaction is also made and retained in the machine.

The machine consists ina combination and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine. Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on the line 33 of Fig. 1. Figs. 4 and 5 are, perspective views of certain'parts of the delivery mechanism.

Referring specifically to the drawings, 10 denotes a base on which is mounted and mechanism. The base rests on the open top of a box 12 and is rigidly fastened thereto in any'suitable manner. In the top of the casing is an opening 13 provided with a hinged cover or closure 14 which is preferably made of glass. Inside the casing, beneat-h the top thereof and under the opening 13, is mounted a shelf 15. The bottom of the cover 14 has adepending stud 16 provided with a notch 17 which latter is engageable by a latch, whereby the cover is locked. The latch is a longitudinally slidable bar 18 su ported by guides 18 carried by the she l and having an opening at one of its ends so as to straddle the stud 16 and enter the notch 17. Upon sliding the bar forward, the edge of the opening which seats in the notch 18 moved out of the same, thereby releasing the cover and allowing the same to swing open. The cover has spring hinges 19 so that it plate 20, pivoted at itsupper end on a rod 7 21 suitably supported in an aperture in the top of the casing. Near itslower end the plate is connected by a link 22 to the latch bar 18. A coiled spring 22 anchored at one end to the top of the casing is connected at its other end-to the link. On the top of the casing is mounted a semi-circular fiat tube 23 having a slot 24 through which the coin for operating the. mechanism is inserted. The tube contains a sliding pusher comprising a metal strip 25 which is curved to conform' to the curvature of the tube. From one side of the pusher extends a pin 26 which passes through an arcuate slot 27 in one side of the tube and has on the outside of the latter a suitable handle 28. The pusher is located in the tube to the rear of the slot 24 and is also provided with a return spring 29 which carries the pusher back to its normal position after it has been actuated.

One end of the tube 23 is in communication with a coin chute 30 extending downward into the casing 11 from an opening in the top thereof. In one side of the chute, adjacent to the top of the casing 11, is a slot through which one edge of the plate 20 extends into the chute, said ed a being curved. The distance between this edge of the plate and the opposite wall of the chute is less than the diameter of the coin for which the machine is designed, in view of which it will be apparent that when the coin is pushed into the chute-by the pusher 25, it will be jammed against the edge of the plate 20, whereby said plate is swung on its pivot out of the chute, and the latch-bar 18 is actuated, through the link 22, to release the cover 14. When the coin clears the plate 20, the latter is sw back by the spring 22, which places tie latch-bar in a position to snap into thenotch 17 upon shutting the cover,

whereupon the latter is again locked.

, The coin-chute has a lateral extension or branch 31 which terminates at one of the side walls of the casing 11 and opens into a cup 32 mounted on said walk 0n the outside of the casing. Coins smaller than the one for which the machine is designed pass down the coin-chute without actuating the plate 20 and are deflected by the curved edge of the latter into the extension 31 and are delivered by the latter into the cup 32.

The policies to be delivered by the machine are in the form of a strip 33 Wound in a roll 33 which is carried by a transverse shaft 34 mounted in the casing 11. Que side of the strip will contain suitable printed data and blank spaces to be filled out by the purchaser, and the other side will be prepared to serve as a transfer surface or car bon paper, in order that a copy of each policy issued by the machine may be made. This copy is made on a strip 35 wound in a roll 35 carried by a shaft 36 mounted in the casing parallel to the shaft 34. The two strips extend upward to and over guide rollers 37 mounted in the casing adjacent to one end of the shelf 15 across which they pass in superposed relation, the policy strip 33 being on top with the printed side uppermost, and the copy-strip 35 being beneath the policy strip. It will therefore be seen that the name, date and other data written by the purchaser on'the policy strip is duplicated on the strip 35 and a record of the issued policy is made. At the other end of the shelf is a feed roller 38 under which the policy strip passes and then extends upward through a delivery slot 39 in the top of the casing 11. The roller 38 is mounted in the delivery slot, and the latter has a curved guard plate 40 secured to the top of the casing and extending over the roller, one end of the plate being spaced -a sufficient distance from the casing top to permit the delivery of the policy. Cooperatingwith the roller 38 is a companion feed roller 41, the latter being located beneath the former. The two rollers are set close together so that when they are rotated they will draw the two strips forward, bot-h strips passing -between said rollers. The record or copy strip 35 extends downward and'passes through a slot 42 in the base 10 and thence into the box 12. A coin-controlled mechanism is also provided for'operating the feedrollers 38 and 41.- This mechanism comprises the following parts: In the sidewalls of the casing 11 is mounted a transverse shaft 43 having one of its endsiprojecting from the casing and fitted onthe outside of the latter with a crank-handle 44. On the shaft 543, inside the'casing, is fast a disk 45 having on one of its faces a lug 46. Loosely mounted on the shaft 43 beside the disk 45 is a disk 47, between the priphery of which latter disk and the periphery of the roller 41 the strip 35 passes, said disk and roller being set close together so that the stripis drawn forward when the disk is rotated. The

roller 41 communicates motion to the roller 38, whereby the policy strip 33 is delivered as already described.

The disk 47 is coupled to the disk 45 by means of the coin so that when the shaft 43 is turned, the feed rollers will be actuated. This driving connection between the disks is,accomplished by the following structure:

In the face of the disk 47 which is contiguous to the disk 45 is a circular channel 48, the width of which is such that a coin of the proper denomination cannot pass thereinto. The lug 46 is on that face of the disk 45 which is contiguous to the channeled face of the disk 47, and the lug is so located that it extends into the channel 48, its dimensions being such that it can work freely in the channel. The periphery of the disk 48 is cut away at regular intervals to form recesses 49 which open into the channel 48. The width of these recesses is such that a coin of the proper denomination may enter the same and extend into that portion of the channel into which the recesses open, the width of the channel being such that the coin does not project from the periphery of the disk 47. However, as already described. the coin cannot pass along the channel. It will therefore be seen that when a coin is dropped into one of the recesses it will be held stationary therein, and upon turning the shaft 43, the lug 46 pushes against the coin and causes the disk 47 to turn, and thus actuate the feed rollers 38 and 41. The diskv 47 is so located that its recesses 49 are in line with the bottom ofthe coin chute 30, the coins therefore dropping from the chute into the recesses. The disk 47 is provided with an overthrow-preventer in the form of a flat spring 50 secured to the wall of the casing 11 and having its free end shaped to seat in recesses 51 in the periphery of said disk.

Extending into the box 12 from the base 10 is a coin receptacle in the shape of a tube 52 in which the coins are deposited and held in the same order they are inserted into the machine. It will thereforebe possible to readily determine which policies were issued by means of a spurious coin'or other token. Thus if the fifth token in the tube is spurious. itwill be evident that the same was used to obtain the fifth policy, and as a duplicate is made of each policy issued, roper notation of the attempted fraud can e made on the duplicate of the fifth policy, so that when the original is presented, payment may be properly refused. In orderto prevent the coin from dropping out of the recess 49 be fore it reaches the chute 52, a curved guard plate 53 is provided which extends in close proximity to the disk 47 on outside thereof. In the casing 10, near the bottom thereof. is mounted a lever 54 having at one of its ends a hook 55 which is adapted to hook into recesses 56 in the disk 47 for locking the same. The lever is pivoted at 57, and carries an upstanding arm 58, the upper end of which is engaged by the stud 16 when the cover 14 is closed. A spring 59 swings the lever into locking position. The record strip 35 passes down from the feed roller 41 through the slot 42 in the base and is deposited in the box 12. Suitable means will be provided for gaining access to the box for the purpose of removing therecord strip and the coins.

The machine is operated as follows: A coin of the proper denomination is inserted into the tube 23, and, the pusher 25 is actuated, whereupon the cover 14 is unlocked and swung open and the policy strip '33- onthe shelf 15 is exposed. The purchaser now fills out the policy, a duplicate record being simultaneously made on the strip 35. When the cover swings open, the stud 16 moves away from the upper end of the arm 58, whereupon the spring 59 swings the lever 54 "into position to lock the disk 47. The p urchaser now closes the cover and turns the handle 44 whereupon the feed rollers 38 and 41 are actuated, and the policy is discharged from the casing and torn' off by the purchaser. When the coin in the recess 49 comes opposite the mouth of the tube 52 it drops thereinto. The lever 54 is swung into release position by the engagement of the stud 16 with the arm 58 when the cover is closed. Stop lugs 61 limit the swing of the handle, and a spring 62 connected to the shaft 43 restores the parts to normal position.

The invention is not limited to the vending of insurance policies, and it will, of

course, be understood that the apparatus illustrated can be varied in construction within considerable limits, withoutdeparture from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. The combination of a casing having an opening; a shelf mounted below the opening, a coin-controlled closure for the opening, a paper supply in the casing, the paper being carried across the shelf, and a coin-' controlled mechanism for discharging the paper from the casing.

2. The combination of a casing having an opening; a shelf mounted below the opening, a coin-controlled closure for the opening, a'paper supply in the casing, the paper being carried across the shelf, a record strip extending across the shelf beneath the paper and on which strip the inscription on the paper is duplicated, and a coin-controlled mechanism for discharging the paper from the casing and feeding the record strip.

3. The combination of a casing havingan opening; a shelf mounted below the opening, a coin-controlled closure for the open-- ing, a paper supply in the casing, the paper being 'carried across the shelf and having'on its under side a transfer medium, a record an opening; a shelf mounted below the opening, .a coin-controlled closure for the opening, a paper supply in the casing, the

paper being carried across the shelf, a coinccntrolled mechanism for discharging the paper from the casing, a lock for said mechanism, and means controlled by the aforesaid closure for operating the lock.

5. The combination of a casing having an opening; a shelf mounted below the opening, a coin-controlled closure for the opening, a paper supply in the casing; the paper being carried across the shelf, a coincontrolled mechanism for discharging the paper from the casing, and means for lockmg said mechanism when the aforesaid clo sure is opened, and for releasing the mechanism when the closure is closed.

6. The combination of-a casing having an opening; a shelf mounted below the opening, a coin-controlled closure for the opening, a paper supply in the casing, the paper being carried across the shelf, a coincontrolled mechanism for discharging the paper from the casing, a lock for said mechanism, an arm extending from the lock, and a lug on the aforesaid closure, said lug striking the arm when the closure is closed and actuating the lock to release the mechanism.

opening a shelf mounted below the opening, a closure for the opening, a paper supply ,in the casing, the paper being carried across the shelf, a latch for the closure, and a coin-controlled"mechanism for operating the latch and for discharging the paper from the casing, the latch being operated initially to permit the closure to open.

' 9. The combination of a casing having an opening, a shelf mounted below the opening, a closure for the opening,' a paper supply in the casing, the aper being carried across the shelf, a late for the closure.

at record strip extending across the shelf beneath the paper, and on which strip the inscription on the paper is duplicated, and a coin-controlledmechanism for operating the latch and for discharging the paper from the casing" and feeding the record strip, the latch being operated initially to permit the closure to open.

10. The combination of a casing having an opening, a shelf mounted below the opening, a closure for the opening, a paper supply in the casing, the paper being carried across the shelf, and having on Its, under side a transfer medium, a record strip extending across the shelf beneath the paper,

and on which strip the inscription on the paper is duplicated, and a coin-controlled mechanism for operating the latch and for discharging the paper from the casing and feeding the record strip, the latch being operated initially to permit the closure to open.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN EDWARD REESE. Witnesses:

GEo. E. SCHUMAN, ALEXANDER SCHUMAN.

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