US2074845A - Vending machine - Google Patents

Description

Marchz, 1937. S C ,D 2,074,845 Y VENDING MACHINE Filed Nov. 16, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 March 23, 1937. s Q [DE 7 2,074,845

VENDING MACHINE Filed Nov. 16, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Mar. 23, 1937 VENDING MACHINE Sherwood C. Ide, Buffalo, N. Y., assignor to Ira Milton Jones, Thiensville, Wis.

Application November 16, 1933, Serial No. 698,232

1 Claim. (Cl. 312-96) This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in vending machines, and refers more particularly to machines of the type forming the subject matter of the copending application of Sherwood C. Ide, Serial No. 592,013, filed February 10, 1932, and which has. now eventuated into Patent No. 1,978,205.

In the machine of the aforesaid application, a series of trays are carried by a pair of spaced endless chains to convey articles to be vended past a display window in the enclosing housing and to a point of discharge. The discharge of the selected article from the machine is effected by coin controlled instrumentalities actuated by means of a manually operable handle.

The endless chains forming the conveyer on which the article supporting trays are mounted are trained about vertically spaced sets of sprockets, and the chains are driven about the sprockets by means of a handle on the exterior of the machine. Normal actuation of the handle properly effects the desired motion'of the conveyer, but it was found that the conveyer was actuated too rapidly or was quickly shifted back and forth, the articles deposited on the trays were often thrown therefrom.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide means to hold the articles against acci-. dental displacement from the trays.

It is also an object of this invention to provide novel means to move the guards or holding means provided to retain the articles on the trays, to inoperative positions during the tilting ofthe trays to effect the discharge of articles therefrom.

A further object of this invention resides in the provision of a simple article retaining guard structure carried by each tray and held in, its operative position by spring means.

With the above and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts substantially as hereinafter described and more particularly defined by the appended claims, it being understood that such changes in the precise embodiment of the hereindisclosed invention may be made as come within the scope of the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated one complete example of the physical embodiment of my invention. constructed according to the best mode I have so far devised for the practical application of the principles thereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section view through the lower discharge end portion of a machine of the type illustrated in the aforesaid application, Serial No. 592,013, said view illustrating a tray ready to be tilted;

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1, but illustrating the tray tilted and with the associated parts in their discharging positions.

Fgure 3 is a fragmentary front view taken on the plane of the line 3-3 of Figure 1, illustrating particularly the mechanism for moving the guard to inoperative position; and

Figure 4 is a detail perspective view of one of the trays illustrating the guard applied thereto.

Referring now more particularly to the accompanying drawings in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the numeral 5 represents the discharge chute of a vending machine of the type illustrated in the aforesaid application. This chute comprises spaced side walls 6 connected at the rear by an inclined curved wall 1. The front of the chute is open.

A trap door 8, hingedly mounted from the side walls 6 as at 9, normally closes the chute across its top. The trap door 8 is held in its closed position by a hook I0 carried by the door and engaged with a latch II. The latch II is mounted to turn on a rod l2 connecting the side walls 6 and has a releasing finger l3, indicated in. dot

and dash lines, with which a releasing member (not shown) engages to effect the tripping of the latch. As the manner in which the latch is tripped and the mechanism for accomplishing this function forms no part of this invention, it n 'end of the spring is anchored as at 15 and the other end engages a stud l6 carried by a gear sector ll fixed to the trap door. Inasmuch as the gear sector I! is located at the forward side of the door with respect to Figures 1 and 2, it has been indicated in construction lines.

Meshing with the sector I1 is a gear sector I3, which forms part of a movable track section IS, (the sector 18 and the track section i9 being indicated in dot and dash lines). This movable track section, as explained in the aforesaid application, is operable to effect the tilting of the trays 20, one of which is shown in its discharging position in Figures 1 and 2. For this purpose, each tray has a depending arm 2! (shown in construction lines) carrying a roller 22, which,

when the tray is in discharging position, engages the movable track section l9.

The tray is pivotally mounted as at 23 from arms 24 carried by the endless chains 25. Consequently, as the gear sector l8 turns about its pivotal mounting and causes the movable track section 19 to swing, it carries the tray with it and tips the same, from a horizontal position, shown in Figure l, to a vertical position shown in Figure 2, dropping the contents of the tray down into the chute, whose trap door 8 has been opened simultaneously with the tipping of the tray.

As hereinbefore brought out, difficulty has been experienced in maintaining the articles on the trays. To offset this disadvantage, the present invention contemplates the provision of guards indicated generally by the numeral 26, to hold the articles on the trays.

The guards are preferably formed of wire and comprise a rear bar 21 journalled in bearings 28 carried by the rear wall 29 of the tray. Secured to the bar 21 directly outwardly of the bearings 29 are two arched arms 30, the extremities of which are connected by a front bar 3|. As clearly illustrated in Figure 4, the rear bar 21 is located along the rear wall 29 of the tray and the bar 3|, when the guard is in its normal position shown in Figure 4, is disposed adjacent the front wall 32 of the tray.

The guard is held in its normal position arched over any article placed in the tray by means of a torsion spring 33 coiled about the rear bar 21 with one end 34 hooked over the adjacent arm and its other end 35 engaging the rear wall of the tray.

To limit the movement of the guard by the torsion spring, a lateral extension 36 is formed on the rear bar to engage the rear wall 29. This extension may be formed by bending the medial portion of the rear bar as shown.

It is, of course, obvious that if the article received in the tray is of greater height than the space beneath the guard, the guard will rest on top of the article and hold the same in the tray with a spring tension. Articles are thus positively held in the trays and are held against being jarred or thrown therefrom by excessive actuation of the handle through which the conveyer chain is actuated to effect a selection.

During tilting of the trays to discharge their contents, it is necessary that the guards 26 be moved to an inoperative position to permit the tray contents to drop therefrom. For this purpose, a novel guard opening means, indicated generally by the numeral 38 is provided. This guard opening means comprises a cross bar 39 preferably formed of wire and bent at its medial portion to afford a lateral guard engaging fin-' lever 40.

Adjacent its ends, the cross bar 39 is journalled in bearings 4|, preferably formed of bendable metal and attached to the side walls of the chute by screws 42. The location of the bearings for the cross bar is such that the guard actuating finger normally occupies a position from which it swings to strike the front bar 3! of the guard of any tray in discharging position, to lift the same as illustrated in Figure 2. The swinging movement is imparted to the cross bar 39 through the medium of the actuating lever 40', which is slidably received in a stud 43 pivotally mounted on the free end of an arm 44 which is secured as at 45 to the trap door, so that upon swinging movement of the trap door from closed to open position, the arm 44 moves to swing the cross bar, as will be readily apparent. Upon return of the trap door to its normal closed position, the cross bar is also returned to its normal inoperative position.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, that this invention affords a simple and effective guard to retain the articles in their respective trays and that the release of the guard or its movement to inoperative position is effected in a simple positive manner.

What I claim as my invention is:

In a vending machine including a discharge chute and a hinged door normally closing the discharge chute, a plurality of article supports each selectively positionable to discharge its contents into the chute, instrumentalities to effect the opening of the door of the discharge chute and the discharge of an article from a support into the chute, a guard carried by each article support to hold an article thereon, the guard being movable to an inoperative position to permit the discharge of an article through the chute, and means operable concomitantly with the opening of the door to engage and lift the guard to an inoperative position comprising a shaft mounted to turn on an axis parallel to the hinge axis of the door and parallel to the adjacent article support, a finger carried by the shaft and adapted to swing into engagement with the guard as the shaft is turned in one direction, a lever projecting radially from the shaft, an arm fixed with respect to the door to swing about the hinge axis of the door when the door is opened, and a stud pivotally mounted on the outer end of said arm, said stud having a transverse opening in which the lever extending radially from said shaft is slidably disposed whereby swinging movement of the stud with the door turns the shaft to lift the guard.

SHERWOOD C. IDE.

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