Vending machine

Abstract

The utility model discloses a vending machine which comprises a machine cabinet, a storage cavity is formed in the machine cabinet, a plurality of warehouse drawers are arranged in the storage cavity and arranged at intervals from top to bottom, and each warehouse drawer is constructed to be capable of being manually operated by an operator to move in the front-back direction; the position detection device is used for detecting whether each warehouse drawer is located at a preset standard position or not, the position detection device comprises a plurality of position sensors arranged on the inner wall surface of the cabinet, and the plurality of position sensors are in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of warehouse drawers; and the control system is used for controlling the vending machine and is in signal connection with the plurality of position sensors. According to the automatic vending machine, whether the warehouse drawer is located at the preset standard position or not can be detected, the situation that commodity selling is started when the warehouse drawer is not located at the preset standard position is avoided, and normal operation and selling of the automatic vending machine are ensured.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to an automatic vending machine. Background Art

[0002] A vending machine is a type of commercial automation equipment that automatically delivers goods based on the amount of money or electronic payment inserted, regardless of time or location. It saves labor and facilitates transactions, earning it the reputation of a 24-hour miniature supermarket. Traditional vending machines typically consist of a cabinet and a door. Inside the cabinet, multiple drawers are spaced from top to bottom, each with one or more aisles. The cabinet also features a hopper that moves vertically. When a vending machine is put into operation, if a shortage of goods or a need for restocking arises, merchants typically remove the drawers from the cabinet's internal storage chamber in their entirety. The goods are then added to the drawers' aisles. Once restocking is complete, the drawers are then reloaded layer by layer back into the cabinet's storage chamber. However, as merchants reload the warehouse drawers into the cabinet after replenishing the goods, some of the warehouse drawers may not be pushed into place, resulting in the pickup bucket colliding with the warehouse drawers that have not been pushed down during the subsequent operation of the vending machine, affecting the normal operation and sales of the vending machine and causing inconvenience to merchants and consumers. Utility Model Content

[0003] In order to solve the above technical problems, the purpose of the present utility model is to provide a vending machine that can detect whether a drawer of a cargo bin is in a standard position.

[0004] The utility model provides an automatic vending machine, comprising: a cabinet having a storage cavity therein, wherein a plurality of cargo drawers are arranged in the storage cavity, wherein the plurality of cargo drawers are arranged at intervals from top to bottom, and each of the cargo drawers is constructed to be manually operated by an operator and move in a front-to-rear direction; a position detection device for detecting whether each of the cargo drawers is in a preset standard position, wherein the position detection device comprises a plurality of position sensors arranged on an inner wall surface of the cabinet, wherein the plurality of position sensors correspond one-to-one to the plurality of cargo drawers; and a control system for controlling the automatic vending machine, wherein the control system is signal-connected to the plurality of position sensors.

[0005] The present application utilizes a plurality of position sensors provided on the cabinet of the vending machine to determine whether each of the cargo drawers is in the standard position, thereby avoiding the situation where goods cannot be shipped normally during the commodity sales activity when the cargo drawers are not returned to their positions.

[0006] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the automatic vending machine further comprises: a pickup hopper located in the cabinet, wherein the pickup hopper is configured to be driven to rise and fall and to be arranged in front of the plurality of cargo bin drawers.

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the pickup bucket is arranged to be driven by a stepping motor.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, each of the cargo bin drawers has a plurality of cargo aisles, and the plurality of cargo aisles are evenly spaced apart in the left-right direction.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present invention, each of the position sensors and the corresponding cargo drawer are located at the same height in the cabinet.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the vending machine further comprises: a warning element, which is signal-connected to the control system; the warning element is configured to emit a warning signal when any of the cargo bin drawers is not in a preset standard position.

[0011] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: The vending machine in this case is equipped with a position detection device and a control system. The position detection device detects whether each drawer is in a preset standard position, and the control system controls whether the vending machine allows the vending operation based on the detection results of the position detection device. This can detect the situation where the drawer is not pushed into place during the merchant's replenishment, avoid starting the vending operation when the drawer is not in the preset standard position, and ensure the normal operation and sales of the vending machine. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional diagram of an automatic vending machine according to an embodiment of the present utility model;

[0013] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A partial enlarged view of point A shown in FIG;

[0014] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A partial enlarged view of point B shown in FIG;

[0015] Figure 4 This is a control principle diagram for determining whether a drawer of a vending machine is in a preset standard position according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] The accompanying drawings are numerals as follows:

[0017] 100. Vending machines;

[0018] 10. Cabinet; 11. Storage cavity; 12. Cargo drawer; 121. Cargo aisle; 13. Lift track; 14. Cabinet door;

[0019] 20. Pickup bucket; 21. Stepper motor; 22. Synchronous belt;

[0020] 30. Position detection device; 31. Position sensor;

[0021] 40. Control system; 41. Warning element. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] It is easy to understand that according to the technical solution of the present invention, without changing the essential spirit of the present invention, a person skilled in the art can propose a variety of interchangeable structural methods and implementation methods. Therefore, the following specific embodiments and drawings are only illustrative of the technical solution of the present invention and should not be regarded as the entire present invention or as a limitation or restriction of the technical solution of the present invention.

[0023] according to Figures 1 to 3 As shown, one embodiment of the present invention provides a vending machine comprising a cabinet having a storage cavity disposed therein. A plurality of drawers are disposed within the storage cavity, and the drawers are spaced apart from each other in a top-to-bottom manner within the storage cavity. Each drawer includes multiple aisles for storing merchandise, and the aisles are evenly spaced apart along the left-right direction. Each drawer is movable in the cabinet's storage cavity in a front-to-back direction and can be withdrawn from or loaded into the cabinet's storage cavity, similar to a drawer. Specifically, a multi-layer pull-out structure is disposed within the storage cavity, and the drawers are slidably assembled with the multi-layer pull-out structure. A door is mounted on the front of the cabinet, and a hopper is disposed within the cabinet. A movable space is provided between the cabinet and the door for the hopper to move within the cabinet. The hopper extends in the left-to-right direction and spans the front of the multiple aisles of the drawers. A stepper motor is provided in the cabinet to drive the lifting of the pickup bucket.

[0024] Specific, combined Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, lift rails extending in an up-and-down direction are provided on the left and right sides of the cabinet interior. Moving wheels (not shown) are mounted on the left and right ends of the pickup hopper. The pickup hopper is movably mounted within the cabinet via the moving wheels and is capable of moving up and down along the lift rails. A stepper motor is mounted at the lower interior of the cabinet. A drive wheel is mounted on the output shaft of the stepper motor. A driven wheel is rotatably mounted above the interior of the cabinet. A timing belt is connected between the drive wheel and the driven wheel, and the timing belt is fixedly connected to the pickup hopper. In other embodiments, the stepper motor may also use a screw nut to drive the pickup hopper up and down along the lift rails, without limitation.

[0025] When the stepper motor is started, it drives the picking bucket to move up and down along the lifting track, thereby moving the picking bucket to the drawers of each layer of the warehouse to pick up the goods for sale pushed out from the corresponding aisle.

[0026] In other embodiments, the pickup hopper can be smaller, for example, by providing a pickup hopper bracket, which is transmission-connected to a stepper motor, with translation tracks and a servo motor provided on the pickup hopper bracket. The pickup hopper is placed on the translation tracks of the pickup hopper bracket and transmission-connected to the servo motor, with the servo motor driving the pickup hopper to move left and right on the translation tracks. Such a pickup hopper can individually receive merchandise for sale from a particular aisle of a drawer on a particular level, without limitation.

[0027] When a merchant puts a vending machine into operation and encounters a shortage of goods or a need for restocking, they typically pull out the individual drawers from the storage cavity inside the cabinet, then add the goods to be sold to the various aisles of the drawers. After restocking, the drawers are then reloaded layer by layer back into the storage cavity inside the cabinet. However, during the process of reloading the drawers into the cabinet after restocking, some drawers may not be pushed into place. This can cause the pickup hopper to collide with the unpushed drawers during subsequent operation of the vending machine, affecting the normal operation and sales of the vending machine and causing inconvenience to merchants and consumers.

[0028] In order to solve the above technical problems, Figure 4 As shown, the vending machine also includes a position detection device and a control system. The position detection device is used to detect whether each drawer is in a preset standard position. The control system is used to control the vending machine. The control system is connected to the position detection device and is configured to control whether the vending machine allows the vending operation based on the detection results of the position detection device.

[0029] Specific, combined Figure 1 and Figure 3 As shown, the position detection device includes a plurality of position sensors arranged on the inner wall of the cabinet, and the plurality of position sensors correspond to a plurality of warehouse drawers one by one. Each position sensor and the corresponding warehouse drawer are at the same height in the cabinet.

[0030] In this embodiment, the control system can utilize a PLC controller, and the position sensor utilizes a through-beam photoelectric sensor. A transmitter module and a receiver module are mounted on the left and right walls of the cabinet, respectively. The transmitter module transmits a light signal to the receiver module, and the receiver module receives the light signal from the transmitter module. Generally, when all drawers in the vending machine are in the preset standard position, i.e., all drawers are fully pushed into position, the transmitter module of the photoelectric sensor transmits a light signal to the receiver module. Upon receiving the light signal from the transmitter module, the receiver module can provide a "1" signal back to the control system, allowing the control system to determine that all drawers in the vending machine are in the preset standard position. However, if any drawer is not fully pushed into position, i.e., any drawer is not in the preset standard position, the drawer not in the preset standard position will be blocked between the transmitter module and the receiver module of the photoelectric sensor. Consequently, the receiver module cannot receive the light signal from the transmitter module, and the receiver module provides a "0" signal back to the control system. The control system then determines that a drawer in the vending machine is not in the preset standard position, and the control system will control the vending machine to stop operating. In other embodiments, the control system may also use a microcontroller chip, and the position sensor may also use a reflective photoelectric sensor, that is, multiple position sensors are installed on the left wall or the right wall of the cabinet. The position sensor may also use a Hall sensor, an infrared sensor, an optical position sensor, etc. The position sensor may also feedback electrical signals, analog signals, current strength signals, etc. to the control system, which may depend on the type of position sensor and is not specifically limited.

[0031] To alert the user when a drawer within the cabinet is not in the preset standard position (or when the drawer is not fully pushed), the vending machine also includes a warning element connected to the control system. When any drawer within the cabinet is not in the preset standard position, the control system can control the warning element to emit a warning signal based on the detection results of the position detection device. In this embodiment, the warning element can be a buzzer. In other embodiments, the warning element can also be a warning light, a fault light, etc., without limitation.

[0032] Combine Figure 4 As shown, an embodiment of the present invention also provides a control method for a vending machine. After the merchant completes each replenishment or performs maintenance on the vending machine, after the cargo drawer is loaded into the storage cavity of the cabinet, the vending machine will execute the following method steps: determine the current position of each layer of the cargo drawer, and prohibit the vending machine from selling goods when any cargo drawer is not in the preset standard position.

[0033] Furthermore, multiple position sensors installed on the cabinet of the vending machine are used to determine whether each drawer is in a preset standard position. If a drawer is not in the preset standard position, a detection signal is sent to the control system of the vending machine. If any drawer is not in the preset standard position, a warning message is sent to the operator.

[0034] Specifically, when any cargo drawer inside the cabinet of the vending machine is not in the preset standard position (that is, the cargo drawer is not pushed into place), the position sensor corresponding to the cargo drawer on that layer will send a detection signal to the control system. After receiving the detection signal from the position sensor, the control system sends a stop signal to the stepper motor, and the stepper motor stops driving the pickup bucket. At the same time, the control system sends a control signal to the warning element, which controls the warning element to send a warning message to the operator.

[0035] This allows merchants to detect situations where warehouse drawers are not pushed into place during replenishment, avoiding the sale of goods when the warehouse drawers are not in the preset standard position, and ensuring the normal operation and sales of the vending machine.

[0036] The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the contents of the above description. Those skilled in the art can make various deformations and modifications to the above embodiments without departing from the technical concept of the present invention, and these deformations and modifications should all fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A vending machine, characterized in that: include: The cabinet has a storage cavity inside, and a plurality of cargo drawers are arranged in the storage cavity, the plurality of cargo drawers are arranged at intervals from top to bottom, and each of the cargo drawers is constructed to be manually operated by an operator to move in a front-to-rear direction; a position detection device for detecting whether each of the cargo drawers is in a preset standard position, the position detection device comprising a plurality of position sensors disposed on the inner wall of the cabinet, the plurality of position sensors corresponding one-to-one to the plurality of cargo drawers; as well as A control system is used to control the vending machine, and the control system is connected to the plurality of position sensor signals.

2. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: The picking bucket is located in the cabinet and is configured to be driven to rise and fall and to be arranged at the front side of the plurality of cargo bin drawers.

3. The vending machine according to claim 2, characterized in that: The picking bucket is arranged in a transmission manner with a stepping motor.

4. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the cargo bin drawers has a plurality of cargo aisles, and the plurality of cargo aisles are evenly spaced and arranged along the left-right direction.

5. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the position sensors and the corresponding cargo drawer are located at the same height in the cabinet.

6. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein: The position sensor includes a photoelectric sensor.

7. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: A warning element is connected to the control system by signal; the warning element is configured to send a warning signal when any one of the cargo compartment drawers is not in a preset standard position.

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