US3335908A - Mechanism for releasing displayed article from dispensing machine - Google Patents

Description

Aug, 15, 1967 E. c. JOHNSON MECHANISM FOR RELE ,ASING DISPLAYED ARTICLE FROM DISPENSING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 7, 1966 I INVENTOR f/m'er C. Johnson Aug. 15, 1967 E. C. JOHNSON 3,3353% MECHANISM FOR RELEASING DISPLAYED ARTICLE FROM DISPENSING MACHINE Filed March 7, 1966 INVENTOR f/mer C. Johnson ATTOR United States Patent 3,335,908 MECHANISM FOR RELEASING DISPLAYED ARTICLE FROM DISPENSKNG MACHINE Elmer C. Johnson, Raytown, Mo., assignor to The Vendo Company, Kansas City, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed Mar. 7, 1966, Ser. No. 532,344 4 Claims. (Cl. 221-103) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Each dispensing column of a drop-shelf type vending machine is equipped with a secondary dispensing mechanism which vends the article in the display bay in the first vend cycle after the shelves are exhausted. The displayed article rests on a hinged support plate. The uppermost shelf is left empty when the machine is restocked and is utilized to initiate operation of the secondary mechanism to dispense the displayed article upon movement of the shelf to its retracted position.

The display bay and the secondary mechanisms for the displayed articles are located in the door of the machine cabinet, while the shelves of the primary dispensing mechanisms are housed in the main portion of the cabinet. Each secondary mechanism is provided with a drive spring that shifts a retainer from beneath the associated support plate to release the latter when the upper shelf of the corresponding primary dispensing mechanism is disengaged from the secondary mechanism as the shelf is retracted. In order to permit restocking of the display bay when the cabinet door is opened, the bias of each drive spring is automatically reversed as the door is opened to allow the support plates to be re-positioned and held in supporting relationship to the articles in the display bay.

This invention is for use with vending or dispensing machines of the type having a display bay wherein samples of the products in the machine may be viewed by a consumer, and relates to mechanism for dispensing a displayed product when the stock of products it represents is exhausted from the machine.

Vending machines which are designed primarily to vend products such as pastry and candy normally display a sample of each product available for purchase by a machine customer. Each item so displayed is frequently aligned with a push button or pull knob which, upon actuation thereof, effects vending of that particular item from the stock within the machine. The customer understandably expects the machine to be capable of delivering any of the items visible in the display bay. However, a problem of customer frustration is often encountered since, in many machines of this type, the displayed items remain on display even though one or more of the items may no longer be delivered to the customer by the machine due to a sold-out condition of the stock normally available for vending.

Furthermore, if the displayed items remain in the display bay and are not vended, they quickly become too stale for consumption, particularly in the case of pastry and related products. Thus, throw-away 105s of display items frequently occurs, resulting in an unnecessary loss of possible salable items.

It is, therefore, the primary object of this invention to provide a secondary dispensing mechanism of uncomplex design for utilization in conjunction with a primary dispensing mechanism to render the vending or dispensing machine capable of delivering displayed products to the consumer after the normal stock thereof is exhausted.

As a corollary to the foregoing object, it is an important aim of this invention to provide secondary dispensing mechanism as aforesaid which senses the absence of a stock of items after completion of dispensing of the stock from the primary dispensing mechanism.

Another object is to provide such secondary mechanism which is adapted for use with a drop-shelf type vending machine without significant modification of the product support shelves of the machine or the associated operating mechanism being required.

Still another object is to provide a secondary dispensing mechanism as aforesaid having a product release member which is normally disposed in underlying, supporting relationship to a displayed product but which, during dispensing operation, is shiftable to permit gravitation of the product from the display bay to a consumer access station.

An additional object is to provide a vending or dispensing machine having a cabinet in which the access door thereof is provided with the display bay to permit the latter to be readily restocked upon opening of the door during the usual restocking of the primary dispensing mechanism, and wherein the secondary dispensing mechanism is automatically conditioned for subsequent operation upon closing of the door after restocking is completed.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary, front elevational view of the cabinet of a vending machine provided with a product display bay;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, rear elevational view of the display bay and associated dispensing mechanisms housed in the door of the cabinet;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, plan view of the cabinet door with the exterior panels thereof removed to show the display bay and associated dispensing mechanisms;

FIG. 5 is a detail view showing the drive spring of a secondary dispensing mechanism and associated components when the door of the cabinet is in its open position;

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional View taken along line 66 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 7 is a detail view showing the drive spring of a secondary dispensing mechanism and associated components when the cabinet door is closed and the top shelf of the respective primary mechanism has tripped to permit vending of the displayed product.

Referring particularly to FIG. 1, a vending machine is there shown having a cabinet or housing 10 provided with a display bay 12 having a front glass 14 or other transparent pane permitting the customer to view five products on display. Bay 12 forms a part of the door 16 of cabinet 10, the door being swingable about hinges (not shown) to permit access to the interior of the machine in the usual manner. A row of five pull knobs 18 allows the customer to select any one of five items carried in stock in the machine, knobs 18 being in vertical alignment with the five displayed products in bay 12. Each displayed product represents and identifies the product that will be dispensed upon customer actuation of a particular knob 18. A product delivery station 20 is formed by the lower end of a delivery chute within cabinet 10 and is located below the row of knobs 18. Door 16 is also provided with a coin slot 22 and a coin-return lever 24 which form a part of a conventional coin-controlled vending machine mechanism (not shown).

Except for the improvements of the instant invention as set forth hereinafter, the vending machine illustrated in FIG. 1 is a conventional apparatus of the general type shown and described in Stoner et al. US. Letters Patent No. 2,324,040, granted July 13, 1943. Such machines are commonly referred to as drop-shelf type vending machines since each dispensing column or compartment thereof contains a plurality of vertically spaced shelves which support the products prior to vending. The vending operation is effected by successively tripping the shelves of each compartment from bottom to top to permit the product on each shelf to gravitate to delivery station 20 as each shelf is tripped. Successive tripping is elfected as the corresponding knob 18 is repeatedly actuated by the customer; in conventional machines where the product on display in bay 12 is not dispensed, a compartment is sold out after tripping of the uppermost shelf thereof and must then be restocked. For a full and complete understanding of the operation of drop-shelf vending machines, the aforesaid patent is incorporated herein by reference; therefore, only the secondary dispensing mechanism of the instant invention will be treated in detail hereinafter.

Bay 12 is divided into five compartments by partitions 26 (FIGS. 2 and 6), each compartment containing one of the products on display. It should be understood, however, that the number of compartments in bay 12 is governed by the number of columns or compartments of the primary dispensing apparatus of the machine, since the object in providing product display is to enable the consumer to rapidly identify the character of the product contained in each column. A product 28 is illustrated in FIG. 6, where it may be seen that the product is supported by a backplate 3t) and a lower plate member 32 in a position such that product 28 may be readily viewed through glass 14.

The plate 30 and member 32 of each display bay compartment are swingably mounted at their lower and upper ends respectively on a horizontal hinge pin 34 extending between adjacent partitions 26. A spring 36 (FIG. 2) biases each plate 30 toward the front of the machine and into engagement with plate 38 extending horizontally across the top of bay 12 at the rear thereof. The broken line position of plate 30 shown in FIG. 6 illustrates that the backplate may be manually shifted away from plate 38 to permit restocking of the associated bay compartment when door 16 is open.

Each partition 26 that defines the right-hand border of a bay compartment (as viewed in FIG. 2) is provided with an angularly disposed slot 40 (FIG. 6) which receives a retainer 42 that normally bears against the underside of member 32 to maintain the same in a product-supporting position as illustrated in FIG. 6 and in the lefthand compartment of FIG. 2. Retainer 42 is in the form of a laterally bent end portion of an elongated, irregularly-shaped, rod-like element 44 that extends upwardly from slot 40 to a position adjacent the upper margin of backplate 30. The straight, central section 43 (see FIG. 3) of element 44 is rotatable about its longitudinal axis by virtue of sleeve mountings 45 which are rigid with partition 26 and rotatably receive section 43. The upper end stretch 46 of element 44 is also laterally bent and is offset in a manner to project through a clearance opening 48 in plate 38. A flexible sensing wire 50 depends from the free extremity of stretch 46 and is normally disposed rearwardly of the upper margin of backplate 30, clearance for movement of plate 30 to the dotted line position shown in FIG. 6 being afforded by an upright slot 52 in plate 30.

A hairpin spring 54 has one end thereof connected to lateral stretch 46, the spring being disposed between plate 38 and glass 14 with its opposite end connected to a finger 56 depending from a horizontal rod 58 overlying a transversely channel-shaped top plate 60. Rod 58 is mounted on the upper surface of plate 60 for rotation about its longitudinal axis and extends longitudinally of plate 60 as illustrated.

Plate 60 is a structural member that is common to all of the bay compartments and defines the upper limit of the various compartments. In FIG. 4, it may be seen that finger 56 extends through a clearance opening 62 in plate 60 directly above the associated hairpin spring 54. It

should be understood that the various fingers 56 associated with respective springs 54 act in unison upon rotation of rod 58 so that, at all times, the finger 56 associated with each bay compartment is at the same relative position.

A portion of one of the primary dispensing mechanisms is illustrated in FIG. 3, where it may be seen that a shelf 64 has one of its edges in engagement with sensing wire 50 of the secondary dispensing mechanism of the associated display bay compartment. Shelf 64 is a drop shelf and is pivotally mounted at one longitudinal edge thereof for movement between the product-supporting position illustrated and a dispensing position where shelf 64 would then hang from its mounting. A second shelf 66 is shown beneath shelf 64 and illustrated in its retracted or dispensing position, movement to such position having been effected by the primary dispensing mechanism by releasing the shelf for swinging movement about its pivotal mountings (one pivot pin being shown at 68) under the weight of the product thereon. Thus, in the FIG. 3 illustration, drop shelf 66 has dispensed its product, while the uppermost shelf 64 remains in its horizontal position. It should be understood that an independently controlled, primary drop-shelf dispensing mechanism is disposed rearwardly of each of the display bay compartments, and that the uppermost shelf 64 of each mechanism normally engages the sensing wire 50 of the associated secondary dispensing mechanism.

Rod 58 is biased by a spring 70 (FIG. 4) in a clock wise direction of rotation as viewed in FIGS. S-7. When door 16 is open, spring 70 effects rotation of rod 58 until a stop 72 projecting radially from rod 58 engages the uppermost surface of plate 60 (FIG. 5). The left end of rod 58, as viewed in FIG. 4, is provided with an offset 74 which is engaged by a projection 76 extending from the stationary portion of housing 10. Projection 76 is illustrated diagrammatically in FIG. 4 by broken lines. Door 16 moves relative to projection 76 upon opening and closing thereof and moves offset 74 into engagement with projection 76 as the door approaches its closed position. Then, as the door is fully closed, projection 76 forces rod 58 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction (as viewed in FIGS. 5-7) against the action of spring 70 to the position illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7. Note that, at this time, the various sensing wires 50 will be brought into engagement with the edges of associated uppermost shelves 64.

The operation of the invention will best be understood by first considering the condition of the primary and secondary dispensing mechanisms after the machine is stocked with products and ready for use. Products are not loaded onto the upermost shelves 64 of the primary mechanisms, however, for a purpose that will become clear hereinafter. FIGURE 6 illustrates product 28 supported in bay 12 for customer viewing, and shows that the sensing wire 50 of the associated secondary dispensing mechanism is in engagement with the proximal edge of the corresponding uppermost shelf 64, shown in phantom lines. Since door 16 is shut, stationary projection 76 bears against offset 74 and holds rod 58 and its associated components in the positions illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 6. Each hairpin spring 54 is thus compressed between its associated stretch 46 and finger 56 due to the action of the latter when the door was previously closed after reloading of the machine (compare FIGS. 5 and 6).

The products in a particular column are successively dispensed from bottom to top upon repeated operation of the corresponding pull knob 18, in conjunction with the deposit of appropriate coinage in the coin slot 22. However, once a column is exhausted as illustrated in FIG. 3 where only the uppermost shelf 64 remains in a horizontal attitude, it will be appreciated that the next operation of the appropriate knob 18 will cause shelf 64 to retract or drop to an upright position. Shelf 64, however, as set forth above, is not provided with a product as in conventional drop-shelf vending machines where the displayed product cannot be vended.

The tripping of the uppermost shelf 64 in the instant invention is utilized to commence the operation of the associated secondary dispensing mechanism. Wire 50 senses the absence of products from the column as shelf 64 swings to its retracted position, since the edge of shelf 64 moves out of engagement with wire 50. This permits hairpin spring 54 to expand and push stretch 46 away from plate 38 (see FIG. 7 and the right-hand secondary mechanism illustrated in FIG. 2). Spring 54 drives element 44 along a path of travel defined by the rotation of section 43 about its longitudinal axis. This, in turn, withdraws retainer 42 from beneath release member 32, permitting the latter to act as a trap door and release product 28 for gravitation onto incline 33 and thence along the delivery chute to delivery station 20. The use of a flexible wire for the sensor 50 eliminates the need to closely control the tolerances of the structure;

When it is desired to restock the machine, door 16 is opened, thereby moving offset 74 away from stationary projection '76 and effecting rotation of rod 58 to the position shown in FIG. 5 under the action of spring 70. This shifts fingers 56 away from their associated hairpin springs 54 to attenuate such springs and place the same under tension. Thus, release members 32 may be manually reset and are held in place by retainers 42 during restocking of the machine since the driving force of springs 54 now holds the retainer in supporting relationship to respective members 32. However, as discussed above, springs 54 are again placed in compression as door 16 is closed and the sensing wires 50 are moved into engagement with respective shelves 64, so that each of the secondary dispensing mechanisms will subsequently be operable when the associated shelf 64 is tripped.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a dispensing machine:

a housing provided with a product-delivery station and having a stationary portion, a movable door portion shiftable between a closed position and an Open position with respect to said stationary portion, and a display zone in one of said portions;

structure including a series of successively operable components in the other of said portions with all but the last of said components being utilized to support individual products of like character for successive release to the delivery station;

means in said one portion adjacent said zone for supporting an additional product in said zone of the same type as the products supported by said components, whereby said additional products is displayed to the consumer to identify the character of the products,

said means including a product support member shiftable from a normal, product-supporting position to a dispensing position permitting shifting of said additional product to said delivery station;

operating means in said one portion including a shiftable element having a retainer engageable with said support member for maintaining the member in said normal disposition during dispensing of the products supported by said components,

said operating means further including yieldable means coupled with said element and normally biasing the latter in a direction to shift said retainer toward a position clearing said member, said element engaging said last to be operated component, when the latter is in an initial disposition prior to operation thereof and when said door portion is in its closed position, to hold said retainer against movement under the action of said yieldable means until operation of said last to be operated component, whereby to release said member for movement to said dispensing position to dispense said additional product in the next cycle of operation after the products supported by said components have been dispensed;

means coupled with said yieldable means for reversing the direction of bias thereof in response to movement of said door portion from said closed to said open position, whereby to hold said retainer in engagement with said member during restocking of said zone, and for returning said yieldable means to normal operative condition in response to reclosure of said door portion, and

said element and said last to be operated component being disposed to effect said interengagement thereof when the last to be operated component is in its initial disposition, as said door portion is returned to said closed position.

2. In a vending machine having a cabinet, a door on said cabinet provided with a product display zone and a product delivery station, and product dispensing structure including a series of successively releasable components with all but the last to be released of said components being utilized to support individual products of like character for successive release to the delivery station, the combination with said machine of:

a shiftable product support plate disposed to support an additional product in said display zone and of the same type as said plurality of products whereby said additional product is displayed to the consumer to identify the character of said plurality of products;

a shiftable element having a retainer for said plate and mounted for movement to shift said retainer between one position engaging said plate to hold the latter in supporting relationship to said additional product, and a second position releasing said plate; and

means engaging the element for biasing the latter in a direction to shift the retainer toward said second position thereof releasing the plate, said element having a portion disposed to be engaged by the last to be released of said components when the latter is in the normal unreleased condition for maintaining the retainer in said one position thereof against the action of said biasing means whereby, upon release of said last to be released components, said retainer is shifted by said biasing means to said second position of the same to permit gravitation of said additional product to the delivery station,

said biasing means including a spring, and a rotatable control member coupled with the spring for compressing the latter between the control member and the element to bias said element in a direction to shift the retainer toward said second position thereof upon movement of the control member in one direction of rotation, and for tensioning the spring between the control member and the element upon movement of the control member in the opposite direction of rotation, and yieldable means biasing the control member in said opposite direction of rotation, said control member having an offset portion disposed to be engaged by the door when the latter is closed and thereby rotate the control member in said one direction of movement thereof against the bias of said yieldable means, whereby upon opening of the door, the control member is rotated by the yieldable means and the retainer is thereby held in plate-supporting disposition under tension of said spring when it is desired to restock the display zone.

3. In a dispensing machine:

a housing provided with a product-delivery station and having a stationary portion, a movable door portion shiftable between a closed position and an open position with respect to said stationary portion, and a display zone in one of said portions;

structure including a series of successively operable components in the other of said portions with all but the last of said components being utilized to support individual products of like character for successive release to the delivery station;

means in said one portions adjacent said zone for supporting an additional product in said zone of the same type as the products supported by said components, whereby said additional product is displayed to the consumer to identify the character of the products,

said means including a product support member shiftable from a normal, product-supporting position to a dispensing position permitting shifting of said additional product to said delivery station;

operating means in said one portion associated with said support member and engaging said last to be operated component when the latter is in an initial position prior to operation thereof and when said door portion is in its closed position,

said operating means having a retainer maintaining the member in said normal disposition during dispensing of the products supported by said components, and being actuated by said last to be operated component upon disengagement therefrom as the latter moves 20 away from its initial position during operation thereof 8 to shift said retainer to a disposition releasing said member for movement to said dispensing position, whereby to dispense said additional product in the next cycle of operation after the products supported by said components have been dispensed; and

means coupled with said operating means for disabling the latter in response to movement of said door portion from said closed to said open position, whereby said retainer may assume its normal disposition and remain therein during restocking of said zone.

4. The invention of claim 3:

and means for restoring said operating means to operative condition as said door portion is returned to said closed position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,525,682 10/1950 Kaplan 221155 X SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. IN A DISPENSING MACHINE: A HOUSING PROVIDED WITH A PRODUCT-DELIVERY STATION AND HAVING A STATIONARY PORTION, A MOVABLE DOOR PORTION SHIFTABLE BETWEEN A CLOSED POSITION AND AN OPEN POSITION WITH RESPECT TO SAID STATIONARY PORTION, AND A DISPLAY ZONE IN ONE OF SAID PORTIONS; STRUCTURE INCLUDING A SERIES OF SUCCESSIVELY OPERABLE COMPONENTS IN THE OTHER OF SAID PORTIONS WITH ALL BUT THE LAST OF SAID COMPONENTS BEING UTILIZED TO SUPPORT INDIVIDUAL PRODUCTS OF LIKE CHARACTER FOR SUCCESSIVE RELEASE TO THE DELIVERY STATION: MEANS IN SAID ONE PORTION ADJACENT SAID ZONE FOR SUPPORTING AN ADDITIONAL PRODUCT IN SAID ZONE OF THE SAME TYPE AS THE PRODUCTS SUPPORTED BY SAID COMPONENTS, WHEREBY SAID ADDITIONAL PRODUCTS IS DISPLAYED TO THE CONSUMER TO IDENTIFY THE CHARACTER OF THE PRODUCTS, SAID MEANS INCLUDING A PRODUCT SUPPORT MEMBER SHIFTABLE FROM A NORMAL, PRODUCT-SUPPORTING POSITION TO A DISPENSING POSITION PERMITTING SHIFTING OF SAID ADDITIONAL PRODUCT TO SAID DELIVERY STATION; OPERATING MEANS IN SAID ONE PORTION INCLUDING A SHIFTABLE ELEMENT HAVING A RETAINER ENGAGEABLE WITH SAID SUPPORT MEMBER FOR MAINTAINING THE MEMBER IN SAID NORMAL DISPOSITION DURING DISPENSING OF THE PRODUCTS SUPPORTED BY SAID COMPONENTS, SAID OPERATING MEANS FURTHER INCLUDING YIELDABLE MEANS COUPLED WITH SAID ELEMENT AND NORMALLY BIASING THE LATTER IN A DIRECTION TO SHIFT SAID RETAINER TOWARD A POSITION CLEARING SAID MEMBER, SAID ELEMENT ENGAGING SAID LAST TO BE OPERATED COMPONENT, WHEN THE LATTER IS IN AN INITIAL DISPOSITION PRIOR TO OPERATION THEREOF AND WHEN SAID DOOR PORTION IS IN ITS CLOSED POSITION, TO HOLD SAID RETAINER AGAINST MOVEMENT UNDER THE ACTION OF SAID YIELDABLE MEANS UNTIL OPERATION OF SAID LAST TO BE OPERATED COMPONENT, WHEREBY TO RELEASE SAID MEMBER FOR MOVEMENT TO SAID DISPENSING POSITION TO DISPENSE SAID ADDITIONAL PRODUCT IN THE NEXT CYCLE OF OPERATION AFTER THE PRODUCTS SUPPORTED BY SAID COMPONENTS HAVE BEEN DISPENSED; MEANS COUPLED WITH SAID YIELDABLE MEANS FOR REVERSING THE DIRECTION OF BIAS THEREOF IN RESPONSE TO MOVEMENT OF SAID DOOR PORTION FROM SAID CLOSED TO SAID OPEN POSITION, WHEREBY TO HOLD SAID RETAINER IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID MEMBER DURING RESTOCKING OF SAID ZONE, AND FOR RETURNING SAID YIELDABLE MEANS TO NORMAL OPERATIVE CONDITION IN RESPONSE TO RECLOSURE OF SAID DOOR PORTION, AND SAID ELEMENT AND SAID LAST TO BE OPERATED COMPONENT BEING DISPOSED TO EFFECT SAID INTERENGAGEMENT THEREOF WHEN THE LAST TO BE OPERATED COMPONENT IS IN ITS INITIAL DISPOSITION, AS SAID DOOR PORTION IS RETURNED TO SAID CLOSED POSITION.

Images