JPS6020798B2 - Vending machine dispensing device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a dispensing device for a vending machine, and more specifically to an improvement of a so-called rotary dispensing device in which a product loading body is in the form of a drum. By storing the vending machine in the drum, the purpose is to increase the space advantage of the vending machine and ensure accurate transmission of driving force.

2. Description of the Related Art As a dispenser for a vending machine, a dispensing device in which a product loading body is in the form of a drum and is rotatable is known.

In the conventional dispensing device of this type, whether the drum-shaped product loading body rotates around a horizontal axis, a vertical axis, or a mirror-oblique axis, the drive source, such as a motor, is externally mounted on the product loading body. It is customary that there be. Therefore, a separate space is required to attach the drive source, and the product loading body must be made smaller or the vending machine case must be made larger.The former method reduces the amount and number of products loaded. In addition, the latter method increases the size of the vending machine itself, which is disadvantageous when considering how to store it at a store. This invention was devised to solve the above-mentioned problems, and is a dispensing device in which a drum-shaped product loading body having a radially partitioned product loading section on the outer periphery is rotatably provided. The loading body has a bottomed concave cavity with one side open and the other side closed in its inner core, and a drum frame is attached to the open side of the concave cavity. A support bracket extending into the recessed cavity is installed, a drive source attached to the support bracket is stored in the recessed cavity, and an output shaft of the drive source is inserted into the recessed cavity in the product loading body. It is characterized by being connected to the bottomed part of the chamber.

Hereinafter, as a specific example of the present invention, a type in which a drum-shaped product loading body is rotationally driven around a horizontal axis will be described in detail.

Of course, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that the present invention can be applied to a type that can be driven to rotate around a vertical axis or an oblique axis, and in a specific example, three product loading bodies are arranged in parallel. Although these are illustrated and illustrated as examples, the number may be arbitrary.
In FIGS. 1 and 2, which schematically show the internal structure of a vending machine as a front and side view, reference numeral I indicates an exterior case of the vending machine, and 2 indicates an opening/closing door of the vending machine.

Although the outer case 1 is illustrated as having a box shape, its shape may be arbitrary. Further, the opening/closing structure of the opening/closing door 2 may be arbitrary, such as single-opening or double-opening. If the opening/closing door 2 side is the front side and the inner part is the back side, a pair of support brackets 3 and 4 are fixed to the middle part of the front side and the back side of the exterior case 1 from the lower part of the height direction of the exterior case 1. has been done. A base 5 is fixed between the support brackets 3 and 4, and a chute 6 is provided on the front side of the base 5, which is closed and inclined toward the opening/closing door 2. As particularly illustrated in FIG. 2, the products guided down through the chute 6 are placed in the product take-out section 7 and the exit section 8 of the opening/closing door 2, and are delivered as before through a product receptacle (not shown) or the like. be done.

9 is a product loading body, which is drum-shaped.

When forming the product loading body 9 into a drum shape, in a specific example, as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, cylindrical bodies 11 are attached to a disk 10 through angles 12 arranged at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction, and screws, etc. A ring plate 14 is fixed to the other end of the cylindrical body 11 via angles 13 arranged at predetermined intervals in the dark direction using screws or the like. The outer peripheral edge of the disk 10 and the outer peripheral edge of the ring plate 14 are substantially on the same plane, and the disk 10 and the ring plate 14 substantially face each other on the outer wall of the cylindrical body 11. Since the ring plate 14 is provided on one side of the cylindrical body 11, a vacant chamber 15 which is open on one side is defined in the inner core of the drum-shaped product loading body 9. In addition, in the present invention, the empty chamber 15 may be divided and formed inside the drum-shaped product loading body 9, and therefore the cylindrical body 11 may be formed into a rectangular cylindrical body,
The cavity 15 can be formed by other means. The outer wall of the cylindrical body 11 is substantially formed as a product loading section, and as shown in the figure, partition bodies 16 are removably provided at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction. That is, slits 17 are formed in the cylindrical body 11 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and mounting holes 18 are also formed in the disk 10 and the ring put 14 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction.
The dowels 17a of the partition 16 are iron-fitted to the millimeters 7 of the cylindrical body 11, and both sides of the partition 16 are attached by screwing screws 19 into the mounting holes 18. A large number of slits 17 in the cylindrical body 11 and mounting holes 18 in the disk 10 and ring plate 14 are provided at predetermined intervals in the bridge direction, and the partitioning body 16 is removably attached to the slits 17. A stocker part that is optimal for the shape can be formed. In other words, the partition 16 is adjusted and attached in the circumferential direction.
Note that the partition body 16 can be attached and detached from both side walls with screws 19, but it is also possible to form dowels on the partition body 16 and use a steel type.As shown in the drawings, particularly in FIG.
has a triangular shape in side view, and a dowel 17a is formed at its acute corner to iron the slit 17, and the adjacent partitions 16
A rectangular stocker portion is formed.

In addition, if the partition body 16 is assembled in the opposite direction to that shown in the figure, a stocker part that expands outward in the direction of the folding can be formed, and the products are dispensed outward in the direction of the folding, which may be advantageous depending on the type of product. In some cases. Also, in the figure, the outer edge of the partition 16 is aligned with the outer edges of the disk 10 and the ring plate 14, but even if the partition 16 is made to protrude outward in the radial direction, It may be something that has been inserted. The partition body 16 is made of plastic material, and has a recessed part 20 cut out in its outer edge as shown in FIG.
Of course, 16 can be made of metal material, but plastic material is preferred. Further, although a solid structure may be used, a hollow structure is advantageous in consideration of weight reduction and driving force. In any case, the drum-shaped product loading body 9 has a radially partitioned product loading body on the outer periphery, and the inner core has a disc 10 with one side open and the other side closed. Concave vacancy 15
It has the following.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 21 is a drum frame,
The lower part thereof is supported on the fixed side as the base 5 as shown in the first drawing, and the upper part thereof is supported on the fixed side as the support member 22 as shown in the first drawing.

As shown in the fourth figure, this drum frame 21 is located on the side opposite to the disk 10 of the product loading body 9, and a motor support bracket 23 is fixedly attached to a portion substantially facing the internal cavity 15 of the product loading body 9. A commotion motor 24, which is an example of a drive source, is supported on this support bracket 23. As particularly illustrated in FIG. 4, the motor support bracket 23 is inserted into the cavity 15 of the product loading body 9, and the drive source 24 is housed in the cavity 15.

The output shaft 25 of the drive source 24 is mounted on the bearing 2 at the center of the product loading body 9.
The drum-shaped product loading body 9 can be rotated for dispensing when the drive source 24 is activated.
Although the output shaft 25 is substantially fixed to the disk 10, the drive source 24 may be unevenly distributed within the cavity 15 as long as the output shaft 25 is located in the center of the drum-shaped load 9. In Figures 3 and 4, the output shaft 25 is directly connected, but as shown in Figures 1 and 2, the output shaft 25 and the bearing 26 are connected directly.
A one-way feed mechanism 27 can be employed in between. Fifth
In FIGS. 1 and 2, 28 is a ratchet wheel fixed to the output shaft 25. A pair of pawls 29 are pivotally connected to the ratchet holder 26 through a shaft 30, and are biased by a spring 31 in the direction of engagement with the ratchet wheel 28.

That is, according to the specific pawl feed mechanism shown as an example of the one-way feed mechanism 27, when the output shaft 25 is driven in the clockwise direction in the figure, the pawl wheel 28 and the pawl 29 engage to move the product loading body 9. However, if the product loading body 9 is rotated clockwise, the product loading body 9 can idle. That is, even when loading products, conventionally the product loading body 9 was driven by a motor, but if the one-way feed mechanism 27 is adopted as in the specific example shown in Figs. Since it can be idled, it can be filled at will, and it is not affected by individual differences in filling work. In other words, with motor drive, it is necessary to perform pitch feeding or continuous feeding by operating a switch, which is expensive and complicated to operate, and although the filling speed varies depending on individual differences in operation, as shown in Figure 5. Adopting a one-way feed mechanism 27 as shown in 1 and 2 is advantageous in this respect. As the one-way feed mechanism 27, in addition to the illustrated example, a mechanical or electric wasoway clutch mechanism can be employed. In FIGS. 3 and 4, reference numeral 32 denotes a product receptacle, which is provided on the drum frame 21.

As particularly illustrated in FIG. 3, this product receiver 32 has a semicircular shape that connects the outer area of the lower half of the product loading body 9, and has an inside larger than the middle part of the drum-shaped product loading body 9. . Therefore,
A product A is loaded into a product loading section B partitioned by a partition body 16, and even if the product loading body 9 rotates, the product A is received without falling. A product drop port 33 is provided in the product receptacle 32 at a position corresponding to the chute 6, and this drop port 33 is provided with a gate 34 that can be opened and closed. Figure 6 1, 2
In the specific example shown in , a slide guide 35 is provided on the drum frame 21, and the gate 3 is inserted along this slide guide 35.
4 can move forward and backward toward the drop opening 33 of the product receiver 32 shown in FIG.
6 is linked to the activation of the drive source 24.
That is, when the gate 34 closes the drop port 33, the gate 34 separates from the detector 36, the detector 36 detects this and is linked to start the drive source 24, and the gate 34 is opened. This contacts the switch operating portion of the detector 36, and moves the drive source 24 to stop.
If such a gate mechanism is adopted, it is possible to open and close the door 2 without forgetting to close the dropping port 33, which is the dispensing gate, when filling products.
Since the product loading body 9 starts rotating simply by closing the gate 34, there is an advantage that the product filling state can be achieved with just one touch. The specific example shown in FIG. 7 is another gate means, which is linked so that when the opening/closing door 2 is opened, a drop opening 33, which is a payout exit, is closed by a gate 34.

That is, the gate 34 is normally elastically biased in the closing direction by a spring 37, and a motion link 39 rotatable about a pivot 38 is connected to the gate 34 via a pin 40 and a long hole 41, and A transfer body 42 is placed on the opening/closing door 2 side of the movement link 39.
is equipped. On the other hand, the opening/closing door 2 is provided with a pressing body 43 of a transfer body 42 inside.

In FIG. 7, the solid line position of the interlocking link 39 is the closed position of the opening/closing door 2, and at this time, the pressing body 43 is moved to the transfer body 42.
The gate 34 opens the drop port 33 by pressing against the spring 37, and conversely, when the opening/closing door 2 is opened, the gate 34 closes the drop port 33 by the action of the elastic spring 37. can automatically open the drop port 33 when dispensing products, and the gate 3 can be opened with one touch by opening and closing the door 2.
4 has the advantage of being able to be opened and closed. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 44
is a detection means for stopping the product loading body 9 in a fixed position;
The solid line in the figure indicates the detection using the mounting screw 19 or dowel of the partition 16, and the chain line in FIG. 3 indicates the detection using the main body of the partition 16. good. First, in the first embodiment, the drum base 21 is provided with a switch operating link 46 that swings about a pivot 45, which is elastically pulled by an elastic spring 47 and regulated by a stopper 48. At this time, it is separated from the microswitch as the detector 49, and when the product loading body 9 rotates and comes to the localization layer, the screw 19 or the dowel is attached to the spring 4.
7, the switch actuating link 46 is swung to activate the detector 49, and the drive source 24 is automatically stopped. The second embodiment is basically the same, except that the switch actuator 49a of the detector 49 can be directly abutted against the partition 16. Traditionally, cam detection means have been commonly used as this type of detection means, but when applied to a wide variety of products, it is necessary to set the cam shape accordingly.
Further, there is a disadvantage that a unique cam detection member is required depending on the size of the product to be sold. In this regard, according to the detection means shown in FIG. 3, since the detection is made in the compartment 16 of the rotating product loading body 9 itself, it does not matter at all even if the loading section is changed depending on the size of the product. It has the advantage of being able to detect position. In addition, position detection will not become inaccurate due to processing errors or malfunctions due to incorrect assembly position adjustment, and there is the advantage that position detection can be performed using the same method regardless of the size or type of product. . In FIG. 3, the reference numeral 50' indicates a microswitch as a product low-out detector, which is installed on the drum base 21, and whose actuator 51 protrudes from the concave notch 20 of the compartment 16 to directly detect the product. The presence or absence of is detected. In addition, when the product A is a bag packaged product, there is a drop opening 33 that is open in the product receiver 32.
A coughing problem occurs between the two. That is, as shown in FIG. 8, although the edges of product A generally have little bending in the feeding direction, both edges of the product A have severe bending, which occurs in the direction opposite to the feeding direction.

Therefore, if the product A is loaded in the correct orientation in the product loading section B, there will be no problem with the delivery 'hitting', but if the product A is misaligned as shown in FIG. Therefore, both edges of the drop opening 33 are provided with recesses 33a on the rotation direction side to correct the bending of the product. According to the present invention configured as described above, when the drive source 24 is activated by depositing a predetermined charge, the products A stored in each loading section B of the product loading body 9 are guided to the product receiver 32 while being carried around. It falls under its own weight through the drop opening 33 for discharging, and then enters the chute 6 and the tubular article outlet 7.
The entire product is discharged into the product receiving tray, and the basic dispensing operation is the same as before.

Therefore, in the present invention, a drive source for driving the product loading body is provided in the drum of the drum-shaped product loading body, so special installation is required when installing the drive source inside the main body. Since no space is required and the dead space inside the drum is effectively used, a compact design can be guaranteed.
It has the advantage of being able to increase the number of products loaded, the transmission of driving force is reliable and smooth, ensuring accurate operation, and there is no wastage of power consumption.

In particular, a drum frame is provided on the open side of the concave cavity, and a support bracket attached to this frame extends into the cavity, and the drive source is supported on the support bracket, and the output shaft of the drive source is connected to the support bracket. is connected to the bottomed part of the concave cavity, so the product loading body can be stably supported even though it is supported on a cantilever, and the drive source can be double protected by the product loading body and the support placket. However, even if the drive source is stored in an empty room,
Since the empty space is open on one side, there is an advantage that less heat is trapped in the empty space.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a front view of the internal outline of a vending machine showing an example of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a side view thereof, Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the dispensing unit, and Fig. 4 is a side sectional view of Fig. 3. , Figure 5 1,
2 is a front view and a sectional view when a one-way feed mechanism is attached, FIGS. 6 1 and 2 are a side view and a front view of the gate mechanism of the dispensing port, and FIG. 7 is a side view of the gate mechanism of the other dispensing port. Figure, 8th
FIGS. 1 and 2 are a side sectional view and a plan view showing a dispensing mode of an example of a product. 1...Vending machine main body, 2...Opening/closing door, 9...Product loading body, 15...Empty room inside the product loading body, 24... ... Drive source, 25... Output shaft. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 4 Figure 8 Figure 3 Figure 7 Figure 5 Figure 6

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 In a dispensing device that is rotatably provided with a drum-shaped product loading section that has a radially divided product loading section on its outer periphery, the product loading section has a bottomed inner core with one side open and the other side closed. A drum frame is provided on the open side of the concave cavity, a support bracket attached to the drum frame extends into the concave cavity, and the support bracket A dispensing device for a vending machine, characterized in that a drive source attached to the vending machine is stored in the concave cavity, and an output shaft of the drive source is connected to a bottomed part of the concave cavity.