JPS6032107B2 - Device for detecting the insertion and removal of containers, etc. in automatic refrigerator management equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device that automatically detects whether food or drinks are taken out or put into a refrigerator installed in a guest room of a hotel or inn, for example.

BACKGROUND ART Food and beverages stored in refrigerators installed in guest rooms at hotels and inns can be freely taken out and consumed by guests in the room.

In this case, it is impossible to know what and how much a customer has eaten or eaten unless a hotel or inn employee goes to each guest room and inspects the inside of the refrigerator. Therefore, there was a problem in that not only was inspection troublesome, but also a large number of items had to be obtained. In order to solve this problem, the present invention enables the front desk to manage the consumption status of food and drink in the refrigerator of each guest room.

The present invention will be explained in detail below based on the drawings. A box-shaped case 3 installed in the refrigerator 1, a receiver 2 attached to the bottom side of the box-shaped case 3, a spring 8 that supports the receiver 2, and a storage chamber 4 in the box-shaped case 3 for storing food and drinks. It consists of a detector 22 that turns on and off by moving the receiver 2 up and down when the food 5 is put in and taken out, and a support 24 that supports the food and drinks 5 stored in the storage chamber 4 on the front end side.

The box-like case 3 has a front opening so that food and drinks 5 such as eel-infused beer and eel-infused juice can be taken in and out through an entrance 14.

The receiver 2 has a plate shape whose width narrows from the front to the rear,
As clearly shown in FIG. 6, support shafts 17 and 18 protruding from both front sides thereof are rotatably inserted into the tips of side plates 15 and 16 of the box-shaped case 3. The spring 8 is composed of a winding shaft 7 and a wire rod wound around it. As shown in FIG. 2, one end 9 of the winding shaft 7 is fixed to a groove 11 formed on the end surface 101 of the winding shaft 7, and the other end thereof is protruded in a direction orthogonal to the winding shaft 7 to serve as a support portion 12.

The support portion 12 is configured to support the receiver 2 by being engaged with a locking protrusion 19 of the receiver 2. The elastic strength of this spring 8 increases when the winding shaft 7 is rotated and the wire is wound around the winding shaft 7.
When the winding shaft 7 is rotated in the opposite direction to return the wire, the elastic strength of the support portion 12 is weakened.

For example, a reed switch is used as the detection body 22 and is attached to a printed board 21 erected behind the back wall 20 of the box-shaped case 3.

This reed switch is turned on and off by being attracted and released by a magnet 20 attached to the receptacle 2 when the receptacle 2 moves up and down as food 5 is put in and removed from the receptacle 2. Note that the detection object 22 may be something other than a reed switch, such as a switch made of an electronic element, in which case the magnet 20 is not required.

The support body 24 is provided on the front side between the side walls 15 and 16 of the box-like case 3, and is made higher than the receiver 2 so that the front side of the food and drink 5 placed on the receiver 2 is supported. The load of 5 is surely applied to the inner part of the receiver 2.

Note that 6 in FIG. 1 is a tally management device installed at the front desk, and 25 in FIGS. 3, 4, 6, and 7 is an opening in the back wall 20.

As described above, in the present invention, the receiver 2 is supported by the spring 8 and the support body 24 that transmits the load of the food and drink 5 to the receiver 2 is provided, so that the food and drink 5 placed on the receiver 2 is A load is reliably applied to the receptacle 2, and the detection body 22 can reliably detect whether an article is put in or taken out of the receptacle 2.

In particular, in the present invention, a box-like case 3 is used, and each box-like case 3 includes a receiver 2, a spring 8, a detecting member 22, a support member 24, etc.
are installed, these parts can be installed inside the refrigerator simply by installing the box-like case 3 inside the refrigerator.
Therefore, their installation inside the refrigerator becomes extremely easy.

Furthermore, in the event that any of these parts breaks down, it is only necessary to completely replace the faulty box-shaped case 3, which greatly facilitates maintenance and inspection.

Further, in the present invention, since the elastic strength of the support part 12 can be adjusted by rotating the winding shaft 7, the strength of the elastic strength of the support part 12 can be adjusted according to the weight of the food and drink 5 to be taken in and out of the receiver 2. It is possible to accurately detect the insertion and removal of the parts, and there is no need to prepare various springs with different elastic strengths, which is convenient, and also eliminates parts management and incorrect attachment to the receiver 2.

If the elastic strength of the spring 8 is adjusted so that the receiver 2 can move up and down only when a predetermined weight of food 5 is taken out or put into the receiver 2, the storage section 4 after the food 5 has been taken out can be adjusted. Even if an empty container is returned to the inside, the detection body 6 does not turn on or off, so that it is possible not only to take out and take out the container, but also to determine whether or not the container is empty.

In the spring 8 of the present invention, the movable range is only a, as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. Changes in the weight of the food and drink 5 that are placed can be sensitively sensed, and therefore the up and down movement of the receiver 2 becomes accurate.

Although the spring 27 shown in FIG. 8 tends to lose its elasticity after long-term use, this does not occur with the spring of the present invention.

Since the spring of the present invention is made by winding a wire strip around the winding shaft 7, even if the length of the support portion 12 protruding from the winding shaft 7 is short, the total length of the wire becomes long.

Therefore, unlike a spring whose entire length is the same, the support part 12 can reliably sense the load applied to the receiver 2, and the vertical movement of the receiver 2 accurately corresponds to the load. Detection object 2
2 is electrically connected to the tally management device 6 as shown in FIG.
By predetermining whether to store food (for example, canned beer or bottled juice), it is possible to detect at the front desk which box-like case of food or drink has been consumed by simply operating the tally management device 6.

As shown in the figure, since the box-like case 3 is independent, the receiver 2, the spring 8, the detecting body 22, etc. are attached to it, and the box-like case 3 is installed inside the refrigerator 1. Since it can be attached, the attachment of the receiver 2, the spring 8, the detection body 22, etc. into the refrigerator 1 becomes simple and easy.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of the device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the spring in the present invention, and FIGS. 3 to 7 show the receiver attached to the box-shaped case. Of these, Figure 3 is a front view, Figure 4 is a rear view, Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line X-X of Figure 4, Figure 6 is a Y-Y cross-sectional view of Figure 4, and Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of the receiver. FIG. 8 is an explanatory sectional view of a state in which a container is placed, and FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of a conventional spring. 1 is a refrigerator, 2 is a receiver, 3 is a box-like case, 5 is a detection object,
7 is the winding shaft, 8... spring, 9 is one end of the wire, 12
is the support part. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 8 Figure 7

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 Two or more box-like cases formed at the front opening to allow items to be taken in and taken out are installed vertically and horizontally inside the refrigerator, and the box-like case includes a receiver on which the items are placed and a spring that supports the rear end side of the receiver. A detector is attached to detect the vertical movement of the receiver.The receiver is attached to the bottom of the box-like case so that the front end can rotate freely, and when an item is placed on the receiver, the spring is compressed. The rear end of the receptacle is lowered, and when the article is removed from the receptacle, it is pushed up by the same spring. It consists of a wire with one end fixed to the winding shaft and the other end protruding in a direction perpendicular to the winding shaft to serve as a support part.The support part supports the receiver and rotates the winding shaft to attach the wire to it. When the wire is wound up, the elasticity of the supporting part becomes stronger, and when the winding shaft is reversed and the wire is unwound, the elasticity of the supporting part becomes weaker. A device for detecting the loading and unloading of containers, etc. in an automatic refrigerator management device, which is provided with a support that supports the front end of an article placed on a receiver and transmits the load of the article to the rear end of the receiver.