Article dispensing – Dispenser delivering to stationary article support for... – With article elevation to raised support
Reexamination Certificate
1999-01-04
2001-01-09
Noland, Kenneth W. (Department: 3651)
Article dispensing
Dispenser delivering to stationary article support for...
With article elevation to raised support
C221S253000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06170702
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention resides in a beverage vending machine for providing and delivering beverages contained in containers, the vending machine including a storage space and a dispensing compartment.
Such beverage vending machines are known in the art and are generally used for dispensing bottled or canned beverages. Vending machines have the advantage that no sales personnel is needed and that they can be operated independently of store hours. As a result, beverages can be purchased at any time.
However, these vending machines are not suitable for dispensing a relatively large amount of beverages. Since every can or bottle needs to be individually removed from the apparatus, the dispensing of a larger amount of beverages is awkward and time consuming.
In addition, it provides for a large amount of individual cans or bottles which are difficult to carry or which make it necessary for the purchasers to bring along transport containers.
If a large amount of beverages is needed, they are generally ordered for home delivery or they are purchased at beverage distributorships. This can be done however only during normal business hours. It is, therefore, impossible to purchase larger amounts of beverages outside the normal business hours in a simple manner. Also, sales personnel is needed for the sale of beverages by beverage distributorships.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a beverage vending machine which can dispense large amounts of beverages in a simple manner.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In a beverage vending machine for dispensing beverages contained in containers disposed in beverage container crates, at least two horizontal transport elements are disposed on top of one another in a storage space of the vending machine for supporting beverage container crates adjacent one another and first drive means are provided for moving the beverage container crates on the transport elements horizontally and second drive means are provided for moving the transport elements vertically and further means are provided for moving the beverage container crates from a transport element disposed at the level of the dispensing structure into a dispensing structure from where tey can be removed by a customer.
Since the beverage containers are disposed in beverage cases and are dispensed by the vending machine contained in such cases, a large amount of beverages can be taken from the vending machine in a simple and efficient way. By arranging the beverage cases on transport elements in rows one behind the other or in side-by-side relationship and disposing several transport elements on top of one another, a highly compact storage space for the beverage cases is provided. The beverage cases are arranged in the storage space essentially in a way as if they were piled on top of each other. However, since the beverage cases are disposed one behind the other on horizontally extending transport elements and first means are provided for moving the beverage cases horizontally, the beverage cases can be easily dispensed by the beverage vending machine. It is only necessary herefor that the transport element is disposed at the same level as the dispensing compartment, so that a beverage case can be moved by the first means into the dispensing compartment.
When all the beverage cases disposed in a vending machine on a particular transport element are dispensed the transport elements are moved vertically by a second means until another transport element carrying beverage cases is disposed at the level of the dispensing compartment. Then the beverage cases on the other transport element can be moved into the dispensing compartment by the first means.
In a particular embodiment of the invention, the transport elements are conveyor belts which include a drive shaft provided with a drive wheel. The beverage cases disposed on the conveyor belt can easily be moved into the dispensing compartment. Conveyor belts also have the advantage that they can be operated by a simple drive such as an electric motor.
However, the transport elements may also be a series of parallel drums or rollers. For moving the cases, the drums or rollers must be rotated or the cases must be pushed by cylinders. If the cases are moved by a cylinder, the transport elements may be just level smooth support surface.
In another embodiment of the invention, the transport elements are guided in vertically arranged guide rails and are interconnected by variable elements. In this case, it is particularly advantageous if the second means is connected to the uppermost transport element.
With the interconnection of the transport elements by variable elements, the transport elements can be positioned one after the other at the level of the dispensing compartment in a simple manner.
To achieve this, only the uppermost transport element needs to be lowered, whereby all the transport elements disposed below the uppermost transport element are lowered.
When the transport elements are so far lowered that lowermost transport element is disposed on the floor the following transport elements may be seated on the lower transport element without gap since the variable elements are flexible, preferably jointed elements such as chains: with such an arrangement, the space required for the empty transport elements is relatively small.
Preferably only so many transport elements are arranged on top of each other that, when disposed on top of each other without beverage crates, they reach only up to the bottom edge of the dispensing compartment.
In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first means is connected to the drive wheel of that conveyor belt which is at the level of the dispensing compartment. Since the conveyor belts have only a single drive wheel and the first means is disposed at the level of the dispensing compartment, it is not necessary to provide for each transport element separate means for moving the beverage crates horizontally. The respective drive wheel is coupled to the first means only while the conveyor belt is at the level of the dispensing compartment. The coupling may be established by a common clutch.
In another embodiment of the invention, the transport elements include guide rails by which the beverage crates are guided at their sides. With the guide rails, beverage crates of different widths can be moved on the transport elements. It is only necessary to adapt the guide rails to the width of the crates. In this way, a beverage vending machine according to the invention can be easily converted for the accommodation of different beverage crates and different types of beverages.
It has been found to be particularly advantageous if the dispensing compartment is in the form of a lock gate. This facilitates safe dispensing of a beverage crate and prevents the unauthorized removal of a beverage crate from the dispensing compartment.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4483459 (1984-11-01), Taylor et al.
patent: 11494 (1991-01-01), None
patent: 67387 (1991-03-01), None
Runneck Mathias
Zettler Gehard
Bach Klaus J.
Noland Kenneth W.
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