JP3240864B2 - Cup supply device for cup-type beverage vending machines - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cup-type beverage vending machine, which is equipped with a cup transfer device having a cup holder mounted therein, and supplies a cup along the transfer path and manufactures a beverage in the cup. The present invention relates to a cup supply device employed in a cup-type beverage vending machine which sends out a beverage-containing cup to a bend stage.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a cup-type beverage vending machine described above, a cup transfer device with a cup holder to which a rectangular coordinate robot is applied is provided in the machine, and firstly in the middle of a transfer path in the machine leading to a bend stage. A cup is supplied from the cup supply device to the cup holder, and then a powdered raw material and hot water are sequentially supplied into the cup to prepare a beverage, or a beverage (for example, regular coffee or the like) produced in the machine is placed in the cup. The structure in which the liquid is supplied to the bend stage and sent to the bend stage is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-27869.
It has been proposed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5 and the like, and has already been known as a product.

[0003] The above-mentioned cup conveying device is waiting at the origin position which is the starting point of the conveying route at the time of selling standby. When a sales command is given here, the cup conveying device starts from the origin position by driving the stepping motor and designates it in advance. After moving along the transport path, and after supplying the cup and supplying the raw material or the beverage into the cup along the transport path, the cup containing the beverage is sent out to the bend stage. Then, when the cup is taken out from the bend stage, it returns to the origin position again and waits for sale.

[0004] Further, the cup supply device separates cups one by one from the lowest order by the operation of a cam-type cup unloading mechanism called a cup drop ring from a cup row in which many cups are stacked and accommodated in a cup storage tube. Generally, a method of dropping and transporting downward is adopted, and when the cup holder mounted on the above-described cup transport device is moved to a position directly below the cup supply device based on a sales instruction,
Upon detecting this, the cup drop ring operates to supply one cup to the cup holder.

[0005]

In a cup-type beverage vending machine equipped with the above-described cup transport device, a cup transport time is added to the beverage production time in the machine, so that the customer can select a product. The sales time from when the beverage cup comes out to the bend stage tends to be longer than that for vending machines for cans and bottled goods. Moreover, in the above-mentioned conventional cup-type beverage vending machine, when the cup conveying device starts from the origin position and reaches the position immediately below the cup feeding device by the sales command, an operation command is given to the cup feeding device here, The cup drop ring operates based on this command to carry out the cup. Then
The cup drop ring of the cup supply device usually takes 3 to 4 seconds from receiving the operation command to actually separating the cup from the cup row and dropping it out, and the cup transport device stays in this position until the cup is received. Must be stopped. For this reason, there is a problem that the operating time of the cup supply device becomes a loss time as it is and the selling time is further prolonged, and the service time for the customer is improved, and the selling time is shortened from the viewpoint of increasing the operation rate of the vending machine. Is an important issue.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and has as its object to solve the above-mentioned problems and eliminate the loss time associated with the cup unloading operation of the cup supply device, thereby reducing the waiting time and the sales time of the cup transport device. An object of the present invention is to provide a cup supply device of a cup-type beverage vending machine which can be shortened.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, in a cup supply apparatus according to the present invention, a cup dropped from a cup drop ring is waited at a delivery position to a cup transport apparatus in preparation for the next sale. It shall have a cup temporary holding means for holding. And the said cup temporary holding means can be implemented in the following specific modes.

(1) The cup temporary holding means is at a standby position immediately below the cup drop ring, and a retractable slide-type cup holder for holding a cup for next sale in an upright posture; and a standby position for the cup holder. , And a cup discharge guide cylinder extending from the cup drop ring toward the cup receiving base. (2) The cup temporary holding means is constituted by an openable / closable cup hand which is disposed immediately below the cup drop ring and receives the next sales cup in an upright posture, and a mechanism for opening / closing the cup hand.

[0009]

In the above arrangement, when the vending machine is in the standby state for sale, the cup dropped from the cup supply device and carried out is held in the cup temporary holding means in preparation for the next sale.
In this state, when the cup transport device starts from the origin and moves to the position of the cup supply device based on the next sales instruction, the cup held in the temporary holding mechanism is almost completely discharged without any waiting time. Delivered directly to the cup holder. Then, when the cup transport device receives the cup and moves to the next step, and then the temporary holding mechanism returns to the original standby state, an operation command is given to the cup supply device and the cup drop ring operates, Next, the cup for sale is separated from the cup row and carried out to the temporary holding means. Therefore, the loss time of several seconds from the start of the operation of the cup drop ring of the cup supply device until the cup is actually dropped and discharged is eliminated, thereby shortening the sales time.

In the configuration (1), the cup for the next sale is placed in a standing posture on the slide-type cup receiving stand in the standby state for sale as the cup temporary holding means. Here, when the cup holder of the cup transport device that has moved to the position of the cup supply device in the next selling operation presses the cup pedestal, the cup pedestal retreats and the cup placed on the pedestal is polished. It falls in a dropping manner and is delivered to the cup holder. Then, when the cup transport device receives the cup and moves to the next point, the cup receiving table returns to the standby position by the bias of the return spring, and at this position, the cup separated from the cup row by the operation of the cup drop ring (the next sale). Cup).

On the other hand, in the configuration (2), the cup for sale next time dropped and carried out from the cup supply device is held by the cup hand and is on standby. Then, in the next selling operation, when the cup transport device moves to the position directly below the cup supply device, the cup hand is temporarily opened by the solenoid operation, etc., and the cup held so far falls down. To the cup holder of the cup transport device. When the cup conveyor moves to the next point,
As in (1) above, the cup drop ring operates to prepare for the next sale, and the cup separated from the cup row falls into the cup hand of the temporary holding mechanism (the cup hand is closed at this time) and is held. Is done.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Embodiment 1: FIGS. 1A, 1B and 2 show an embodiment corresponding to claim 2 of the present invention. In each of the drawings, reference numeral 1 denotes a cup transport device (a rectangular coordinate robot that moves in the X-axis and Y-axis directions) on which a cup holder 1a is mounted;
Is a cup supply device installed at a point along the transport path of the cup transport device 1. Here, the cup supply device 2
It comprises a cup housing cylinder 2a for accommodating a cup row 3 (a stack of a large number of cups 3a), a cup drop ring 2b installed at the lower end thereof, and a cup temporary holding mechanism 4 additionally provided according to the present invention. . The cup temporary holding mechanism 4 includes a tray-shaped slide-type cup holder 5 disposed immediately below the cup drop ring 2b.
A return spring 6 for urging the cup receiving table 5 to the standby position;
The cup receiving guide 5 is fixedly supported on a side surface of the cup discharging guide cylinder 7 via a slider 8 and a mounting bracket 9.

In this configuration, in the sales standby state shown in FIG. 1 (a), the cup 3a (the next sales cup) separated from the cup row 3 by the operation of the cup drop ring 2a is in a standing posture and the cup receiving stand 5 is standing. Waiting on the top of From this state, based on the next sales command, the cup conveying device 1 starts from the origin and the cup feeding device 2
(X-axis direction), stops once, and moves forward (Y-axis direction) from here, the cup holder 1a pushes the cup holder 5 as shown in FIG. As a result, the cup holder 5 moves backward against the return spring 6, and the cup 3a which has been placed on the cup holder 5 until now.
(The cup is restrained at the standby position by the carry-out guide tube 7) is dropped into the cup holder 1a in a rubbing-down manner and delivered. This cup delivery operation is performed almost without any loss time.

When the cup conveying device 1 having received the cup moves backward and moves to the next beverage manufacturing step,
The cup receiving table 5 returns to the original standby position by the return spring 6, and receives the next selling cup 3a dropped and carried out by the operation of the cup drop ring 2b at this position.
The state returns to the state shown in FIG. Embodiment 2 FIGS. 3 and 4 show an embodiment corresponding to claim 3 of the present invention. In this embodiment, the cup temporary holding mechanism 4 includes a ring-shaped openable / closable cup hand 10 in which two hand arms are combined, and the cup hand 1.
Solenoid 1 that opens and closes 0 through a link mechanism 11
2 and a return spring 13 and a mounting board 14 incorporating these components. And the cup hand 10
Is positioned just below the cup drop ring 2b of the cup supply device 2, and the mounting board 14 is suspended from the cup drop ring 2b of the cup supply solenoid 2 as shown in FIG. Secure to the rear. Reference numeral 15 denotes a stepped screw serving as a fulcrum of the cup hand 10 and the link mechanism 11.

With the above configuration, in the sales standby state, the cup hand 10a for the next sale separated from the cup row 3 by the operation of the cup drop ring 2a is closed as shown by the solid line in FIG. The solenoid 12 falls into the OFF position, and is held at this position in a standby state. From this state, based on the next sales command, when the cup transport device 1 starts from the origin and moves directly below the cup supply device 2, this is detected and the solenoid 12 of the cup temporary holding mechanism 4 is temporarily activated. The suction operation is performed, and the hand arm of the cup hand 10 is opened. As a result, the cup 3a, which has been held by the cup hand 10, falls down and is transferred to the cup holder 1a as shown by the chain line in FIG. 4, and the cup hand 10 is turned off after the solenoid 12 is turned off. It is closed by the spring force of the return spring 13 and returns to the standby state again.

When the cup transport device 1 that has received the cup moves to the next beverage manufacturing step, the cup drop ring 2 of the cup supply device 2 prepares for the next sale.
b operates and the cup 3a dropped and carried out from here is held by the cup hand 10.

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention, the conventional cup dropping-type cup supply device is additionally provided with a cup temporary holding mechanism, and is taken out of the cup supply device in preparation for the next beverage sale. By configuring the temporary holding mechanism to hold the cups on standby, it is possible to eliminate the loss time associated with the cup unloading operation of the cup supply device, thereby reducing the stop waiting time of the cup transport device, and thus the sales time, and thereby to the customer. Serviceability and the operation rate of vending machines can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A and 1B are explanatory diagrams of a configuration and an operation of a cup supply device corresponding to a first embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG.

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the embodiment showing the state of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a cup temporary holding mechanism according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the operation of the cup supply device equipped with the cup temporary holding mechanism of FIG. 3;

[Description of Signs] 1 Cup transport device 1a Cup holder 2 Cup supply device 2a Cup storage cylinder 2b Cup drop ring 3 Cup row 3a Cup 4 Cup temporary holding mechanism 5 Sliding cup holder 6 Return spring 7 Cup unloading guide cylinder 10 Cup Hand 12 Solenoid 13 Return spring 14 Mounting board

Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-5-89358 (JP, A) JP-A-5-40878 (JP, A) JP-A-4-51397 (JP, A) , U) Jpn. Sho 62-199886 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G07F 13/10

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cup conveying device having a cup holder mounted therein is provided, and a cup is first supplied to the cup holder on a cup conveying path from a standby position to a bend stage, and a beverage is put into the cup. A cup supply device of a cup-type beverage vending machine for sending out to a bend stage, wherein the cup supply device is equipped with a cup drop ring for separating cups one by one from a cup row and dropping and carrying them downward. A cup supply device for a cup-type beverage vending machine, comprising cup temporary holding means for holding a cup dropped from a drop ring and carried out at a delivery position to a cup transport device in preparation for the next sale. 2. The cup supply device according to claim 1, wherein
A cup temporary holding unit is located at a standby position immediately below the cup drop ring, and is a retractable slide-type cup holder for holding a cup for next sale in an upright posture, and biases the cup holder toward the standby position. A cup supply device for a cup-type beverage vending machine, comprising: a return spring; and a cup discharge guide cylinder extending from a cup drop ring toward a cup receiving table. 3. The cup supply device according to claim 1, wherein
A cup-type beverage, wherein the cup temporary holding means comprises: an openable / closable cup hand which is disposed immediately below the cup drop ring and receives a cup for sale next time in an upright posture; and a mechanism for opening / closing the cup hand. Vending machine cup feeder.