Article dispensing – With discharge assistant – With size adjusting means
Patent
1998-04-21
2000-01-11
Skaggs, H. Grant
Article dispensing
With discharge assistant
With size adjusting means
221241, 221312R, 193 32, G07F 1116, B65G 5900
Patent
active
060126043
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to an automatic vending machine for vending articles, such as bottled or canned beverages and, more particularly, to an article dispensing device for an automatic vending machine separately storing a plurality of kinds of articles differing in diameter from each other, and having dispensing passages of widths respectively conforming to the articles to dispense the articles smoothly.
BACKGROUND ART
Automatic vending machines have come into wide use in recent years in the fields of various commercial items. The diffusion of automatic vending machines for vending bottled beverages and canned beverages is particularly remarkable and consumers are able to buy bottled beverages and canned beverages easily any time they want. Although bottles and cans containing beverages have different outside diameters, respectively, most of the bottled and the canned beverages can be vended by automatic vending machines.
Incidentally, a dispensing passage of an automatic vending machine suitable for passing an article will be clogged if an article having a diameter greater than that of the article for which the dispensing passage is designed is delivered into the dispensing passage and, if an article having a diameter smaller than that of the article for which the dispensing passage is designed is delivered into the dispensing passage, the article will pass through the dispensing passage, drops and it is possible that many articles are discharged accidentally at a time.
Accordingly, if articles to be vended by the automatic vending machine are changed and new articles having an outside diameter different from that of the articles which have been vended are to be vended by the automatic vending machine, the width of the dispensing passage must be changed to a width conforming to the outside diameter of the new articles.
Referring to FIG. 19, when changing the width of each of dispensing passages 3 connected to the lower ends of divisional passages 2, an exit plate 4 disposed behind the dispensing passage 3 is moved by hand or the exit plate 4 is replaced with another exit plate having a thickness different from that of the exit plate 4 to adjust the width of the dispensing passage properly.
Generally, the dispensing passage 3 is defined by a fixed plate 6 holding a dispensing mechanism 5 capable of dispensing articles A one at a time and fixed to the body of the automatic vending machine, and a exit plate 4 disposed opposite to the fixed plate 6. As shown in FIG. 20, the exit plate 4 is held in place by fitting pins 7 and 8 projecting from the opposite sides of an upper end portion and a lower end portion thereof in positioning slots 9 and 10. The plurality of lower positioning slots 10 are formed in a shape resembling the inverted letters U at positions respectively corresponding to the diameters of articles. The plurality of upper positioning slots 9 are formed continuously in a shape resembling continuous cranks. The exit plate 4 disposed at a position a, b, c or d conforming to the outside diameter of the articles A by placing each of the lower pins 8 in the bottom of one of the positioning slots 10.
Referring to FIG. 21, in another automatic vending machine, the exit plate 4 is supported so as to be moved to either of two positions corresponding to the positions b and d shown in FIG. 20. As illustrated in FIGS. 22A and 22B, an width adjusting plate 11 is attached to the exit plate 4 by engaging hooks 12 formed by raising portions thereof so as to project from the back surface thereof with holes formed in the exit plate 4, the exit plate 4 thus provided with the width adjusting plate 11 is disposed at the position corresponding to the position b shown in FIG. 20 to set the width adjusting plate 11 at a position corresponding to the position a shown in FIG. 20 for an article A.sub.1 having a minimum diameter (FIG. 22A), and the exit plate 4 provided with the width adjusting plate 11 is disposed at the position corresponding to the position d shown in FIG. 20 to set the width
REFERENCES:
patent: 3158245 (1964-11-01), Budjinski et al.
patent: 3338470 (1967-08-01), Newberry
patent: 3361505 (1968-01-01), Newberry
patent: 3362582 (1968-01-01), Gasparini
patent: 3464529 (1969-09-01), Horsky
Patent Abstracts of Japan of JP 04042392 dated Feb. 12, 1992.
Patent Abstracts of Japan of 07220154 dated Aug. 18, 1995.
Funakoshi Hisashi
Takahashi Yutaka
F.I.C., Inc.
Skaggs H. Grant
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