WO2007066213A2

WO2007066213A2 - Dispenser for individual articles

Info

Publication number: WO2007066213A2
Application number: PCT/IB2006/003526
Authority: WO
Inventors: Klaus Heinrich Lanz
Original assignee: Lanz, Vincent, Lincoln
Priority date: 2005-12-09
Filing date: 2006-12-08
Publication date: 2007-06-14
Also published as: WO2007066213A3

Abstract

Apparatus (10) and a method are provided for dispensing individual articles (12) such as cigarette packs from an upright stack (16) by pushing the lowermost pack (12.4) transversely along a dispensing path (18) in a working stroke of a dispenser lever (24), allowing the next pack (12.3) to move to the bottom, under gravity and returning the dispenser lever (24) in a return stroke. The dispenser lever (24) is in an extended condition during its working stoke and is biased to its extended condition, but is bent during its return stroke, by abutment with the pack (12.3) at the bottom of the stack (16). The lever (24) is connected via a spring (60) to an actuator such as a motor driven shaft (54) for a crank (58) or a manual lever (30).

Description

DISPENSER FOR INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

THIS INVENTION relates to a method and apparatus for dispensing individual articles such as cigarette packs.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

The storage and dispensing of individual articles at a point of sale poses particular challenges in circumstances where the articles are small and of relatively high value, which makes them a likely target for theft. A typical article of this type, is a cigarette pack, the vending of which is complicated further in some countries by statutory regulation.

Typical storage devices for cigarette packs include an array of packs from which individual packs are taken when required. The array is typically a vertical stack, in which case only a small part of each pack is visible and it is preferable to dispense individual packs from such a stack in a manner that makes the larger front of the pack visible to customers, for advertising purposes.

The technical difficulties faced in dispensing individual cigarette packs from a stack, stem from the fact that the heights of the packs may vary depending on stock levels, so that individual packs necessarily need to be dispensed from the bottom of the stack. The difficulty here lies partly in the fact that the weight of the stack resting on the bottom pack and the friction between the two lowermost packs can typically only be overcome by a substantial force. Consequently, dispensers of this type use complicated and costly mechanisms for lifting the stack before dispensing the lowermost pack, remove the lowermost pack in an automated manner or rely on manual sliding of the lowermost pack that proves to be too much effort for the operator, who simply stops using the dispenser.

The present invention seeks to provide a simple dispenser for individual articles such as cigarette packs, in which a plurality of packs can be stacked and individual packs can be dispensed manually in a visible manner, without requiring excessive force. The invention also seeks to inhibit theft.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided apparatus for dispensing individual articles, said apparatus comprising:

a body defining a generally upright cavity in which an upright stack of the articles can be received and which defines a dispensing path, extending generally transversely from the lower end of the cavity to a dispensing opening;

a dispenser lever, at least part of which is displaceable transversely to the upright cavity in a working stroke from an initial position so that at least part of the dispenser lever extends into the lower end of the upright cavity and moves towards the dispensing path and which is displaceable in a return stroke, back to its initial position; and

an actuator, configured to drive the dispenser lever on its working stroke; wherein at least part of the dispenser lever is displaceable between an extended condition and a bent condition and is biased to the extended condition, the dispenser lever being configured to be bent against its bias, on its return stroke, by abutment with an article in the lower end of the upright cavity.

The dispenser lever may include a first part that is pivotally connected to the body and is connected to the actuator and may include a second part that is pivotally connected to the first part, configured to pivot relative to the first part between an extended condition and a pivotally bent condition. The second part may be biased to its extended condition, e.g. by a counterweight or a spring.

The actuator may be connected to the dispenser lever by a resiliently deformable member such as a spring.

The actuator may be in the form of a rotating shaft to which the dispenser lever may be connected in a crank configuration and the apparatus may include an electric motor, such as a direct current (dc) motor, configured to drive the actuator.

Instead, the actuator may be manually operable and may be an actuator lever and may be mechanically connected to the dispenser lever.

The dispensing path defined by the body may extend upwardly from the lower end of the upright cavity and may extend to the dispensing opening. The apparatus may include a gate with a protuberance, the gate being pivotally connected to the body to be displaceable between a closed position in which the gate closes the dispensing opening at least in part and an open position in which the dispensing opening is open to allow articles to be removed from it in a direction transverse to the dispensing path, but is obstructed at least in part by the

protuberance, to prevent movement of articles along the dispensing path.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of dispensing articles, said method comprising:

keeping a plurality of the articles in an upright stack, said stack including at least a first article at the bottom of the stack and a second article immediately above the first article;

applying a transverse load to the first article in a working stroke of a dispenser lever;

moving the first article under the transverse load, transversely from the bottom of the stack, along a dispensing path;

allowing the second article to move downwardly under gravity until it occupies the position vacated by transverse movement of the first article; and

returning the dispenser lever in a return stroke, in a direction opposite to its working stroke,

wherein the dispenser lever is in an extended condition during its working stoke and is biased to its extended condition, but is in a bent condition during its return stroke, said dispenser lever being bent during its return stroke by abutment with the second article. The dispenser lever may be biased to its extended condition, under gravity and may be driving during its working stroke with an actuator that is connected to the dispenser lever by way of a resiliently deformable connector such as a spring.

The actuator may be moved relative to the dispenser lever, the relative movement causing the deformable connector to deform, until further movement of the actuator is transferred via the deformable connector to the dispenser lever.

The dispenser lever may be driven with an actuator in the form of a rotating shaft to which the dispenser lever is connected in a crank configuration and may be driven during its working stroke, with an electric motor.

Instead, the dispenser lever may be driven manually during its working stroke and may be biased to return to its initial position.

Upon being moved transversely from the bottom of stack, the first article may be guided upwardly along its dispensing path and the first article may push at least one other article ahead of it along the dispensing path towards a dispending opening.

The dispensing opening may be closed at least in part with a closure that is opened by movement of the articles along the dispensing path, such that the uppermost article in the dispensing path can be removed via the dispensing opening, but the closure may include a protuberance that inhibits movement of the articles along the path when the closure is open, until the uppermost article has been removed from the dispensing path.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show how the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of non- limiting example, to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional side view of dispensing apparatus in accordance with an electrically driven embodiment of the present invention, in an initial condition;

Figure 2 shows the apparatus of Figure 1 during a working stroke;

Figure 3 shows the apparatus of Figure 2 at the end of its working stroke;

Figure 4 shows the apparatus of Figure 3 during a return stroke; and

Figure 5 is a sectional side view of dispensing apparatus in accordance with a manually driven embodiment of the present invention, in an initial condition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring to the drawings, apparatus in accordance with the present invention for dispensing individual articles is generally indicated by reference numeral 10, while such individual articles in the form of cigarette packs, are indicated by reference numeral 12, with suffixes identifying individual packs. Similar features in different embodiments of the invention are indicated by the same reference numerals. Referring to all the drawings, in both the electrically and manually driven embodiments of the present invention, the apparatus 10 includes a body that can comprise a number of parts and that can have a variety of shapes. The body defines a generally upright cavity 14 in which packs 12 can be kept in a vertical stack 16, including a first pack 12.4 at the bottom of the stack and a second packi 2.3 immediately above the first pack. A dispensing path 18 extends

transversely from the lower end of the cavity 14 and curves upward to a dispending opening 20 that can be closed by a gate 22. A pivotally displaceable dispenser lever 24 and an actuator are housed within a lower part of the apparatus 10.

The dispenser lever 24 comprises a straight first part 26 that is pivotally attached to a fulcrum 40 on the body of the apparatus 10 at its bottom end and a second part 28 that is slightly curved at its upper end and that has a point generally midway along its length pivotally attached to the upper end of the first part. A counterweight 52 is attached to the bottom end of the second part 28, to bias the second part to a generally upright position, under gravity. The pivotal attachment of the second part 28 to the first part 26 causes the parts to be displaceable relative to each other between a generally aligned or extended condition as shown in Figures 2 and 3 and a bent condition as shown in Figures 1 , 4 and 5, where the second part 28 has been displaced clockwise relative to the first part as shown. However, the pivotal movement between the first 26 and second 28 parts is limited so that the second part 28 cannot pivot anti-clockwise relative to the first part 26 from its extended condition. A roller 64 is provided at the upper end of the second part 28, to allow it to pass easily along any abutting surfaces.

At the lower end of the cavity 14, the stack 16 is supported on lateral shelves 42, with free ends 44 generally at the lower end of the dispensing path 18, so that packs 12 within the dispensing path that are urged downwardly under gravity, abut the free ends and are held in position.

The lower end of the dispensing path 18 is curved and is relatively wide, allowing the packs 12 to slide along the curvature, but most of the dispensing path extends generally straight in a slightly inclined upwardly direction from the curved part. The body of the apparatus 10 includes a transparent front window 46 through which the larger fronts of the packs 12 in the dispensing path 18 are visible.

The gate 22 is pivotally attached to the body at the rear of the dispensing opening 20 to be pivotable between a closed position as shown in Figures 1 and 4 and an open position as shown in Figures 2 and 3. The gate 22 is L- shaped in cross section with a main part 48 and a protuberance in the form of a lip 50. When the gate 22 is closed, the main part 48 obstructs movement of packs in the general direction of the dispensing path, while both the main part and the lip 50 close the dispensing opening. When the gate is open, the dispensing opening 20 is open, but the lip 50 still obstructs movement of packs 12 along the dispensing path 18.

Referring to Figures 1 to 4, in the electrically powered embodiment of the present invention, the actuator is in the form of a rotating shaft 54 of a gearbox 56 on which a disc 58 is mounted with a resiliently deformable connector in the form of a spring 60 rotatably attached at its one end to the disc in an off-centre position. The other end of the spring 60 is attached to the first part 26 of the dispenser lever 24, to connect the lever to the disc 58 in a crank fashion and to pivot the first part 26 about its fulcrum 40 when the disc rotates. The gearbox 56 is driven by a dc electric motor 62 and serves to increase the torque and reduce the speed with which the disc 58 can be rotated.

In use, a plurality of packs 12 are stacked in the cavity 16 and are dispensed one-by-one via the dispensing path 18, so that when the apparatus is not in use, it is in its initial condition shown in Figure 1 , in which packs 12.1 to 12.4 are in the stack 16 and packs 12.5 to 12.7 are in the dispensing path 18.

When a user wants to dispense an individual pack 12, e.g. when he has concluded the sale of the pack, he actuates any form of control mechanism, e.g. he presses a switch, to provide electrical power to the motor 62, which turns the disc 58 via the shaft 54 and gearbox 56. Initially, the rotation of the disc 58 places tension on the spring 60 in crank fashion, but only causes the spring to deform, i.e. to extend, but as the disc 58 rotates further and pulls harder on the spring, the tension in the spring is transferred to the first part 26 and pivots the dispenser lever 24 to the right in a working stroke while the disc keeps rotating, as shown in Figure 2.

While the dispenser lever 24 moves in its working stroke, the curved upper end of the second part 28 passes transversely between the shelves 42 through the lower end of the cavity 14 and exerts a transverse load on the first pack 12.4 at the bottom of the stack 16, which causes it to move along the dispensing path 18 and to push the packs 12.5 to 12.7 further along the dispensing path. The dispenser lever 24 is kept in its extended condition during its working stroke, by the pressure between the curved end of the second part 28 and the first pack 12.4, which would have caused the second part to pivot anti clockwise relative to the first part 26, but as described above, the parts 26,28 are configured to prevent such movement.

When the dispenser lever 24 reaches the end of its working stroke, as shown in Figure 3, the first pack 12.4 has been slid past the free ends 44 of the shelves 42 and when the dispenser lever 24 has pivoted beyond engagement with the first pack 12.4, the pack has slid under gravity so that its bottom corners engage the ends 44 and it is kept in position. The packs 12.5 to 12.7 rest on the pack 12.4 and the pack 12.7 has been moved upwardly to a position where it has lifted the gate 22 to its open position and where it protrudes from the dispensing opening 20. The packs 12.1 to 12.3 have slid downwardly under gravity, so that the second pack 12.3 now occupies the position directly above the shelves 42, vacated by the first pack 12.4.

The lip 50 of the gate 22 prevents the packs 12.4 to 12.7 from sliding further upwards along the dispensing path 18 unit the pack 12.7 is withdrawn from the dispensing opening 20 in a transverse direction. Accordingly, it is not possible to dispense more than one pack 12 at a time. Once a pack 12 has been dispensed, it has to be removed form the dispensing opening 20 before a next pack can be dispensed by sliding it along the dispensing path to the dispensing opening. This limitation helps to inhibit theft of packs 12 in the event that an unauthorised person is able to cause actuation of the apparatus 10 to dispense packs 12, since such a person would not be able to dispense a large number of packs continuously, but would have to take each pack out of the apparatus 10 individually before dispensing the next one.

As the disc 58 continues its rotation in the same direction, the spring 60 transfers an axial compression force generated from the disc in crank fashion, to push the first part 26 and pivot it in an opposite direction from its working stroke, back towards its initial position, in a return stroke as shown in Figure 4. The first part 26 can additionally be biased to its original position, e.g. by a spring, but such a bias would increase the torque required from the motor 62 during the working stroke and is thus not desirable.

During the return stroke, the abutment of the curved upper end of the second part 28 causes it to pivot relative to the first part 26, so that the dispensing lever 24 is bent as described above, thus allowing it to pass underneath the pack 12.3 while pivoting about its fulcrum 40 and avoiding any resistance from the stack 14, to the return stroke, until the motor 62 stops when the apparatus is again in its initial condition and is ready to repeat the cycle when the motor starts again. The motor 62 is configured to run for a period long enough to rotate the disc 58 through 360 degrees from the initial position in which the attachment of the spring 60 to the disc 58 is nearest to the dispenser lever 24 and to stop once the single rotation has been completed. In this initial position, the second part 28 is returned to its upright position as a result of gravitational displacement of the counterweight.

The configuration of the dispensing lever 24 that allows it to be extended during its working stroke and to bend during its return stroke, has the result that there is very little resistance to its return stroke, so that sufficient force can be applied to the lever 24 by the spring 62 to effect the return stroke. If considerably more force were required to drive the lever 24 during its return stroke, this would either have required an additional return mechanism, which would have complicated the apparatus, or would have required a bias of the lever towards its initial position, which bias would have worked against the motor 62 during the working stroke.

The torque required from the motor 62 and transferred to the lever 24 via the gearbox 56, disc 58 and spring 60 during the working stroke, need not be that great, but should be enough to overcome the friction between the packs 12.3 and 12.4, friction between the pack 12.4 and the shelves 42 and gravitational resistance from the packs 2.5 to 12.7 that need to be lifted by displacement of the pack 12.4.

Referring to Figure 5, in the manually powered embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus 10 includes a manually operable actuator lever 30 that is pivotally attached to a rear of the body, where it can easily be pressed downwardly by hand. The actuator 30 is connected via a torsion spring 32 to a first member 34 of a lever mechanism, which is pivotally connected to a second member 36 of the mechanism, which in turn is pivotally connected to the first part 26 of the dispenser lever 24, generally midway along its length.

The actuator 30 and first member 34 are configured to pivot about a common fulcrum 38 and are attached to each other via the spring 32 in such a manner that small pivotal displacement between the actuator and the first member will cause the spring to deform or deflect, but if the actuator is pivoted through larger angles, the pivotal movement is transferred to the first member 34 via the spring.

The second member 36 of the lever mechanism is pivotally connected to both the first member 34 and the first part 26 of the dispenser lever 24 and thus acts as a linkage, so that, when the first member 34 is pivoted to the right as shown in the drawings, the movement is transferred to the first part 26, which is also pivoted to the right and vice versa.

Biasing means in the form of a return coil spring (not shown) is provided at the fulcrum 40, to bias the first part 26 to the left as shown in the drawings, to its initial position, as shown in Figure 5.

In use, the manually powered embodiment of the invention works in much the same way as the electrically powered one illustrated in Figures 1 to 4, except that the manners in which the dispenser leaver 24 is driven during its working and return strokes are different. During the working stroke, a user presses the actuator lever 30 downwardly. Initially, the downward movement of the actuator 30 only deflects the spring 32, but as the actuator 30 is pressed downwardly further, the pivotal load from the actuator is transferred via the spring to the lever mechanism 34,36, which transfers the pivotal movement of the actuator to the first part 26 and pivots the dispenser lever 24 to the right in the working stroke. If the user releases the actuator lever 30, the return spring at the fulcrum 40 pivots the first part 26 and thus the dispenser lever 24 back towards its initial position.

As mentioned in relation to the electrically powered embodiment, the configuration of the dispensing lever 24 that allows it to be extended during its working stroke and to bend during its return stroke, has the result that there is very little resistance to its return stroke, so that the biasing force of the return spring at the fulcrum 40 need not be very strong. During the working stroke, the dispensing lever 24 has to be displaced against the bias of this spring and, since the bias is not that strong, this means that little of the driving force applied to the actuator 30 is wasted in overcoming resistance from the return spring. The forces applied to the actuator 30 thus need not be that great, but should be enough to overcome the friction between the packs 12.3 and 12.4, friction between the pack 12.4 and the shelves 42 and gravitational resistance from the packs 2.5 to 12.7 that need to be lifted by displacement of the pack 12.4.

In a preferred version of the manually powered embodiment, the actuator lever 30, spring 32, lever mechanism 26,28 and dispensing lever 24 are configured so that the stroke through which the actuator lever 30 has to be pushed downwardly by hand, as well as the force by which it has to be pushed, are comfortable to the user. This would have been difficult to achieve if the second pack 12.3 obstructed the movement of the dispenser lever 24 on its return stroke, as the bias of the return spring at the fulcrum 40 would have had to be enough to overcome this interference, resulting in larger forces required to drive the dispenser lever on its working stroke, against the bias.

Claims

1. Apparatus (10) for dispensing individual articles (12), said apparatus comprising:

a body defining a generally upright cavity (14) in which an upright stack (16) of the articles can be received and which defines a dispensing path (18), extending generally transversely from the lower end of the cavity to a dispensing opening (20); a dispenser lever (24), at least part of which is displaceable transversely to the upright cavity in a working stroke from an initial position so that at least part of the dispenser lever extends into the lower end of the upright cavity and moves towards the dispensing path and which is displaceable in a return stroke, back to its initial position; and

an actuator (54), configured to drive the dispenser lever on its working stroke; characterised in that at least part (28) of the dispenser lever is displaceable between an extended condition and a bent condition and is biased to the extended condition, the dispenser lever being configured to be bent against its bias, on its return stroke, by abutment with an article (12.3) in the lower end of the upright cavity.

2. Apparatus (10) as claimed in claim 1 , characterised in that the dispenser lever (24) includes a first part (26) that is pivotally connected to the body and is connected to the actuator (54) and includes a second part (28) that is pivotally connected to the first part, configured to pivot relative to the first part between an extended condition and a pivotally bent condition.

3. Apparatus (10) as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that the second part (28) is biased to its extended condition by a counterweight (52).

4. Apparatus (10) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims,

characterised in that the actuator (54) is connected to the dispenser lever (24) by a resiliently deformable member (60).

5. Apparatus (10) as claimed in claim 4, characterised in that the deformable member (60) is a spring.

6. Apparatus (10) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims,

characterised in that the actuator (54) is in the form of a rotating shaft to which the dispenser lever (24) is connected in a crank configuration.

7. Apparatus (10) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims,

characterised in that the apparatus includes an electric motor (62), configured to drive the actuator (54).

8. Apparatus (10) as claimed in claim 7, characterised in that the electric motor (62) is a dc motor.

9. Apparatus (10) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the actuator (30) is manually operable.

10. Apparatus (10) as claimed in claim 9, characterised in that the actuator (30) is an actuator lever that is mechanically connected to the dispenser lever (24).

11. Apparatus (10) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims,

characterised in that the dispensing path (18) defined by the body extends upwardly from the lower end of the upright cavity (14) and extends to the dispensing opening (20).

12. Apparatus (10) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims,

characterised in that the apparatus includes a gate (22) with a protuberance (50), the gate being pivotally connected to the body to be displaceable between a closed position in which the gate closes the dispensing opening at least in part and an open position in which the dispensing opening is open to allow articles (12) to be removed from it in a direction transverse to the dispensing path, but is obstructed at least in part by the protuberance, to prevent movement of articles along the dispensing path.

13. A method of dispensing articles (12), said method comprising:

keeping a plurality of the articles in an upright stack (16), said stack including at least a first article (12.4) at the bottom of the stack and a second article (12.3) immediately above the first article;

applying a transverse load to the first article in a working stroke of a dispenser lever (24); moving the first article under the transverse load, transversely from the bottom of the stack, along a dispensing path (18);

characterised in that the dispenser lever is in an extended condition during its working stoke and is biased to its extended condition, but is in a bent condition during its return stroke, said dispenser lever being bent during its return stroke by abutment with the second article.

14. A method as claimed in claim 13, characterised by biasing the dispenser lever (24) to its extended condition, under gravity.

15. A method as claimed in claim 13 or claim 14, characterised by driving the dispenser lever (24) during its working stroke with an actuator (54) that is connected to the dispenser lever by way of a resiliently deformable connector (60).

16. A method as claimed in claim 15, characterised by moving the actuator (52) relative to the dispenser lever (24), the relative movement causing the deformable connector (60) to deform until further movement of the actuator is transferred via the deformable connector to the dispenser lever.

17. A method as claimed in claim 14 or claim 15, characterised in that said deformable connector (60) is a spring.

18. A method as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 17, characterised by driving the dispenser lever (24) with an actuator (52) in the form of a rotating shaft to which the dispenser lever is connected in a crank configuration.

19. A method as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 18, characterised by driving the dispenser lever (24) during its working stroke, with an electric motor (62).

20. A method as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 18, characterised by driving the dispenser lever (24) manually during its working stroke, said dispenser lever being biased to return to its initial position.

21. A method as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 20, characterised in that, upon being moved transversely from the bottom of stack (16), the first article (12.4) is guided upwardly along its dispensing path (18).

22. A method as claimed in claim 21 , characterised in that the first article (12.4) pushes at least one other article ahead of it along the dispensing path towards a dispending opening (20).

23. A method as claimed in claim 22, characterised by closing the dispensing opening (20) at least in part with a closure (22) that is opened by movement of the articles (12) along the dispensing path (18).

24. A method as claimed in claim 23, characterised in that the uppermost article (12.7) in the dispensing path (18) can be removed via the dispensing opening (20), but the closure (22) includes a protuberance (50) that inhibits movement of the articles (12) along the path when the closure is open, until the uppermost article has been removed from the dispensing path.