US3298562A - Top fastening rim with closure and handle - Google Patents

Description

Jan; 17, 1967 N. G. WEITZMAN TOP FASTENING RIM WITH CLOSURE AND HANDLE Filed March 22, 1965 Has;

INVENTOK NORMAN 6f M/E/TZMAA/ Patented Jan. 17, 1967 3,298,562 TOP FASTENING RIM WITH CLOSURE AND HANDLE Norman G. Weitzman, Arnold Provisor, Attorney at Law, 16401 Knapp St., Sepulveda, Calif. 91343 Filed Mar. 22, 1965, Ser. No. 441,614 1 Claim. (Cl. 220-94) Generally speaking, the present invention relates to the merchandise vending machine art and, more particularly, pertains to a top fastening rim for aimerchandise receptacle of a merchandise vending machine, with said rim having a fold-away carrying handle which may be folded down against said top fastening rim So as to be completely inoperative and unobtrusive, and to not in any way interfere with the fastening to said rim of a conventional permanent type closure cap or cover means, which is normally locked and fastened thereover when the merchandise vending machine is positioned at a merchandising location ready for merchandising operation. Under such circumstances, the fold-away carrying handle is inoperative and completely out of sight.

However when a route operator or service man who regularly checks such vending machines and normally removes coins from a money receptacle, and/ or, provides a fresh supply of merchandise for the vending machine makes a call he normally will unlock and remove the permanent type top closure cover means and effectively interchange the complete merchandising receptacle and, in some cases, the complete merchandise vending machine also, with a fresh merchandise receptacle or complete merchandise vending machine which has already been filled with fresh merchandise, thus eliminating the necessity of the service man handling the merchandise and refilling a partially empty merchandise receptacle at a merchandising location. It has been found that such interchanging operations are faster and more sanitary and, in those instances where the complete merchandise vending machine is so interchanged, the coin or money receptacle portion of the machine need not be opened by the service man at the merchandising location but may be returned unopened to the factory or central moneyremoving and counting depot or location. This has advantages of the same type referred to above with respect to the interchanging of the merchandise receptacle, which eliminates the necessity of the service man actually handling the merchandise in order to remove old merchandise and replace same with fresh merchandise at the actual route location. In other words, this arrangement eliminates any necessity for the service man, at the actual merchandising machine location, handling and removing coins from the coin receptacle.

It should be clearly noted that the improved apparatus of the present invention, comprising the above-mentioned top fastening rim having the above-mentioned fold-away carrying handle, may be employed under either types of circumstances briefly referred to abovethat is, where only the merchandise receptacle itself is interchanged and/ or wherein the complete merchandise vending machine is interchanged, and, in either case, the unlocking and removal of the permanent closure cover means my be required in order to make it possible to remove the merchandise receptacle for such interchanging thereof and/ or to make it possible to remove the complete merchandise vending machine for such interchanging thereof.

Normally, a service man servicing a route comprising a plurality of such merchandise vending machines stationed at a plurality of different merchandise vending locations will start on his route with a plurality of such replacement merchandise receptacles, and/ or complete merchandise vending machines with the receptacleshaving been previously factory prefilled with fresh merchandise and, in

order to avoid inadvertent loss of any such merchandise as a result of any jostling movement being imparted thereto during the transporting of same along the route to each of the plurality of merchandise vending machines stationed at merchandising locations, it is desirable to provide some sort of temporary or auxiliary service cap or cover over the open top of each merchandise receptacle until it replaces its corresponding merchandise receptacle which has been previously stationed at any of said plurality of merchandising locations. Also, such a temporary or auxiliary service cap for each of the open replacement merchandise receptacles will prevent contamination of the fresh merchandise therein by any exterior foreign matter, since such exterior foreign matter will be prevented from entry into the top openings of said replacement merchandise receptacles by said temporary auxiliary service caps or covers thereover.

The above-described temporary use of such temporary auxiliary service caps or covers may also be desirable for the original merchandise receptacles removed from their route locations and returned to the factory or central supply depot by the service man.

It will readily be understood that whenever either an original merchandise receptacle at any one of said plurality of merchandising locations is to be lifted, moved, or placed in the service mans automobile or truck for return to the main factory or supply depot, and whenever any of said replacement merchandise receptacles is to be transported, lifted, and/ or moved at any time during the transporting thereof from the central factory or main supply depot to each of the plurality of merchandise vending machines and, when there, is to be lifted and fastened to the base portion of the corresponding merchandise vending machine and/or to fixed supporting means adapted to carry same, the previously mentioned fold-away carrying handle mounted on the top fastening rim of the present invention becomes extremely useful since it may be pivotally swung into a vertical plane and manually grasped for handling, moving, and/or carrying any one of said merchandise receptacles and/or complete merchandise vending machines under certain circumstances.

It will be noted that an important feature of the novel fold-away carrying handle of the present invention is the fact that it has portions which act to fasten and hold the previously mentioned temporary or auxiliary service cap or cover over the open top of the corresponding merchandise receptacle as long as desired so that it will not accidentally become dislodged therefrom and yet which will readily allow manual removal of the corresponding temporary auxiliary service cap or cover from the open top of the corresponding merchandise receptacle whenever desired and prior to replacement over said open top of said merchandise receptacle of the previously mentioned permanent type closure cap or cover means, which, of course, is not done until the fold-away handle is folded down into horizontal engagement with a corresponding half portion of the fastening rim carried by the top of said merchandise receptacle.

With the above points in mind, it is an object of the present invention to provide novel apparatus of the character referred to herein having any or all of the advantages referred to herein, generically and/or specifically, and individually or in combination, and which is of extremely simple, inexpensive construction adapted for ready mass manufacture at very low cost whereby to be conducive to widespread use thereof.

Further objects are implicit in the detailed description which follows hereinafter (which is to be considered as exemplary of, but not specifically limiting, the present invention), and said objects will be apparent to persons skilled in the art after a careful study of the detailed description which follows hereinafter.

For the purpose of clarifying the nature of the present invention, one exemplary embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the hereinbelow-described figures of the accompanying single drawing sheet and is described in detail hereinafter.

FIG. 1 is a reduced-size, three-dimensional View illustrating one typical exemplary type of merchandise vending machine carrying one particular exemplary type of merchandise receptacle at the top thereof and, immediately thereover and in normally closing relationship with respect to the otherwise open top of said merchandise receptacle, a permanent type closure cap or cover means, which is normally locked thereover with the merchandise receptacle being filled with any desire-d type of merchandise which is to be controllably vended by the merchandise vending machine in response to the insertion of the proper amount of money, in the form of one or more coins, into the coin receiving apparatus and the subsequent operation of the dispensing means made permissible by receipt of said proper amount of money. However, the invention is not limited to the type of merchandise vending machine illustrated, but may be employed with a great variety of different types of merchandise vending machines.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary view, taken substantially along the plane'indicated by the arrows 2-2 of FIG. 1, although it is drawn to a somewhat larger scale than FIG. 1. This view clearly illustrates the normal mounting of the permanent type top closure cap or cover means over the otherwise open top of the merchandise receptacle, with the fold-away carrying handle carried by the fastening rim of the apparatus of the present invention being in the horizontal inoperative fold-away position which in no way interferes with the fastening of said permanent type closure cap thereover.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view of slightly more than one-half of the top portion of the apparatus, taken substantially on the plane indicated by the arrows 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view generally similar to FIG. 2 in many respects, although it is taken substantially on the centrally offset plane indicated by the arrows 44 of FIG. 1 and is, therefore, perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a three-dimensional view of the top portion of the merchandise receptacle of the merchandise vending machine, with all portions thereof positioned therebelow broken away for reasons of drawing simplification and clarity and with the permanent type top closure cover means of FIGS. 14 removed. Also, this view shows a temporary auxiliary service cap or cover means temporarily positioned across the otherwise open top of the merchandise receptacle and the top fastening rim thereover and temporarily held in covering relationship with respect thereto by the fold-away carrying handle, which has been pivoted into an erect operative position for use in carrying the entire device.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view, taken substantially on the plane indicated by the arrows 66 of FIG. 5 with central and bottom portions thereof broken away for reasons of drawing simplification and clarity. Also, it should be noted that this view is drawn to a larger scale than FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a view taken on substantially the same plane as FIG. 4, but shows the apparatus with the permanent type closure cover means removed and with the temporary auxiliary service cap or cover means mounted thereon as a temporary replacement therefor and retained in said temporary mounted relationship by said fold-away carrying handle, which, incidentally, is shown in this figure in a horizontal folded position such as it would normally assume when being transported to or from the merchandising location of a merchandise vending machine in a motor vehicle, or the like. In other words, the foldaway carrying handle is folded down in FIG. 7 in order to minimize the space required for same in the service mans automobile or truck during the transporting of same from a central supply depot to any one of a plurality of merchandise vending machines for replacement purposes, or when transporting an original removed merchandise receptacle from a route location back to the central supply depot.

Generally speaking, the apparatus of the present invention is adapted to be mounted at the top of a merchandise receptacle, one exemplary type of which is generally indicated at 11, which is carried by a merchandise vending machine, one exemplary type of which is generally indicated at 12 in FIG. 1.

It will be noted that the particular type of merchandise receptacle 11 shown in FIG. 1 is substantially rectangular, as seen in top plan view or as seen in horizontal section at any horizontal plane thereacross, although the corners of said merchandise receptacle 11 are slightly rounded. However, this is exemplary only, and the apparatus of the present invention may be employed with merchandise receptacles of a variety of different shapes and/or sizes, all of which arrangements of the present invention are intended to be included and comprehended herein.

. In the exemplary arrangement illustrated, the merchandise receptacle 11 has a substantially rectangular top edge 13 which has firmly fastened thereto a substantially rectangular structure which may be generally termed a top fastening or retaining rim, generally designated at 14, which has a lower horizontally directed substantially rectangular base portion 14B and an inwardly offset upstanding inner vertical wall portion 14W, with said base portion 143 being shown as abutting a substantially rectangular compressible gasket member 15 and being held in said abutting fastened relationship with respect to said gasket 15 and said top edge 13 of the merchandise receptacle 11 by a pair of laterally spaced, downwardly directed tie rods 16 which have headed upper ends 17 lying in recesses 18 in corresponding vertically apertured fastening cars 19 integrally carried by opposite side parts of said base portion 14B of said top fastening and retaining rim 14.

The lower ends of said tie rods 16 are threaded at, or below, the locations indicated at 21 and pass through apertures 22 in a ring portion 23 rigidly, but controllably removably, carried at the top of the lower mechanism housing portion 24 of the vending machine 12 and are there threadedly fastened thereto (either directly or effectively by way of threaded nut means or other fastening means), thus firmly drawing the complete top fastening rim or ring 14 downwardly against the gasket 15 and against the top edge 13 of the merchandise receptacle 11 and providing an effectively unitary structure for the complete upper portion of merchandise vending machine 12. In other words, said tie rods 16 act to positively lock the merchandise receptacle 11 with respect to the controllably removable upper part 23 of the lower mechanism housing portion 24- of the merchandise vending machine 12.

The arrangement just described is particularly suitable where the merchandise receptacle 11 is made of glass or other frangible material, although it may also be employed when the merchandise receptacle 11 is made of transparent plastic or other transparent material.

Also, in the exemplary arrangement illustrated, the merchandise vending machine 12 is normally provided with a permanent type closure cap or cover means, such as is generally designated at 25 and which is adapted to be held over the inwardly offset upstanding inner vertical wall portion 14W of the top fastening and retaining rim or ring 14 whereby to completely cover same in the manner clearly shown in FIGS. 1-4. The fastening of said permanent type top closure cover means 25 in said closing and covering relationship is provided by a central tie rod 26, which has a bottom portion which normally passes centrally downwardly through an aperture 27 in the upper part 23 at the top of the lower portion 24 of the vending machine 12 and which then normally passes centrally down to the base of said mechanism housing bottom portion 24 of the vending machine 12 and is there fixedly attached with respect thereto. (This is not shown since this is conventional and comprises no part of the present invention.)

The upper end of said central tie rod 26 is threaded, as indicated at 28, and is adapted to be controllably threadedly engaged within the interior threaded bore 29 of a fastening and locking means, generally indicated at 31, which comprises a cylindrical lower portion 32 rotatably received within the effective cylindrical opening 33 in said top closure cover 25 and adapted to be rotated therein in response to insertion into the key slot 34 of a proper key (not shown).

In other words, the upper portion 35 of said locking means, generally designated at 31, comprises a downwardly directed boss 35 fixedly carried underneath the closure cap or cover means 25 and which, in effect, comprises the non-rotatable outside of a rotatable lock having a plurality of tumbler means therein which normally protrude outwardly into the boss 35 and prevent rotation of the entire inner lock assembly carried above, and rotatable with, the interiorly threaded lower portion 29. In other words, only insertion of the proper key in the key slot 34 will allow rotation of the interiorly threaded lower portion 29 of the locking structure 31 within the boss 35 which will, of course, allow threaded relative advancement or retraction with respect to the exteriorly threaded upper end portion 28 of the central tie rod 26 whereby to either draw the permanent type top closure cover means 25 firmly downwardly against the top fastening rim 14 or to disengage same for removal of the top cover means 25.

While the novel top fastening rim 14 apparatus of the present invention is well suited for cooperation with the specific type of vending machine 12, merchandise receptacle 11, and permanent type top closure cover means 25, and also with respect to the specific type of lateral tie rods 16 and central tie rod 26 and key-operated looking means 31, it should be noted that the apparatus of the present invention may cooperate with a variety of other types of merchandise receptacles, permanent type top cover means, and/or fastening and locking means therefor.

In the exemplary form illustrated, the inwardly offset upwardly directed upstanding vertical wall portion 14W of the top fastening and retaining rim 14 has opposite side parts (in the example shown, the two designated at 14W), provided with horizon-tally aligned apertures 36 provided with and rotatively mounting the inwardly alignedly directed projections 371 of a bail or handle member, generally designated at 37, and which, in the exemplary form illustrated, is of generally rectangular configuration substantially corresponding to the shape of one half of the top fastening and retaining rim or ring means 14 whereby to be adapted to lie on said half portion thereof when folded away into a horizontal plane, as is perhaps best shown in FIG. 3, wherein it will be noted that said bail or handle member 37 is shaped in substantially exact correspondence with the shape of the corresponding portion of said top fastening and retaining rim or ring means 14 and lies in a position thereon such as to allow the previously mentioned permanent type closure cap or cover means 25 to be positioned thereover and to engage said rim or ring means 14 without being in any way interfered with by said folded-away ball or handle mem-. ber 37. This relationship is clearly shown in FIGS. 24, inclusive.

However, it will be readily understood that when the permanent type closure cap or cover means 25 is removed by a service man, the bail or handle member 37 may be pivoted into the upstanding operative position best shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 to allow it to be used for facilitating the lifting and carry-ing of either just the merchandise receptacle 11 and the top portion 23 of the merchandise vending machine 12 (said top portion 23 thereof effectively comprising the bottom of the merchandise receptacle 11) or may be used for lifting and carrying the complete merchandise vending machine 12 for the purpose previously detailed. This may be done without mounting a temporary auxiliary cover across the opentop of the merchandise receptacle 11 and the top fastening and retaining rim or ring means 14 or may be done after the mounting thereacross of such a temporary auxiliary closure cover means thereover for retention and protection purposes during the lifting, handling, and transporting of merchandise receptacle 11, as previously outlined.

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate such a temporary auxiliary resilient service cap or closure cover means which is generally designated by the reference numeral 38 and which comprises a resilient panel member 39 having a pair of spaced downwardly directed edges 41 adapted to be slipped over the corresponding upstanding inwardly offset wall portions 14W and to then have the central portion of said panel 39 forcibly resiliently deflected downwardly between the other two upstanding wall portions 14W until it lies below the level of the horizontally aligned apertures 36 therein and also below the inwardly directed projections 37? normally rotatably mounted in the apertures 36 for rotatably mounting the complete bail or carrying handle member 37 in the manner previously described in detail.

Of course, it will be understood that during the mounting of the temporary cover 38 in the manner just described, it will be necessary to resiliently outwardly force said projections 37F to a degree sufiicient to allow the central part of the panel portion 39 of thetemporary cover 38 to be forced below the level of the aligned apertures or holes 36, after which said inwardly directed projections 37P may be allowed to resiliently move inwardly in the apertures 36 into the retaining relationship most clearly shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. This is made possible by reason of the resilient nature of the material of which the bail or handle member 37 is made, usually being resilient spring metal or any other substantial functional equivalent thereof. It will be noted that removal of the temporary cover 38 merely comprises the reverse from the mounting operation just described.

Incidentally, it should be noted that the handle 37 may be pivotally swung or folded downwardly from the upright operative position shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 into an inoperative minimum space position as shown in FIG. 7 when the merchandise receptacle, with the temporary cover 38 thereover, is to be transported from one location to another by means other than the handle 37, such as in a truck or automobile or the like, or when the merchandise receptacle is at rest.

It should be understood that the figures and the specific description thereof set forth in this application are for the purpose of illustrating the present invention and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention to the precise and detailed specific structure shown in the figures and specifically described hereinbefore. Rather, the real invention is intended to include substantially equivalent constructions embodying the basic teachings and inventive concept of the present invention.

I claim:

A substantially rectangular, as seen in top plan view, top retaining and fastening rim member for the corresponding substantially rectangular upper edge of a merchandise receptacle of a merchandise vending machine, said retaining and fastening rim member having a lower horizontally directed base portion adapted to contact the upper edge of the merchandise receptacle and having an inwardly offset upstanding inner vertical wall portion adapted to normally receive and mount thereover a permanent type substantially rectangular closure cover means when the merchandise vending machine is fully assembled, said inwardly offset upstanding inner vertical wall portion having opposite side parts provided with horizontally aligned apertures provided with, and rotatively mounting, a substantially rectangular bail and handle member which is shaped in exact correspondence with the shape of corresponding outside surface parts of said inner upstanding vertical wall portion between said horizontally aligned apertures r-otatively mounting said bail and handle member and extending along parallel adjacent parts of said upstanding vertical Wall portion and along a transversely directed interconnecting part of said vertical wall portion and thus, when folded-away onto the corresponding upper surface parts of said horizontally directed base portion of said retaining and fastening rim member, causing said handle member to lie immediately outside of said corresponding outside surface parts of said upstanding wall portion thereof and immediately inside of the corresponding parts of the permanent type closure cover means for the merchandise receptacle when mounted thereover, said bail and handle member being controllably rotatable from its horizontal folded-away position into an upstanding use position after removal of the permanent type closure cover means, thus providing a convenient carrying handle member for carrying the merchandise receptacle from one location to another and for facilitating removal and replacement thereof; and a temporary auxiliary resilient closure cap means for said top retaining and fastening rim member when the permanent type closure cover means has been removed therefrom, said auxiliary closure cap means being placed thereacross and in overlapped engagement with a pair of opposite side parts thereof and having an intermediate portion forcibly resiliently deflected below the level of said horizontally aligned apertures rotatably mounting said bail and handle member and having top parts of said auxiliary closure cap means resiliently forcibly engaged and retained by portions of said bail and handle member extending through said horizontally aligned apertures, providing a temporary closure cap for the merchandise receptacle when it is to be moved by said carrying handle member after the permanent type closure cover means has been removed from said retaining and fastening top rim member.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 940,757 11/1909 Wagner 220-91 1,616,288 2/1927 Taliaferro 220 2,985,335 5/1961 Bliss 22092 3,212,666 10/1965 McLeod 22095 LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner.

RAPHAEL H. SCWARTZ, Examiner.

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