WO2022172187A1

WO2022172187A1 - A vending machine for food products

Info

Publication number: WO2022172187A1
Application number: PCT/IB2022/051198
Authority: WO
Inventors: Matteo Benevento; Attilio GIULIANI
Original assignee: Smart Eat Solutions S.R.L.
Priority date: 2021-02-11
Filing date: 2022-02-10
Publication date: 2022-08-18
Also published as: IT202100003104A1

Abstract

A vending machine (1) configured to dispense food products, comprises: - a plurality of dispensing stations (4), which are able to dispense respective food products to respective consumers; - a plurality of user interfaces (2) each of which is located in a dispensing station (4) of the plurality of dispensing stations (4) for interacting with a consumer; - a packaging system (10) shared by the dispensing stations (4) of said plurality of dispensing stations (4) for packaging food products to be dispensed; - a cooking system (11) shared by the dispensing stations (4) of said plurality of dispensing stations (4) for cooking food products to be dispensed; - a logic unit for managing a plurality of selections of food products by respective consumers and a plurality of dispensings of food products in response to the selections of said plurality of selections.

Description

A VENDING MACHINE FOR FOOD PRODUCTS

This invention relates to a vending machine for dispensing food products. The invention can be applied in automatic catering services, that is to say, in the services in which a consumer can pick up a food product from a dispensing machine without contact with an operator. In particular, the term "automatic dispenser" (or "vending machine") refers to machinery configured for dispensing products and services on request and after payment, for example by means of cash, credit cards and/or digital payment services (such as PayPal and the like).

Automatic dispensers have become increasingly widespread as they provide a fully automated service, with consequent possibility of operation 24 hours a day 7 days a week without requiring the presence of operators. Automatic dispensers differ according to the type of goods or service to be dispensed.

Specialised automatic dispensers are known for dispensing various types of products, in particular food products, such as hot beverages, cold beverages, snacks and the like, or non-food products, such as books, electronic material and others.

A drawback of prior art automatic dispensers used for dispensing food products is that, in the traditional automatic dispensers, the consumer must touch some parts of the automatic dispenser, for example for inserting money in the automatic dispenser, withdrawing any change, selecting the desired food product, picking up the selected product by opening a door which selectively closes a compartment in which the selected product is dispensed. This exposes the consumer to health risks due to the failure to sanitise the surfaces of the automatic dispenser which the consumer must touch.

Some automatic dispensers present on the market may comprise a cooking system which allows the preparation of cooked food products, for example comprising pasta or rice. Moreover, the automatic dispensers present on the market may have the possibility of ordering from a menu or personalising a recipe using specific ingredients.

However, the automatic dispensers of the type described above involve lengthy times for selecting the products and cooking the products if necessary. Consequently, lengthy queues of persons may form close to the automatic dispenser, waiting to order and then pick up the desired food product.

In order to reduce the queues close to the automatic dispenser, it is possible to position, in the same room, a plurality of automatic dispensers located close to each other. This makes it possible to reduce the waiting times for the consumers. However, installing several automatic dispensers requires high costs and relatively large spaces, which are not always available.

A further drawback in the prior art automatic dispensers is that they are generally not very flexible, since they provide the consumer with the possibility of selecting a food product from a relatively limited range of food products.

WO 02/09047 discloses a kiosk comprising trays of pre-prepared food products stored on trolleys. A consumer may place an order using a keypad and an electronic payment card at one of several ordering and collecting stations of the kiosk. A robot in the centre of the kiosk selects the food product and places it on the tray in a microwave oven where the product is heated. The robot then removes the heated product from the oven, collects a drink required by the consumer from a drink dispenser and places the drink on the tray, and delivers the order to the consumer waiting at the collection station.

A drawback of the kiosk disclosed in WO 02/09047 is that such a kiosk is much bulky and can be installed only if a free area having relevant dimensions is available.

The central robot, the microwave ovens, the trolleys supporting the trays of previously prepared food products, the drink dispenser and the ordering and collecting stations are all located at the same level and therefore occupy an area having large dimensions.

The kiosk disclosed in WO 02/09047 is therefore quite expensive, both to be manufactured and during operation.

Indeed, the several microwave ovens and above all the robot arm are expensive components due to which manufacturing the kiosk according to WO 02/09047 is not cheap.

Moreover, the energy consumption of the kiosk disclosed in WO 02/09047 is relatively high due to the numerous microwave ovens.

In addition, the kiosk disclosed in WO 02/09047 only allows previously prepared foods to be heated, which limits the kind of dispensable food products. The latter are moreover of non optimal quality.

Finally, the kiosk disclosed in WO 02/09047 is an open kiosk that can be improved as far as hygiene and safety are concerned.

An object of the invention is to improve the vending machines of known type, in particular the vending machines for dispensing food products.

A further object is to provide a vending machine for dispensing food products, which has limited dimensions.

A further object is to provide a vending machine for dispensing food products, which does not have an excessive cost.

A further object is to provide a vending machine for dispensing food products, which is able to increase the degree of safety for the health of the users with respect to the prior art devices, preventing risks from unhealthy contact.

Another object is to provide a vending machine which is particularly flexible in the choice of food products which can be dispensed.

Still another object is to provide a vending machine which allows the waiting times for the consumers to be reduced, without requiring excessive spaces for installation and operation.

The objects indicated are substantially achieved by a vending machine comprising the technical features set out in one or more of the appended claims.

The dependent claims correspond to possible embodiments of the invention.

According to the invention, there is provided a vending machine configured to dispense food products, comprising: a plurality of dispensing stations, which are able to dispense respective food products to respective consumers; a plurality of user interfaces each of which is located in a dispensing station of the plurality of dispensing stations for interacting with a consumer; a storage zone for storing starting materials necessary for preparing the food products; a cooking system for cooking food products to be dispensed; a logic unit for managing a plurality of selections of food products by respective consumers and a plurality of dispensings of food products in response to the selections of said plurality of selections, characterized in that the cooking system is shared by the dispensing stations of said plurality of dispensing stations, the vending machine further comprising a packaging system shared by the dispensing stations of said plurality of dispensing stations for packaging food products to be dispensed, wherein the packaging system is located inside the vending machine below the storing zone, and wherein the cooking system comprises a cooking tank suitable for containing a cooking fluid in which the food products can be cooked, the cooking tank being located below the packaging system. By placing the packaging system in a position interposed, in a vertical direction, between the storage zone and the cooking tank, it is possible to minimize the dimensions of the area occupied by the vending machine on a surface on which the vending machine has to be installed.

A further reduction in the overall dimensions of the vending machine is made possible by adopting a single packaging system and a single cooking system, that are shared by all the dispensing stations. The cooking tank makes possible to cook food products such as pasta, rice, vegetables or others at the instant in which they are ordered, which makes the vending machine capable of dispensing a wide variety of food products of good quality, that have a better taste than the precooked products dispensed by some known dispensers, which merely heat previously prepared food.

The packaging system allows the food products to be packaged inside hermetically sealed packages, intended to be opened only when the food product is to be consumed. This makes the vending machine according to the invention particularly safe from a hygienic point of view.

The packaging system may even be configured to produce vacuum packages containing the food products, that can be subsequently cooked in the cooking tank. This allows to obtain food products having a high quality, in which the taste and the properties of the food are not compromised by the cooking process.

The vertically superposed arrangement, i.e. the stacked arrangement, of the storage zone, the packaging system and the cooking tank gives high flexibility to the vending machine.

Indeed, the starting materials coming from the storage zone can fall into the packaging system to be packed, possibly vacuum packed, and then dispensed in a raw state, without passing through the cooking tank.

It is also possible that the starting materials descend from the storage zone directly into the cooking tank, in order to be cooked in a loose condition and then dispensed to the consumer.

A further possibility is that the starting materials coming from the storage zone fall into the packaging system in order to be packed, possibly vacuum packed, and then descend into the cooking tank, so that the resulting food products are dispensed in a cooked and packed condition.

In an embodiment, the storage zone is shared by the dispensing stations, which allows the structure of the vending machine to be further simplified, since it is sufficient to provide a single storage zone. The dependent claims correspond to possible embodiments of the invention.

Further features and advantages of this invention are more apparent in the non-limiting description below, with reference to a preferred, non-limiting, embodiment of a vending machine as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a vending machine according to a possible embodiment of the invention;

- Figure 2 is a perspective view of a portion of the vending machine of Figure 1 ;

- Figure 3 is a perspective view of a detail of the vending machine of Figure 1 ;

- Figure 4 is a schematic front view showing a package which can be dispensed by the vending machine of Figure 1 .

With reference to the accompanying drawings, the numeral 1 denotes in its entirety a vending machine configured to dispense cooked and raw foood products. In other words, depending on the choice made by a consumer, the vending machine 1 is able to dispense both cooked food products and raw food products.

The vending machine 1 comprises a plurality of dispensing stations 4 each of which is suitable for dispensing to a consumer a food product which the consumer has selected. The dispensing stations 4 can work simultaneously, that is to say, they can simultaneously dispense corresponding food products to respective consumers.

Preferably, the vending machine 1 has a substantially prismatic shape with a polygonal base, wherein each lateral face defined by a lateral surface of the prism may have a dispensing station 4.

In the example shown, the vending machine 1 has a prismatic shape with a square base and there are four dispensing stations 4, one for each lateral face of the prism which defines the shape of the vending machine 1 . Flowever, it is possible to provide a number of dispensing stations different from four or a shape of the vending machine 1 different from the prismatic shape with a square base.

In any case, each dispensing station 4 is provided on a lateral wall, for example vertical, of the vending machine 1 .The lateral walls of the vending machine 1 define a box-like structure inside which the components of the vending machine are enclosed. The components of the vending machine 1 are thus isolated from the external environment.

This allows both to improve hygiene of the vending machine 1 , and to make the vending machine 1 safer against thefts and acts of vandalism.

Close to each dispensing station 4 there is a user interface 2, by which a consumer can communicate with the vending machine 1 for the purposes described below.

Each user interface 2 may comprise a monitor 3, or a reader of a code which may be generated by a smartphone of the consumer, in particular a QR code reader, a bar code reader or a reader of other types of codes or any other wireless interface such as, for example, Bluetooth.

The vending machine 1 may comprise at least one separating element 8 suitable for separating two adjacent dispensing stations 4.

The separating element 8 may comprise a panel which projects outwards from a corner zone of the vending machine 1 , that is to say, from a zone of the vending machine 1 wherein two lateral faces of the vending machine 1 are joined together. The panel which defines the separating element 8 may extend on a plane tilted by 135° relative to the two lateral faces of the vending machine 1 which the separating element 8 allows to separate.

In the example shown, there are four separating elements 8, one for each corner zone of the prism with a square base defined by the vending machine 1.

The separating elements 8 make it possible to limit the interaction between users who simultaneously access the vending machine 1 , in such a way as to maintain a spacing between the consumers, which reduces the possibility of any contamination between the consumers. In this way, the vending machine 1 allows the simultaneous control of a plurality of users whilst maintaining high standards of safety and health and social distancing.

The separating elements 8 may be made of polymeric material, which allows the costs to be kept low and guarantees a high level of safety for the users even in the case of any breakages.

According to an alternative embodiment not illustrated, the separating elements 8 may be absent.

The vending machine 1 may further comprise at least one information panel 9, suitable for making content of various kinds available to consumers, for example a list of products which can be dispensed and/or advertising and/or information of various kinds.

More specifically, there may be an information panel 9 for each lateral face of the vending machine 1 . This means that, in the example shown, there are four information panels 9.

The information panels 9 may be positioned in an upper zone of the vending machine 1 , for example in such a way as to be tilted forwards, so as to be more easily visible for a user. Each information panel 9 may be, for example, tilted at 45° relative to a horizontal plane.

Each information panel 9 may comprise one or more monitors for displaying the information to be shown to the user.

According to an alternative embodiment, the information panels 9 may be absent.

In particular, three embodiments of the vending machine 1 can be distinguished.

According to a first embodiment, of simplified type, both the separating elements 8 and the information panels 9 may be absent.

According to a second embodiment, the separating elements 8 may be present, whilst the information panels 9 are absent.

According to a third embodiment, shown in Figure 1 , both the separating elements 8 and the information panels 9 are provided. In each dispensing station 4 there is a closing door 15 which can be opened automatically to allow a user to pick up a food product from the corresponding dispensing station 4 without touching the closing door 15. The closing door 15 can be closed automatically after the user has picked up the desired food product from the dispensing station 4 without coming into contact with the closing door 15.

An electric motor, not illustrated, may be associated with each closing door 15 to allow the latter to open or close automatically.

The lateral faces of the vending machine 1 are defined by respective hatches which can be opened or closed easily to access the inside of the vending machine 1 , so that it is possible to carry out the maintenance or refilling operations of the vending machine 1 .

As shown in Figure 2, inside the vending machine 1 a storage zone 16 is provided for storing the starting materials necessary for preparing the food products which the vending machine 1 allows to be dispensed. The storage zone 16 may be at least partly refrigerated, to allow the preservation of food starting materials which are easily perishable.

The vending machine 1 further comprises a packaging system 10 configured to package the food products.

The packaging system 10 is positioned inside the vending machine 1 , for example below the storage zone 16, in an off-centre position.

The packaging system 10 is configured to package the food products in respective packages made from two films of heat-sealable polymeric material. All the food products dispensed by the vending machine 1 are positioned, at the moment of dispensing, inside hermetically sealed packages made by the packaging system 10. The packaging system 10 may also be able to suck the air inside the packages formed by it, so that the relative food products are vacuum packed if that is necessary due to the nature of the food products which are packaged.

In this way, the vending machine 1 guarantees a high quality packaging process suitable for allowing an excellent storage of the dispensed product and high standards of hygiene.

The packaging system 10 may comprise a pair of supporting rollers for supporting two reels of polymeric film and feed means for unwinding the polymeric films and conveying them towards a packaging zone. Sealing means are provided in the packaging zone for joining the polymeric films to each other so as to obtain a package. The sealing means may in particular comprise a first sealing element, configured to join the two polymeric films along a concave joining profile 17, shown in Figure 4, for example having an overturned trapezium shape, with the larger base positioned at the top and open. In this case, the concave profile 17 is defined by a small base and two sides of the trapezium. An open package is thus formed.

A filling device is further provided, which allows a predetermined quantity of a desired food product to be introduced into the open package. The sealing means further comprise a second sealing element for joining the polymeric films along a sealing line 18 which allows the package to be closed after the latter has been filled with the food product.

The packaging system 10 comprises cutting means for separating the package from the polymeric films, by means of a cut which is performed outside the zones where the two polymeric films have been sealed.

Lastly, the packaging system 10 may comprise suction means for creating a negative pressure inside the package, so that the corresponding food product is vacuum packed.

The packaging system 10 may be capable of making packages having dimensions, in particular a height, which is variable between one package and another, depending on the type and quantity of the food product which each package is intended to house. This may be done by modifying the quantity of polymeric film which is unwound from the respective reels between the forming of two consecutive packages. This determines the position of the sealing line 18 relative to the concave joining profile 17 and therefore the height of the package. If, for example, the sealing line 18 is in the position indicated with the continuous line in Figure 4, then a package is obtained having a relatively great height H. If, on the other hand, the sealing line is moved to the dashed position labelled 18' in Figure 4, then a package is obtained having a height H 1 less than the height FI previously mentioned.

By varying the dimensions of the packages according to the type and the quantity of food product contained therein, it is possible to optimise the consumption of the polymeric films with which the package is made and therefore reduce the waste of the polymeric material from which the two films are formed.

The packaging system 10, which makes the packages from the polymeric films directly inside the vending machine 1 , is advantageous compared with the hypothetical case in which preformed packages are used, since the operations for conveying and handling the reels of polymeric film in the packaging system 10 are simpler than transporting and moving preformed packages. Moreover, as mentioned above, forming the packages directly in the vending machine makes it possible to optimise the consumption of the material with which the packages are formed.

The vending machine 1 further comprises a cooking system 11 configured to cook the food products which need to be cooked.

Preferably, the cooking system comprises at least a first container 12 suitable for containing at least a first loose food product, for example pasta or cereals, and at least a second container 13 suitable for containing at least a second packaged food product, that is to say, a food product arranged inside a package which has been produced by the packaging system 10. The package may be vacuum sealed.

Moreover, the cooking system 11 comprises a cooking tank 14 containing a cooking fluid and suitable for receiving subsequent first containers 12 and subsequent second containers 13 for cooking the food products contained therein. Each container 12, 13 is kept inside the cooking tank 14 for a time equal to the cooking time for the food product contained therein, after which it is extracted from the cooking tank 14, irrespective of the order of arrival of the containers in the cooking tank 14.

The time each container 12, 13 containing a respective food product remains inside the cooking tank 14 can be selected freely, depending on the type of food product present in the container 12, 13, irrespective of the time the other containers 12, 13 in which the food products are being cooked remain in the cooking tank 14.

For this purpose, inside the cooking tank 14 a movement device 20 is provided for moving the containers 12, 13 between at least one introduction station in which the containers 12, 13 enter into the cooking tank 14 and at least one pick-up station in which the containers 12, 13 are extracted from the cooking tank 14. In the example shown, two introduction stations are provided for introducing into the cooking tank 14 the first containers 12 and the second containers 13, respectively, and two pick-up stations for extracting from the tank the first containers 12 and the second containers 13, respectively.

The movement device 20 is, in the example illustrated, shaped like a carousel rotatable about an axis Z, for example vertical. The movement device 20 comprises a supporting structure having a plurality of supporting arms 21 which project from a central shaft 22, shown in Figure 2. The central shaft 22 may extend along the axis Z. The supporting arms 21 may extend radially relative to the central shaft 22. Between two consecutive supporting arms 21 a housing is defined in which a first container 12 or a second container 13 may be received, the first container 12 or second container 13 resting on the supporting arms 21 and engaging with the latter by respective coupling means. When the movement device 20 is moved into the cooking tank 14, the containers 12, 13 are moved inside the cooking tank 14 by a number of revolutions which can be selected freely. The movement device 20 may also remain in a static position, so as to keep the containers 12, 13 stationary inside the cooking tank 14. The time the containers 12, 13 remain inside the cooking tank 14 can thus be defined by the sum of a period in which the containers 12, 13 are moved by the movement device 20 and a further period in which the containers 12, 13 are stationary in the cooking tank 14.

The cooking system 11 , more specifically the cooking tank 14, is arranged below the packaging system 10. The latter is located in an off-centre position relative to the cooking tank 14.

The food products to be dispensed can be moved in the vending machine 1 according to three different working flows.

A first working flow relates to the food products which are intended to be cooked loose in the cooking tank 14, for example pasta, rice or other cereals. These food products, coming from the storage zone 16, are introduced into a first container 12. The first container 12 carries the corresponding food product into the cooking tank 14, in which the food product remains for a length of time equal to its cooking time. After the corresponding food product has been cooked, the first container 12 is extracted from the cooking tank 14 and moved towards the packaging system 10. Here, the cooked food product is poured from the first container 12 and delivered to the packaging system 10. The cooked food product is thus packaged in a hermetically sealed pack, which is sent to a storing and dispensing device 19 for the food products ready to be dispensed, which is described in more detail below.

A second working flow relates to the food products which are intended to be cooked in the cooking tank 14 after being packaged, preferably vacuum- packed, such as sauces, ragouts, vegetables and others.

These food products, coming from the storage zone 16, are introduced into the packaging system 10 so they can be enclosed in the respective packages. The packaging system 10 delivers the packages, which may or may not be vacuum-packed, to respective second containers 13, which carry the packages, filled and closed, into the cooking tank 14. After each package, arranged in a second container 13, has remained in the cooking tank 14 for a length of time equal to the cooking time for the food product considered, the second container 13 is extracted from the cooking tank 14 and carried close to the storage and dispensing device 19. The second container 13 delivers at this point the food product, packaged and cooked, contained therein, to the storage and dispensing device 19.

Lastly, a third working flow relates to the food products which must be dispensed raw, for example vegetables and salads, such as grated carrots and others. These food products, coming from the storage zone 16, are directly introduced into the packaging system 10 for being packaged in respective packages, which may or may not be vacuum-packed. The packages are then sent to the storage and dispensing device 19, without passing through the cooking system 11 .

The storage and dispensing device 19 allows temporary storage of the food products ready to be dispensed, the food products coming from the packaging system 10 or from the cooking system 11 , and to carry each food product towards a dispensing station 4 when the consumer is available for withdrawal at that station 4.

As shown in Figure 3, the storage and dispensing device 19 is shaped like a carousel rotatable about an axis, which may coincide with the axis Z about which the movement device 20 is movable.

In particular, the storage and dispensing device 19 may comprise a plurality of dividing walls 23, which may, for example, extend on respective radial planes containing the axis Z.

Each dividing wall 23 may be supported by a base platform 24, rotatable about the axis Z and lying, for example, in a horizontal plane. The dividing walls 23, which are fixed relative to the base platform 24, project upwards from the base platform 24.

Between two consecutive dividing walls 23 a containment compartment 7 is defined, the containment compartment being suitable for temporarily housing one or more packaged food products, ready to be dispensed. More specifically, each containment compartment 7 houses an individual package if a consumer has ordered from the vending machine 1 a single food product, for example a package of salad. If, on the other hand, the consumer wishes to receive a food item which is obtained by combining two or more different food products and/or wishes to order several food products to be consumed in sequence, the containment compartment 7 intended for that consumer will temporarily house a plurality of food products, for example a package containing the pasta, a further package containing the sauce and another package containing the salad.

A side wall 25 of the cooking tank 14 closes the containment compartments 7 towards the inside, that is to say, from the side closest to the axis Z.

II dispositivo di stoccaggio ed erogazione 19 circonda la vasca di cottura 14. In particolare, i vani di contenimento 7 sono disposti attorno alia parete laterale 25 della vasca di cottura 14 e la circondano su 360°.

The storage and dispensing device 19 surrounds the cooking tank 14. In particular, the containment compartments 7 are arranged around the lateral wall 25 of the cooking tank 14 and surround the latter by 360°.

The dividing walls 23 and the base platform 24 move relative to the cooking tank 14, which remains in a fixed position.

The vending machine 1 further comprises a logic unit for managing a plurality of selections of food products by respective consumers and a plurality of dispensings of food products in response to the selections made by the consumers.

During operation, a consumer can connect to the vending machine 1 using a wireless device, preferably a mobile phone (smartphone) on which a suitable app has been downloaded. In this way, the consumer can select the food products he/she wishes to purchase from a list of food products which the vending machine 1 is able to dispense and execute the relative order. The consumer may also, again through the app, pay the amount corresponding to the food products selected and indicate a time for the withdrawal of the selected food products, which may be as soon as possible or at a certain time, later on during the day.

After receiving the order, the logic unit determines the moment it is necessary to start preparing the food product ordered so that the latter is ready at the time indicated by the consumer. At the predetermined time, the logic unit activates the preparation of the product and, more specifically, actuates the packaging system 10 and/or the cooking system 11 . When the food product has been prepared, in particular by packaging it in a hermetically sealed package, if necessary a vacuum package (owing to the packaging system 10) and if necessary cooking it in the cooking system 11 , the food product is positioned in a free containment compartment 7 of the storage and dispensing device 19.

Depending on the type of food product selected by the consumer, the food product can be positioned in the free containment compartment 7 selected by the logic unit when the containment compartment 7 is in a position selected between:

- a first receiving position R1 , located below the packaging system 10, if the food product ordered is a raw product which is only packaged, or a cooked product which has been cooked in the loose state (in a first container 12) and subsequently packaged;

- a second receiving position R2, located below a pick-up device which picks up from the cooking tank 14 the products which are cooked in a second container 13 after being packaged.

The ready food product remains in the containment compartment 7 in which it has been positioned until the consumer arrives to withdraw it.

When the consumer is ready to withdraw the food product ordered, the consumer stands in front of a free dispensing station 4, which can be selected as desired. The consumer is recognised by the logic unit of the vending machine 1 by means of the user interface 2 of the dispensing station 4 which he/she has selected. For example, the consumer may show, to a reader included in the user interface 2, a corresponding code (such as a QR code, a bar code or another) displayed on his/her smartphone. Alternatively, the consumer can be recognised by reading with his/her smartphone a code (QR code, bar code or another) shown on the monitor 3 of the dispensing station 4 at which the consumer is located.

In this way, the consumer is associated with an order and therefore with a food product present in a containment compartment 7. The storage and dispensing device 19 rotates until the containment compartment 7 in which the ordered product (or the ordered products) are contained is moved to the dispensing station 4 at which the consumer is located, in front of the corresponding closing door 15. At this point, the storage and dispensing device 19 stops and the closing door 15 opens automatically to allow the consumer to pick up the ordered product (or the ordered products), touching only the respective package.

After the consumer has withdrawn the ordered product, the closing door 15 closes and the consumer moves away.

The vending machine 1 described above makes it possible to avoid contacts between the user and the surfaces of the vending machine 1. In effect, the order of one or more food products occurs by means of a smartphone, as well as the relative payment. When the consumer is ready to pick up the ordered product, he/she is recognised by the logic unit without touching parts of the vending machine 1 , but simply by moving the relative smartphone towards the user interface 2. Lastly, when the food product is withdrawn, the closing door 15 opens automatically without the consumer having to touch it.

The food product ordered is packed in a hermetic manner, which prevents accidental contamination by the consumer who has ordered it or by other consumers. The entire process takes place in conditions of maximum hygiene and health.

Moreover, the invention makes it possible to reduce the formation of crowds near the vending machine 1 allowing a remote selection of the food product and any withdrawal at a predetermined time. Further, the vending machine 1 makes it possible to simultaneously serve a plurality of consumers without the process being slowed down and keeping these persons spaced apart from each other.

Advantageously, the invention allows a simultaneous cooking of a plurality of food products, irrespective of the durations of the respective cooking periods, thereby overcoming the need for a product management logic with a first-in first-out philosophy which significantly affects the prior art cooking systems.

The vending machine 1 is extremely flexible, since it allows the dispensing of food products of various types, cooked and raw, vacuum-packed and not. Moreover, the vending machine 1 makes it possible to serve a relatively large number of consumers in a limited space. For example, the space occupied by the vending machine 1 , which makes it possible to serve four persons in the version illustrated, is much less than the space which would be necessary to install four prior art dispensers.

For example, in an embodiment, the height of the vending machine 1 can be about 2 metres, without considering the information panels 9.

The vending machine 1 can be shaped, in plan view, as a square having a side of about 1 .3 metres, without considering the separating elements 8. The maximum dimensions of the square defining the plan view of the vending machine 1 can be about 2 metres x 2 metres, including the separating element 8.

Moreover, the vending machine 1 makes it possible to obtain a considerable saving of energy and cooking fluid, since a single cooking tank allows a plurality of dispensing stations 4 to be served, in this specific case four dispensing stations 4.

Lastly, it is also possible to obtain savings from the logistics point of view, since it is sufficient to supply with the starting materials a single vending machine, that is to say, a single refilling point, instead of a plurality of refilling points associated with individual vending machines having a single dispensing station.

Claims

1. A vending machine configured to dispense food products, comprising:

- a plurality of dispensing stations (4), which are able to dispense respective food products to respective consumers;

- a plurality of user interfaces (2) each of which is located in a dispensing station (4) of the plurality of dispensing stations (4) for interacting with a consumer;

- a storage zone (16) for storing starting materials to be used for preparing the food products;

- a cooking system (11 ) for cooking food products to be dispensed;

- a logic unit for managing a plurality of selections of food products by respective consumers and a plurality of dispensings of food products in response to the selections of said plurality of selections, characterized in that the cooking system (11) is shared by the dispensing stations (4) of said plurality of dispensing stations (4), the vending machine further comprising a packaging system (10) shared by the dispensing stations (4) of said plurality of dispensing stations (4) for packaging food products to be dispensed, wherein the packaging system (10) is located inside the vending machine below the storing zone (16), and wherein the cooking system (11) comprises a cooking tank (14) suitable for containing a cooking fluid in which the food products can be cooked, the cooking tank (14) being located below the packaging system (10).

2. The vending machine according to claim 1 , wherein the packaging system (10) is interposed between the storage zone (16) and the cooking tank (14) in an off-centre position relative to the storage zone (16) and to the cooking tank (14).

3. The vending machine according to claim 1 or 2, and further comprising a storage and dispensing device (19) having at least one containment compartment (7) for receiving from the packaging system (10) or from the cooking system (11 ) a food product ready to be dispensed, the storage and dispensing device (19) being movable along a closed path to selectively bring the containment compartment (7) at a predetermined dispensing station (4) in which there is a consumer.

4. The vending machine according to claim 3, wherein each dispensing station (4) comprises a closing door (15) which can be opened automatically when the containment compartment (7) containing the food product ready to be dispensed is located in said predetermined dispensing station (4) and can be closed automatically after the consumer has picked up said food product.

5. The vending machine according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the storage and dispensing device (19) surrounds the cooking tank (14).

6. The vending machine according to any preceding claim, and further comprising at least one separating element (8) suitable for separating the consumers operating in adjacent dispensing stations (4) of said plurality of dispensing stations (4).

7. The vending machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the logic unit is designed to interface with a wireless device of a consumer to remotely receive an order of at least one food product from the consumer and a payment corresponding to said order.

8. The vending machine according to claim 7, wherein the logic unit is designed to receive as input from the wireless device of the consumer an indication of a withdrawal time of the order.

9. The vending machine according to any preceding claim, wherein each user interface (2) is configured to recognise a consumer and associate the consumer with a selection of food products previously made by the consumer, using a contactless recognition device, for example based on an optical code or a Bluetooth signal.

10. The vending machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the packaging system (10) comprises sealing means for joining two films of polymeric material by heat-sealing, so as to obtain a hermetically sealed package containing a food product.

11. The vending machine according to claim 10, wherein the packaging system (10) comprises suction means for sucking air between the two films of polymeric material, so that said hermetically sealed package is vacuum sealed.

12. The vending machine according to claim 10 or 11 , wherein the sealing means comprise a first sealing element to join the two films of polymeric material along a concave joining profile (17) and a second sealing element for joining the two films of polymeric material along a sealing line (18) arranged for closing the package after the latter has been filled with the food product, the position of the sealing line (18) relative to the concave joining profile (17) being adjustable to form packages of different sizes.

13. The vending machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the cooking system (11 ) further comprises a plurality of containers (12, 13) which can be positioned in the cooking tank (14) for cooking a food product contained in each container (12, 13), the vending machine further comprising a movement device (20) for supporting the containers (12, 13) in the cooking tank (14) and moving the containers (12, 13) in the cooking tank (14), so that each container (12, 13) is kept in the cooking tank (14) for a length of time which can be selected independently of the time of the other containers (12, 13) in the cooking tank (14).

14. A method for operating a vending machine according to any preceding claim, wherein a food product is processed in the vending machine according to a first operating flow which comprises the following steps:

- cooking the loose food product in the cooking system (11 ); - after the cooking step, packaging the loose food product in a package in the packaging system (10);

- after the packaging step, dispensing the package containing the cooked food product.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein a food product is processed in the vending machine according to a second operating flow which comprises the following steps:

- packaging the food product in a package in the packaging system

(10); - after the packaging step, cooking the packaged food product in the cooking system (11);

- after the cooking step, dispensing the package containing the cooked food product.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein a raw food product is processed in the vending machine according to a third operating flow which comprises the following steps:

- packaging the raw food product in a package in the packaging system (10); - after the packaging step, dispensing the package containing the raw food product.