Vending machine, control method for controlling vending machine, control program and recording medium

Abstract

To provide a vending machine of foods capable of improving a satisfaction level of a purchaser.SOLUTION: A vending machine comprises a cabinet 2 including a plurality of storage racks 21 for individually storing foods, a prediction section 51 which predicts vending situations of the foods during a predetermined period, and a temperature control section 52 which controls a temperature in each storage rack. The temperature control section 52 controls a temperature in a storage rack storing the food which is predicted to be sold within the predetermined period into a first temperature and controls a temperature in a storage rack storing the food which is predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period into a second temperature which is lower than the first temperature.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vending machine for selling food products. [Background technology]

[0002] Vending machines for unmanned sales of foods such as vegetables and boxed lunches have been in practical use for some time. Patent Document 1, for example, discloses a vending machine that has multiple storage lockers for storing foods and manages each food item based on the amount of time the food item has been stored in each storage locker, in order to sell the food before it loses its freshness. Patent Document 1 also discloses a method for predicting the number and timing of food replenishment based on food information about the products to be replenished in the vending machine, the amount of time the food item has been stored, and weather information. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-79037 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Patent Document 1 discloses that the temperature inside the vending machine is detected, but does not disclose that the temperature is actively controlled, and therefore only serves to prevent the serving of food that has deteriorated in freshness.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a food vending machine that can improve customer satisfaction. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention includes the following aspects. Section 1. A vending machine for selling food, a cabinet having a plurality of storage shelves for individually storing the food products; a prediction unit that predicts the sales status of the food product for a predetermined period of time; a temperature control unit for controlling the temperature in each storage shelf; Equipped with The temperature control unit controlling the temperature in a storage shelf in which the food predicted to be sold within the predetermined period is stored to a first temperature; The temperature in the storage shelf where the food predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period is stored is controlled to a second temperature lower than the first temperature. A vending machine characterized by: Section 2. Further, a movement control unit that controls the movement of the food within the vending machine is provided. the movement control unit is configured to, when it is determined that the food predicted to be sold within the predetermined period is stored in a storage shelf maintained at the second temperature, move the food predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a storage shelf maintained at the first temperature; The storage shelf maintained at the first temperature is located in the upper part of the cabinet, and the storage shelf maintained at the second temperature is located in the lower part of the cabinet. Item 1. The vending machine according to item 1. Section 3. 1. A control method for controlling a vending machine having a cabinet with a plurality of storage shelves for individually storing food items, comprising: a prediction step of predicting a sales status of the food product for a predetermined period of time; a temperature control step of controlling the temperature in each storage shelf; Equipped with The temperature control step includes: controlling the temperature in a storage shelf storing the food items predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a first temperature; and controlling the temperature in a storage shelf in which the food predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period is stored to a second temperature that is lower than the first temperature. A control method comprising: Section 4. A control program for controlling a vending machine having a cabinet with a plurality of storage shelves for individually storing food items, a prediction unit that predicts the sales status of the food product for a predetermined period of time; and a temperature control unit that controls the temperature inside each storage shelf; Run the computer as The temperature control unit controlling the temperature in a storage shelf in which the food predicted to be sold within the predetermined period is stored to a first temperature; The temperature in the storage shelf where the food predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period is stored is controlled to a second temperature lower than the first temperature. A control program comprising: Section 5. Item 5. A computer-readable recording medium having the control program described in item 4 recorded thereon. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a food vending machine that can improve customer satisfaction. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] (a) and (b) are front views of the vending machine, and (c) is a side view of the vending machine. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a top view of a vending machine. [Figure 4] FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. [Figure 7] 2(a) to 2(c) are cross-sectional views taken along lines AA, BB, and CC in FIG. 2(a), respectively. [Figure 8]10 is a flowchart showing the processing steps of a method for controlling a vending machine. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0010] (Overall composition) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vending machine 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 2(a) and 2(b) are front views of the vending machine 1, and FIG. 2(c) is a side view of the vending machine 1. FIG. 3 is a top view of the vending machine 1. The vending machine 1 is an unmanned device for selling food. The type of food is not particularly limited, but in this embodiment, it is boxed lunches.

[0011] Note that the front door of the vending machine 1 is omitted in Figure 2(b), the side walls of the vending machine 1 are omitted in Figure 2(c), and the ceiling wall of the vending machine 1 is omitted in Figure 3. The dimensions indicated by the double arrows in each drawing are in millimeters.

[0012] The vending machine 1 mainly comprises a cabinet 2, a temperature control system 3, a cooling system 4, a control unit 5, a modem router 6, a user interface 7, an electronic payment device 8, a dispenser 9, a robotic arm 10, and a negative pressure trash bin 11.

[0013] The cabinet 2 is attached to the ceiling surface inside the housing of the vending machine 1, and has a plurality of storage shelves 21 for individually storing food items. In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 4, 54 storage shelves 21 are arranged in a matrix, and more specifically, rows of nine storage shelves 21 connected in the vertical direction are lined up and connected in the horizontal direction.

[0014] When attaching the cabinet 2 to the vending machine 1, first, the support member 22 is connected to the cabinet 2 and then fixed to the ceiling surface inside the housing of the vending machine 1. The support member 22 is made up of a monorail hoist, which allows the cabinet 2 to slide back and forth.

[0015] 5 is a partially enlarged perspective view of cabinet 2. Each storage shelf 21 is a square tube with openings on the front and back, and is configured to hold rectangular food boxes containing packed lunches. The shape and size of storage shelf 21 can be changed as needed depending on the shape and size of the food to be stored.

[0016] The temperature control system 3 shown in FIG. 1 controls the temperature of each storage shelf 21 in the cabinet 2 and is installed on the rear side inside the housing of the vending machine 1. As shown in FIG. 6, the temperature control system 3 has six ducts 31 extending vertically. Each duct 31 has nine slots arranged vertically, and each slot is equipped with a heater 32 and a temperature sensor (not shown). The heater 32 is formed, for example, by a heating wire element. The ducts 31 are connected to the cooling system 4, which supplies cold air to each slot. As a result, cold or hot air is blown out from each slot.

[0017] 7(a) to 7(c) are respectively AA, BB, and CC cross-sectional views of Fig. 2(a). Each duct 31 faces a corresponding row of storage shelves 21 so that each slot of the duct 31 faces an opening on the back surface of each storage shelf 21 in a one-to-one correspondence. This allows cool or warm air to be supplied to each storage shelf 21 individually.

[0018] 1 is a computer that controls the overall operation of the vending machine 1. The control unit 5 will be described in detail later.

[0019] The modem router 6 is a device that enables the vending machine 1 to communicate wirelessly with external devices.

[0020] The user interface 7 is a device that allows users (purchasers and managers) of the vending machine 1 to operate the vending machine 1, and is composed of a display, a touch panel, and the like.

[0021] The electronic payment device 8 is a device that processes payment for the price. In this embodiment, the payment process is carried out by electronic settlement, but the present invention is not limited to this.

[0022] The outlet 9 is a member for taking out purchased food.

[0023] The robot arm 10 is a member for moving food items inside the vending machine 1. For example, the robot arm 10 can move food items selected by a purchaser from the storage shelf 21 to the take-out opening 9, or move food items stored in one storage shelf 21 to another storage shelf 21.

[0024] The negative pressure trash bin 11 is a container for storing food to be discarded. The robot arm 10 moves expired food from the storage shelf 21 to the negative pressure trash bin 11.

[0025] (control unit) Next, the control by the control unit 5 will be described.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 5 includes, as functional blocks, a prediction unit 51, a temperature control unit 52, and a movement control unit 53. These functional blocks may be realized in hardware using logic circuits formed on an integrated circuit, or in software using a processor in the control unit 5 that reads a control program into a main storage device and executes it. In this case, the control program may be downloaded to the control unit 5 via a communication network such as the Internet, or may be recorded on a computer-readable, non-transitory recording medium such as a CD-ROM or USB memory and transferred to the control unit 5 via the recording medium. Furthermore, at least some of the above functional blocks may be provided in a control device different from the vending machine 1 (for example, a server device on the cloud).

[0027] The prediction unit 51 predicts the sales status of food products for a predetermined period. There are no particular limitations on the prediction method as long as it is a known method, but in this embodiment, the prediction unit 51 makes a prediction based on past sales statistics.

[0028] The temperature control unit 52 controls the temperature inside each storage shelf 21 of the cabinet 2. Specifically, the temperature control unit 52 controls the heater 32 and the cooling system 4 of the temperature control system 3 to control the temperature of the air sent out from each slot of the duct 31 of the temperature control system 3.

[0029] The movement control unit 53 controls the movement of food items within the vending machine 1. In this embodiment, the movement control unit 53 controls the robot arm 10 to control the movement of food items.

[0030] (Control method) 8 is a flowchart showing the processing steps of the control method for the vending machine 1. The control method includes steps S1 to S11, and the control unit 5 executes steps S2, S4, S6, S8, and S10.

[0031] In step S1, food products transported from a food factory are stored in storage shelves 21 of cabinet 2. The food products are stored manually in storage shelves 21. In this embodiment, the food products consist of three types of food products: food A, food B, and food C, and 20 units of food A, 14 units of food B, and 20 units of food C are stored.

[0032] Next, in step S2, the prediction unit 51 of the control unit 5 predicts the sales status of the food products for a predetermined period of time. In this embodiment, the predetermined period is three hours, and the prediction unit 51 predicts that five units of food A, three units of food B, and six units of food C will be sold. Step S2 corresponds to the prediction step described in the claims.

[0033] Steps S3 to S11 show the control details for each food item.

[0034] If the food stored in a certain storage shelf 21 is predicted to be sold within a predetermined period (YES in step S3), the process proceeds to step S4, and if the food is predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period (NO in step S3), the process proceeds to step S10. Steps S4 and S10 correspond to the temperature control step described in the claims.

[0035] In step S4, the temperature control unit 52 of the control unit 5 controls the temperature inside the storage shelf 21 storing the food items predicted to be sold within a predetermined period to a first temperature. The first temperature is a temperature suitable for enjoying the food items, such as 65°C. In this case, the temperature control unit 52 turns on the heater 32 of the temperature control system 3 to preheat the temperature inside the storage shelf 21 to 65°C.

[0036] Thereafter, if the food heated to the first temperature is sold (YES in step S5), the process proceeds to step S6, where the movement control section 53 of the control unit 5 controls the robot arm 10 to move the food from the storage shelf 21 to the outlet 9. This allows the food to be provided to the purchaser at a temperature suitable for eating, improving customer satisfaction.

[0037] On the other hand, if the food heated to the first temperature is not sold (NO in step S5) and a long time (for example, 4 hours) has passed (YES in step S7), the process proceeds to step S8, where movement control unit 53 controls robot arm 10 to move the food from storage shelf 21 to negative pressure trash bin 11. This prevents food that has lost its freshness from being served.

[0038] If a predetermined time (e.g., 5 minutes) has passed since the most recent sales forecast (YES in step S9), the process returns to step S2, and the forecasting unit 51 updates the sales forecast. As a result, for example, if it is predicted that one more unit of food C will be sold, step S4 is executed for that food C.

[0039] As described above, if a food item stored in a certain storage shelf 21 is predicted not to be sold within a predetermined period (NO in step S3), the process proceeds to step S10. In step S10, temperature control unit 52 controls the temperature inside storage shelf 21 storing the food item predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period to a second temperature lower than the first temperature. The second temperature is a temperature suitable for long-term storage of the food item, such as 4°C. In this case, temperature control unit 52 maintains the temperature inside storage shelf 21 at 4°C by switching the flow path inside duct 31 so that cold air from cooling system 4 is sent out from the slot facing storage shelf 21. This prevents bacterial growth and allows food items predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period to be stored for a long period of time, thereby reducing food waste and preventing a decline in seller profits.

[0040] If a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes) has passed since the most recent sales forecast (YES in step S11), the process returns to step S2, and the forecasting unit 51 updates the sales forecast.

[0041] (summary) As described above, in this embodiment, temperature control unit 52 controls the temperature in storage shelf 21 storing food items predicted to sell within a predetermined period to a first temperature, and controls the temperature in storage shelf 21 storing food items predicted not to sell within a predetermined period to a second temperature. This allows food items to be provided to customers at a temperature suitable for eating, and also allows food items predicted not to sell within a predetermined period to be stored for a long period. This further improves customer satisfaction compared to conventional technology.

[0042] If at least one of the foods A to C is sold out, the sale of that food will be stopped. Alternatively, if the preheated food among foods A to C is sold out and only refrigerated food is available, the sale of that food may be stopped.

[0043] Furthermore, when food items predicted to be sold within a predetermined period are located on a storage shelf 21 lower than food items predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period, the movement control unit 53 preferably moves the food items predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a storage shelf 21 higher than the food items predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period. This causes the storage shelf 21 to be preheated to be located higher than the storage shelf 21 to be kept refrigerated, so that the hot air from preheating and the cold air from keeping refrigerated are separated, improving the energy efficiency of the vending machine 1. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 1. Vending machines 2 Cabinets 3. Temperature control system 4. Cooling system 5. Control Unit 6. Modem Router 7 User Interface 8. Electronic Payment Devices 9 Outlet 10 Robotic Arm 11 Negative pressure trash bin 21 Storage Shelf 22 Support member 31 Duct 32 Heater 51 Prediction Department 52 Temperature control unit 53 Movement control unit

Claims

1. A vending machine for selling food, a cabinet having a plurality of storage shelves for individually storing the food products; a prediction unit that predicts the sales status of the food product for a predetermined period of time; a temperature control unit for controlling the temperature in each storage shelf; Equipped with The temperature control unit controlling the temperature in a storage shelf storing the food products predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a first temperature; The temperature in the storage shelf where the food predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period is stored is controlled to a second temperature lower than the first temperature. A vending machine characterized by:

2. Further, a movement control unit that controls the movement of the food within the vending machine is provided. the movement control unit is configured to, when it is determined that the food predicted to be sold within the predetermined period is stored in a storage shelf maintained at the second temperature, move the food predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a storage shelf maintained at the first temperature; The storage shelf maintained at the first temperature is located in the upper part of the cabinet, and the storage shelf maintained at the second temperature is located in the lower part of the cabinet.

2. The vending machine according to claim 1.

3. 1. A control method for controlling a vending machine having a cabinet with a plurality of storage shelves for individually storing food items, comprising: a prediction step of predicting a sales status of the food product for a predetermined period of time; a temperature control step of controlling the temperature in each storage shelf; Equipped with The temperature control step includes: controlling the temperature in a storage shelf storing the food items predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a first temperature; and controlling the temperature in a storage shelf in which the food products predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period are stored to a second temperature that is lower than the first temperature. A control method comprising:

4. A control program for controlling a vending machine having a cabinet with a plurality of storage shelves for individually storing food items, a prediction unit that predicts the sales status of the food product for a predetermined period of time; and a temperature control unit that controls the temperature inside each storage shelf; Run the computer as The temperature control unit controlling the temperature in a storage shelf storing the food products predicted to be sold within the predetermined period to a first temperature; The temperature in the storage shelf where the food predicted not to be sold within the predetermined period is stored is controlled to a second temperature lower than the first temperature. A control program comprising:

5. A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program according to claim 4 is recorded.

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