US1603197A - Multiple-vending machine - Google Patents

Description

" able indicator.

Patented Get. 12, 1925.

UNTE STTES PTENT GFFIQE.

WILLIAM C. CU'ILER, 0F GLENDALE, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO ISABELLA C. CUTLER, OF GLENDALE, CALIFORNIA.

MULTIPLE-VENDING MACHINE.

Application led November 28, 1925.

The present invention relates to vending machines and pertains more particularly to selective and multiple vending machines.

One object of the invention is to provide a vending machine in which a single coin may serve a plurality of vending units so that a purchaser may obtain any selected one of a number of contained articles by dropping a coin in the slot and simultaneously indicating the desired article.

It will be understood in the consideration of this invention that a vending ma.1 chine is quite unprofitable unless some provision is made for detecting and eliminating bogus coins, slugs and other articles commonly employed for illegally obtaining merchandise from such machines. When it is required that several dierent articles be. selectively vended by one machine it is necessary to make a selective or multiple machine. rIhe selective types of machines embody a single coin slot and a single slug detecting mechanism. In selective machines there is either a movable magazine or a mov- The magazine, or indicator,

as the case may be, 'is first moved to bring the. desired article into position. Then the coin is deposited, and then an operating lever must be moved to discharge the contents. chasing an article requires several movements on the part of the purchaser. If a plurality of vending units are arranged sideby-side a. coin slot and slug eliminator must be employed forf each vending unit. Such a machine is quite as expensive to build as a plurality of singlevending machines.

Another objectY of this invention therefore is to provide a machine in which the article may be selected and discharged with less number of moves on the part of the purchaser.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a multiple machine which embodies a plurality of vending units and ronly one coin slot and slug eliminator, with means whereby a coin deposited in a single slot may be caused to operate any selected one of the units.

Still other objects and advantages of my invention will appear hereinafter.

I have illustrated my invention by the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment Vof my invention.

The entire act of selecting and pur-l Seral No. 72,048.

Figure 2 is a view in vertical section thereof seen on a line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is' a View in section thereof seen on a line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Figure i is a view in section thereof seen on a line 4 4 of Fig. 3.

In carrying out my invention in this embodiment I employ a casing 6 having a plurality of vertical partitions 7 providing a plurality of compartments 8 in which articles 9, to be vended may be arranged in stacks. The stacks rest on spaced shelves 10 and the shelves are so arranged that a coin 11 in moving horizontally below a stack of articles will engage the rear edge of the lowermost article and withdraw it from under the others of the stack. Forwar'dly of the casing there is provided a hood 12 which encloses a chute 13 thru which the articles may gravitate to an opening 14k.

Under each compartment there is provided a coin carriage 15 having a coin holding slot 16. The coin carriage travels over a horizontal wall 17 s and over an aperture 18; there being one aperture for each compartment and one coin carriage for each compartment. W'hen a coin has been carried to the aperture it falls thru such aperture into an enclosed coin space 19 below the wall 17. By the time that a coin has reached an aperture 18 it has dislodged the lowermost package of a corresponding stack so that the package slides 4down the chute into the reach of the purchaser.

rI'his arrangement of parts is common to many vending and multiple vending machines, and sucharrangement together with various means to prevent return of the coin while the coin is in place, is well known in the art and needs no further description to render my invention clear to those skilled in the art. Y

Each carriage is moved by a pull rod 2O that passes out thru the front of the machine to terminate in a button 21. In conformance with a salient feature of my invention, altho I am not limited to this feature, I provide for each coin carriage being slightly lower than the one next preceeding it. I provide a coin chute 22 leading to a coin tester and slug eliminator 23; the purpose of this eliminator being to detect bogus coins and slugs and prevent them from reaching the coin carriages. The coin chute, or more correctly the coin tester, disreach the coin return opening.

l ing further.

to many other vending machines.

charges into a slightly inclined horizontally directed runway 2li which runs. behind successive compartments andrterminates in a coin returning slot externally of the casing. Each coin carriage has the coin reA ceiving slot and the runway is provided with a lower opening or slot 26 above each coin carriage. The slot in each carriage provides for a coin fallingv thru tothe coin carriage. Each carriage also has solid portion 27 immediately behind the coin receiving slot. The run way also has a circular -cutaway portion 29 over each coin carriage so that a coin having 'fallen into the coi-n `carriage maybe moved i'orwardly without interference from the walls of the runway. Behind eachcairriage there isa spring 30` which holds thc carriage advanced so that the solid portion oi the carriage comes below the corresponding slot in the run-way. Thus a coin passing thru the coin tester will rundown the run-way; the solid portion oi eachA carriage preventing the coin trom coming to rest, and eventually the coin will Il any carriage ismoved rearwardly so that the coin receiving slot thereof comes below the corresponding slotin the runway, a coin will fall into that carriage and will be held from go- Obviously the coin will stop in the iirst carriage which it enters, and will remain there until thc carriage is moved to discharge a package.

To` operate this machine, the purchaser selects the stack from which he desires an article, by pressing on the button which is below that stack. rIhe contents of the machine are of course visible thru the translucent panel 32, commonly provided 1n vend# ing machines. At the same time that he presses thebutton in with one hand he may use his other hand Vto insert a coin in the coin slot. Thereby the act of selecting` the article and dropping the coin is, practically speaking,V a single operation requiring` the use of both hands, and the operation is accomplishedalmost instantly without appreciable thought or effort.

Assuming that the button which is pressed is that nearest the end of the machine; the coin will fall iirst on the first carriage but will'merely rebound from that carriage and will startto roll down the inclined runway. Successively it will encounter the solid parts i of successive coin carriages and will con? tinus in its course until it reaches the said last carriage, or in any other case until it reaches the iirst carriage which lhas itsl slot alined with the runway. Now the coins fall into the slot in the carriage. The purchaser pulls the button outwardly. The coin is carried forwardly by the carriage and it projects above the carriage and encounters the lowermost package in the manner common The package is discharged and the coin drops in the coin receiving space from which it can be removed only by a person having a key to the door of said compartment.

Il acoin is placed in the machine without depressing a button it will return to the coin returning slot where it may be had by the person placing the coin in the slot. If a coin is caused to enter a carriage, and said coin is allowed to stay there unbeknown to a subsequentpatron of the machine such coin will not clog the entire machine but will merely act to direct the next coin to some point beyond it, or to the coin returning opening.

It will be apparent now `that I have provided a si1nple,`quiclrly operated, selective or multiple vending machine in which one coin testing slot will serve a plurality of coinv operated discharge n'iecha-nisms, and whereby any article may be selected, paid for and discharged all in a short interval-of time and without requiring any particularly thoughtful moves on the part of the purchaser, and whereby the acts of selecting, paying and discharging, are so closely linked as to make it as expedient as if only onemove were made to carry out all steps of purchasing an article; and

Vvlhile I have shown and described a specilic embodiment of my invention I do not limit myself to any specilic construction or arrangement of parts and may alt-er same as I desire without enlarging the scope of my invention within the appended claims.

1. In a vending machine, a runway adapted to convey a coin and provided with a plurality of successively arranged openings thru which such coin may fall, an article delivery coin carriage below each opening normally disposed to close said opening against a coin; each carriage also being. movable to allow a coin to Ypass thru the opening into the carriage.

2. In a vending. machine, a coin slot provided with a plurality of successively arranged coin emitting openings, a coin carriage below each opening, each carriage having a solid portion movable into and out of registration with the corresponding coin emitting opening, and each carriage having a coin receiving slot disposed to aline with the corresponding opening` when the solid portion is moved out of registration with the corresponding coin emitting opening.

3. In a vending machine, a single coin slot, a runway into which said slot discharges provided with a plurality of coin emitting apertures, article deliveryl coin carriages, one below each aperture, each. carriage having a solid portion and acoin receiving slot, and each carriagebeing mov able to dispose either. its solid portion, or its4 slot, into registration with the corresponding coin emitting aperture; for the purpose set forth.

4f. In a vending machine, a single coin slot, a runway into which said slot discharges provided with a plurality of coin emitting apertures, article delivery coin carriages, one below each aperture, each carriage having a solid portion and a coin receiving` slot, and each carriage being movable to dispose either its solid portion, or its slot, into registration with the corresponding` coin emitting aperture; for the purpose set forth, a pull-out handle for each coin carriage, and a wall below each carriage provided with a slot thru which a coin may fall from the slot of said carriage when said carriage is pulled out to bring the slot thereof into registration with the slot in the corresponding` wall.

5. In a vending machine, means for holding a plurality of stacks of articles in a lineal arrangement; so that the lowermost article of one stack is below the lowermost article of a preceding staclr, walls, one stepped below the other progressively of the stacks so that there is provided such a wall a given distance below each stack, coin carriages, one for each wall slidable over the corresponding wall and provided with a vertical coin slot open at both its upper and lower terminations whereby the wall will act to hold the coin in place in the slot of the corresponding carriage, each wall provided .with an aperture thru which the coin may fall from the slot of the corresponding carriage when the slot is moved into registration with the corresponding` aperture, the

slot in a carriage and the corresponding wall 'below it arranged to co-act to hold a coin so -gage and dislodge the lowermost article of a stack as said carriage is moved forwardly toward the corresponding aperture, an inclined runway passing successively behind each stack of articles and having a plurality of coin emitting openings one for each carriage and so disposed as to allow a coin to fall into the slot of the corresponding carriage when the slot of said carriage is alined therewith; each carriage having a solid portion arranged to prevent a coinv from pass ing thru the corresponding coin emitting opening of the carriage when same is in normal position, springs, one for each car riage normally holding same in such position that the solid portion of the corresponding carriage is registered with the correspond ing coin emitting opening of the runway, and a pull-out handle to each carriage, said handle movable against said spring to aline the slot of the corresponding carriage with the corresponding coin emitting opening of the runway; each handle further movable to move the carriage forwardly to convey a coin forwardly to dislodge the lowermost article of a stack while said coin is being moved into registration with the correspond ing slot in the underlying corresponding wall.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

VILLIAM C. CUTLER.

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