Food and drink conveying equipment

Abstract

To provide a food transporting device capable of transferring dishes of food between conveyors even when sizes of dishes of food to be transported are varied from small to large.SOLUTION: A food transporting device of the present invention includes: a first conveyor which forms a transportation route from a kitchen of a restaurant to customer seats; a second conveyor which is provided to a kitchen side of the first conveyor and extends the transportation route formed by the first conveyor toward the side; and a guide mechanism which is provided to a connecting section of the first conveyor and the second conveyor, and guides the dishes of food from the second conveyor to the first conveyor. The guide mechanism includes a guide belt in which at least a part of belt is stretched from the second conveyor to the first conveyor just above the second conveyor so as to cross the transportation direction of the second conveyor.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a food and drink conveying device. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, restaurants have been providing food and drink using conveying devices (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-137186 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When transporting food and beverages, for example, tableware for the food and beverages may be placed on a belt conveyor that runs from the kitchen to the customer seats. Furthermore, when it is necessary to create a corner in the conveyor belt's path due to the layout of the restaurant, it is possible to form the corner by arranging two belt conveyors that form a linear path adjacent to each other in a non-linear manner. In a corner formed by arranging two belt conveyors that form a linear path adjacent to each other in a non-linear manner, it is essential to ensure that the tableware for the food and beverages can be smoothly transferred from one belt conveyor to the other.

[0005] One method for smoothly transferring food and beverage dishes between conveyors is to provide a movable member at the transfer point to push the food and beverage dishes. This method is effective when the food and beverage dishes are of a uniform size. However, when the food and beverage dishes vary in size, the size of the food and beverage dishes may be too large or too small for the movable member's range of motion, making it impossible for the food and beverage dishes to transfer smoothly.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present application is to provide a food and drink conveying device that can transfer food and drink dishes between conveyors, even if the food and drink dishes being conveyed are of various sizes. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, in the present invention, a guide mechanism for guiding tableware for food and drink with a belt is provided at the connection portion of the two conveyors.

[0008] In detail, the present invention is a food and beverage conveying device comprising a first conveyor that forms a conveying path from the kitchen of a restaurant to the customer seats, a second conveyor that is installed on the kitchen side of the first conveyor and extends laterally along the conveying path formed by the first conveyor, and a guide mechanism that is provided at the connection between the first conveyor and the second conveyor and guides food and beverage dishes from the second conveyor to the first conveyor, and the guide mechanism has a guide belt that is stretched such that at least a portion of the belt crosses the conveying direction of the second conveyor from the second conveyor to the first conveyor directly above the second conveyor.

[0009] The food and drink conveying device is equipped with a guide belt that guides the transfer of food and drink dishes from the second conveyor to the first conveyor. At least a portion of this guide belt is stretched across the conveying direction of the second conveyor from the second conveyor to the first conveyor directly above the second conveyor, so that dishes moving on the second conveyor inevitably come into contact with the guide belt. And the dishes are transferred to the second conveyor. The product moves along a belt that is stretched across the conveying direction of the first conveyor, and transfers from the second conveyor to the first conveyor.

[0010] In the food and beverage conveying device, the tableware is guided by a guide belt that runs directly above the second conveyor, so the tableware comes into contact with the guide belt regardless of the size of the tableware. Therefore, with the food and beverage conveying device, even if the tableware being conveyed varies in size, it is possible to transfer the tableware between the conveyors.

[0011] The guide mechanism may further include a pulley for supporting the guide belt so that its height is aligned with the bottom of the tableware placed on the second conveyor, and for driving the guide belt. With such a food and beverage conveying device, the guide mechanism can guide the tableware by the bottom, so that the tableware can be transferred to approximately the center of the width of the first conveyor, even if the top surface of the tableware on which food and beverages are placed varies in size.

[0012] The tableware may also include a first tableware having a base portion with a predetermined outer diameter, and a second tableware having a base portion with the same outer diameter as the base portion of the first tableware, but with a different size of the top surface of the tableware on which food or drink is placed than that of the first tableware. With such tableware, when the guide mechanism of the food and drink conveying device guides the tableware by its base portion, it can transfer the tableware to approximately the center of the width of the first conveyor, even if the top surface of the tableware on which food or drink is placed varies in size.

[0013] The first and second conveyors may be belt conveyors. In the case of a belt conveyor, the tableware for food and drink is placed on the conveying surface of the belt, and the guide belt of the guide mechanism can guide the tableware on the belt conveyor.

[0014] The second conveyor and the guide mechanism may also be configured to stop after the food and beverage dishes placed on the second conveyor have been transferred to the first conveyor, thereby enabling the next food and beverage dishes to be transported to be quickly placed on the second conveyor after the food and beverage dishes have been transferred from the second conveyor to the first conveyor. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] With the food and drink conveying device described above, food and drink dishes can be transferred between conveyors even if the dishes being conveyed vary in size. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an ordered food and drink conveying device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the vicinity of the connection between the kitchen-side conveying path and the customer-side conveying path. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the guide mechanism. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing how the tableware is guided by the guide mechanism. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of how tableware is conveyed within a store. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] The following describes embodiments of the present invention. The embodiments described below are merely examples of the present invention and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. The embodiments and variations described below are suitable for restaurants that serve various foods and drinks, such as sushi, beverages, rice bowls such as soba and udon, and fried chicken and tempura.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an ordered food and drink conveying apparatus 10 according to an embodiment. The ordered food and drink conveying apparatus 10 is installed in a store 1 which is divided into a kitchen area 3 and a customer seating area 4 by a wall 2. The ordered food and drink conveying device 10 has conveying paths such as a kitchen-side conveying path 1A and a customer-side conveying path 1B, and conveys food and drink prepared in the kitchen area 3 to each customer table 5 in the customer seating area 4 where customers 8 are seated. More specifically, the ordered food and drink conveying device 10 has the kitchen-side conveying path 1A within the kitchen area 3 so that the staff member 7 in the kitchen area 3 can place the tableware 9 for the food and drink prepared on the work table 6 thereon. The ordered food and drink conveying device 10 also has a customer-side conveying path 1B within the customer seating area 4, which is arranged alongside each customer table 5 in the customer seating area 4. The customer-side conveying path 1B is arranged to extend from the end of the kitchen-side conveying path 1A in the kitchen area 3 toward the customer seating area 4. A branch lane 1C branching off from the customer-side conveying path 1B is provided at each customer table 5 in the customer seating area 4. In addition, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 is equipped with motors and the like for operating each mechanism. As each part of ordered food and drink conveying device 10 is operated by a motor or the like, tableware 9 for food and drink prepared at work table 6 by staff 7 in kitchen area 3 is automatically conveyed to branch lane 1C of each customer table 5 via kitchen-side conveying path 1A and customer-side conveying path 1B.

[0019] Branch lane 1C is a lane along customer-side conveyance path 1B onto which food and drink dishes 9 branched off from customer-side conveyance path 1B by a path change device provided near the junction of customer-side conveyance path 1B and branch lane 1C are transferred. Branch lane 1C is formed by a group of rotatable conveyance rollers. Furthermore, branch lane 1C branches off to the side from customer-side conveyance path 1B and forms a downwardly sloping path along customer-side conveyance path 1B. Therefore, when dish 9 is placed on it, the rollers rotate freely, and the dish 9 moves under its own weight to the end of branch lane 1C.

[0020] The path change device, located at the branch point where customer-side conveying path 1B branches off into branch lane 1C, guides tableware 9 moving on customer-side conveying path 1B to branch lane 1C by extending a movable member from the side onto customer-side conveying path 1B. The path change device has a rotary solenoid or motor operated by a control device that controls ordered food and drink conveying device 10, which moves the movable member in and out onto customer-side conveying path 1B.

[0021] In FIG. 1, branch lane 1C is provided on customer table 5 for booth seats with a rectangular top, but the present invention is not limited to this type of configuration. Branch lane 1C may also be provided on a table for counter seats, for example. Furthermore, although branch lane 1C is provided in ordered food and drink conveying device 10 of this embodiment, branch lane 1C may be omitted. In this case, customer 8 directly picks up food and drink tableware 9 that has stopped on customer seat-side conveying path 1B near customer table 5 from customer seat-side conveying path 1B.

[0022] Although not shown, above the customer seating side conveyor 1B, shelves for placing, for example, teacups, condiments, menus, etc., are supported by supports. Such supports and shelves may be omitted, or alternatives may be installed.

[0023] As can be seen from Figure 1, customer-side conveying path 1B extends perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of kitchen-side conveying path 1A. Therefore, it can be said that kitchen-side conveying path 1A and customer-side conveying path 1B form a corner at the end of kitchen-side conveying path 1A. At such corners, a component or mechanism is required to smoothly guide tableware 9. Therefore, to ensure smooth movement of tableware 9 at such corners, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 has guide mechanism 1D at the connection between kitchen-side conveying path 1A and customer-side conveying path 1B.

[0024] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the vicinity of the connection between the kitchen-side conveying path 1A and the customer-side conveying path 1B. As can be seen from FIG. 2, at the connection between the kitchen-side conveying path 1A and the customer-side conveying path 1B, the starting point of the customer-side conveying path 1B is located to the side of the end of the kitchen-side conveying path 1A. If guide mechanism 1D is not provided at the connection between kitchen-side conveying path 1A and customer-side conveying path 1B, tableware 9 arriving at the end of kitchen-side conveying path 1A by kitchen-side belt conveyor 1A1 cannot transfer to customer-side belt conveyor 1B1 of customer-side conveying path 1B without some assistance. Therefore, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 has guide mechanism 1D at the end of kitchen-side conveying path 1A, which guides tableware 9 on kitchen-side belt conveyor 1A1 toward customer-side conveying path 1B with a belt.

[0025] Figure 3 shows the guide mechanism 1D. The guide mechanism 1D includes a round belt 1D1, at least a portion of which is stretched directly above the kitchen-side belt conveyor 1A1 from the kitchen-side belt conveyor 1A1 to the customer-side belt conveyor 1B1 so as to diagonally cross the conveyance direction of the kitchen-side belt conveyor 1A1, pulleys 1D2 and 1D3 that support the round belt 1D1, and a motor 1D5 for driving the pulley 1D2. Therefore, when the round belt 1D1 is rotating in the direction of the arrow in Figure 3 by the motor 1D5, and tableware 9 arrives at the end of the kitchen-side conveyor path 1A, the guide mechanism 1D can guide the tableware 9 toward the customer-side conveyor path 1B while keeping it in contact with the round belt 1D1. The round belt 1D1 is not limited to being stretched so as to cross the conveying direction of the kitchen side belt conveyor 1A1 at an angle, but may be stretched so as to cross the conveying direction of the bunch side belt conveyor 1A1 at a right angle, for example.

[0026] The guide mechanism 1D has a support guide 1D4 to prevent the tableware 9 in contact with the round belt 1D1 from being subjected to a repulsive force from the round belt 1D1, which is caused by the tension applied to the round belt 1D1 by the pulleys 1D2 and 1D3. The support guide 1D4 is located between the pulleys 1D2 and 1D3, behind the portion of the round belt 1D1 that comes into contact with the tableware 9. The support guide 1D4 prevents the round belt 1D1 from bending due to contact with the tableware 9. The support guide 1D4 prevents the round belt 1D1 from bending when the tableware 9 comes into contact with it, thereby reducing the repulsive force the tableware 9 receives from the round belt 1D1 and guiding the tableware 9 smoothly. The support guide 1D4 can also guide the tableware 9 in place of the round belt 1D1 if the round belt 1D1 breaks or is otherwise malfunctioning.

[0027] Incidentally, tableware 9 of various sizes may be handled in store 1. Therefore, guide mechanism 1D of ordered food and drink conveying device 10 is configured as follows so as to be able to handle tableware 9 of various sizes.

[0028] Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line indicated by the symbol AA in Fig. 3. Fig. 4 shows a cross-section near the end of the kitchen-side conveying path 1A, along with tableware 9. Figs. 4(A) to 4(C) illustrate a state in which three different types of tableware 9 of different sizes are placed on the tray. Fig. 4(A) illustrates the plate with the smallest height and width of the three types of tableware 9 shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 4(B) illustrates the plate with the largest height of the three types of tableware 9 shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 4(C) illustrates the plate with the largest width of the three types of tableware 9 shown in Fig. 4.

[0029] As can be seen by comparing Figures 4(A) to (C), the upper surface 9A of the dish, on which food or drink is placed, of the dish 9 in each figure has the smallest width W2 of the upper surface 9A of the dish shown in Figure 4(A), followed by width W3 of the upper surface 9A of the dish shown in Figure 4(B), and then width W4 of the upper surface 9A of the dish shown in Figure 4(C). However, for all three types of dish 9 shown in each figure in Figure 4, the width of the bottom 9B, which is the bottom of the plate, is constant at W1. Furthermore, for all three types of dish 9 shown in Figure 4, the bottom 9B is approximately the same height as the round belt 1D1. Therefore, when the dish 9 moves along the kitchen-side belt conveyor 1A1 in the direction of the arrow in Figure 4 (from right to left in Figure 4), When the tableware 9 moves to the table, the bottom 9B of the tableware 9 comes into contact with the round belt 1D1 below the tableware top 9A. The tableware 9 is then guided from the kitchen-side conveying path 1A to the customer-side conveying path 1B by the round belt 1D1 in contact with the bottom 9B.

[0030] FIG. 5 shows how the tableware 9 is guided by the guide mechanism 1D. FIGS. 5(A1) and 5(A2) correspond to the tableware 9 shown in FIG. 4(A), FIGS. 5(B1) and 5(B2) correspond to the tableware 9 shown in FIG. 4(B), and FIGS. 5(C1) and 5(C2) correspond to the tableware 9 shown in FIG. 4(C). Even if the widths of the tableware tops 9A vary, such as W2, W3, and W4, the width of the bases 9B is constant at W1. Therefore, regardless of the size of the tableware 9, the tableware 9 transferred from the kitchen-side conveying path 1A to the customer-side conveying path 1B can move along the customer-side conveying path 1B while remaining substantially centered in the width direction of the customer-side conveying path 1B (the line indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 5) without being offset to either the left or right in the width direction of the customer-side conveying path 1B. Therefore, while the tableware 9 is moving along the customer-side conveyance path 1B, the edge of the tableware top surface 9A is unlikely to unintentionally come into contact with structures along the customer-side conveyance path 1B. Also, since the tableware 9 moves along the customer-side conveyance path 1B while being positioned approximately in the center of the width of the customer-side conveyance path 1B, it can also appropriately come into contact with the movable member of the path change device provided at the branch point from the customer-side conveyance path 1B to the branch lane 1C. This allows for smooth movement from the customer-side conveyance path 1B to the branch lane 1C.

[0031] It is sufficient that at least the bottom 9B of the tableware 9 is circular when viewed from below. For example, the top 9A of the tableware may be rectangular when viewed from above. Because the bottom 9B is circular when viewed from below, the width W1 of the bottom 9B can also be considered the outer diameter of the bottom 9B. As long as at least the bottom 9B is circular when viewed from below, the guide mechanism 1D can smoothly guide the tableware 9 from the kitchen-side conveying path 1A to the customer-side conveying path 1B, so the ordered food and drink conveying device 10 can convey not only round tableware 9 but also square tableware 9. Needless to say, the ordered food and drink conveying device 10 is not limited to application to a store 1 that handles three types of tableware 9. The ordered food and drink conveying device 10 may be applied to a store 1 that handles two or fewer types of tableware 9, or to a store 1 that handles four or more types of tableware 9.

[0032] These tableware 9, which have different sizes of tableware tops 9A but the same outer diameter of the base 9B, can be said to be suitable for the ordered food and drink conveying device 10. Therefore, these tableware 9 may be considered separate items from the ordered food and drink conveying device 10, or may be considered to constitute a part of the ordered food and drink conveying device 10. Although the ordered food and drink conveying device 10 is suitable for conveying such tableware 9, it is not limited to conveying such tableware 9. The ordered food and drink conveying device 10 can also convey, for example, general tableware that is not specifically designed for the ordered food and drink conveying device 10. In this case, the round belt 1D1 of the guide mechanism 1D may come into contact with parts other than the base of the tableware. However, even in such a case, the guide mechanism 1D can still guide the tableware with the round belt 1D1.

[0033] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the manner in which tableware 9 is conveyed within store 1. As illustrated in FIG. 6, a staff member 7 in kitchen area 3 receives an order from a customer 8 at a specific customer table 5 and places the prepared tableware 9 for food and drink on kitchen-side conveying path 1A. When the staff member 7 performs a conveying start operation, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 is activated. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the tableware 9 placed on kitchen-side conveying path 1A moves along kitchen-side conveying path 1A, is guided by guide mechanism 1D at the end of kitchen-side conveying path 1A toward customer-side conveying path 1B, and continues to move along customer-side conveying path 1B. The tableware 9 then enters branch lane 1C of customer table 5 where the food and drink order was made.

[0034] As can be seen from a detailed look at Figure 6, tableware 9 of various sizes is conveyed by the ordered food and drink conveying device 10. As shown in Figure 6, the ordered food and drink conveying device 10 may convey a relatively small piece of tableware 9 to the customer table 5, and then immediately convey a relatively large piece of tableware 9. It is possible.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 6, optical sensor 1A3 is installed at the beginning of kitchen-side conveying path 1A, and optical sensor 1A2 is installed at the end of kitchen-side conveying path 1A. One of optical sensors 1A2 and 1A3 has a light-emitting element, and the other has a light-receiving element. Therefore, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 can determine the presence or absence of tableware 9 placed on kitchen-side conveying path 1A by detecting the presence or absence of an object that blocks the sensor light between optical sensor 1A2 and optical sensor 1A3. After a conveyance start operation is performed to start conveying tableware 9, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 can stop kitchen-side conveying path 1A while leaving customer-side conveying path 1B operating when optical sensors 1A2 and 1A3 detect that all tableware 9 placed on kitchen-side conveying path 1A have been transferred to customer-side conveying path 1B. Once all the dishes 9 on the kitchen-side conveying path 1A have been transferred to the customer-side conveying path 1B and the kitchen-side conveying path 1A has stopped, the staff member 7 can immediately place the dishes 9 for the next food or drink to be conveyed onto the kitchen-side conveying path 1A. This allows the staff member 7 to efficiently prepare the dishes 9 carrying food or drink.

[0036] In the above embodiment of ordered food and drink conveying device 10, kitchen-side conveying path 1A is composed of one belt conveyor, and customer-side conveying path 1B is composed of one belt conveyor, but kitchen-side conveying path 1A and customer-side conveying path 1B may each be composed of two or more belt conveyors. Also, ordered food and drink conveying device 10 may be configured so that kitchen-side conveying path 1A and customer-side conveying path 1B are formed by non-belt conveyors such as roller conveyors.

[0037] In the above-described embodiment of the ordered food and beverage conveying device 10, the conveying directions of the conveying paths intersect at an angle at the connection between the kitchen-side conveying path 1A and the customer-side conveying path 1B. However, the conveying directions of the conveying paths may also intersect at an angle. In the above-described embodiment of the ordered food and beverage conveying device 10, the kitchen-side conveying path 1A and the customer-side conveying path 1B form a single conveying path. However, the ordered food and beverage conveying device 10 may have multiple parallel conveying paths, or may be provided with a circulating conveying device using a crescent chain. For example, the ordered food and beverage conveying device 10 may have a circulating conveying path using a crescent chain instead of the customer-side conveying path 1B, and may transport tableware 9 from the kitchen-side conveying path 1A to the circulating conveying path using a guide mechanism 1D. In this case, the ordered food and beverage conveying device 10 may also be considered a food and beverage conveying device capable of conveying non-ordered items. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1··Store 2. Wall 3. Kitchen area 4. Seating area 5. Guest table 6. Workbench 7. Staff 8...Food and drink customers 9. Tableware 10. Ordered food and beverage conveying device 1A Kitchen side transport path 1B Passenger side transport route 1C Branch Lane 1D guide mechanism 9A...top part of tableware 9B...Thread bottom 1A1 Kitchen side conveyor belt 1A2 Optical Sensor 1A3 Optical Sensor 1B1: Passenger seating side conveyor belt 1D1 Round Belt 1D2 pulley 1D3··Pulley 1D4 Support guide 1D5··Motor

Claims

1. a first conveyor forming a transport path from the kitchen of the restaurant to the seating area; a second conveyor that is installed on the kitchen side of the first conveyor and extends laterally along the conveying path formed by the first conveyor; a guide mechanism provided at a connection between the first conveyor and the second conveyor for guiding tableware for food and drink from the second conveyor to the first conveyor; The guide mechanism includes: a guide belt, at least a portion of which is stretched from the second conveyor to the first conveyor directly above the second conveyor so as to cross the conveying direction of the second conveyor; a pulley for supporting the guide belt in a state where the height of the guide belt is matched with the bottom of the tableware placed on the second conveyor, and for driving the guide belt; Food and beverage conveying equipment.

2. The tableware is a first tableware having a bottom portion with a predetermined outer diameter; a second dish having a bottom with the same outer diameter as the bottom of the first dish and a size of the top surface of the dish on which food or drink is placed that is different from that of the first dish; The food and drink conveying device according to claim 1.

3. the first conveyor and the second conveyor are belt conveyors; The food and drink conveying device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the second conveyor and the guide mechanism stop after the tableware for food and drink placed on the second conveyor is transferred to the first conveyor; A food and drink conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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