A conveyor unit system developed for vending machines

Abstract

This invention relates to a conveyor unit system (1) that enables the product to move forward inside recycling vending machines located in hospitals, shopping malls, libraries, airports, train and bus stations, metro and metrobus stops.

Description

[0001] A Conveyor Unit System Developed for Vending Machines

[0002] Technical Field

[0003] This invention relates to a conveyor unit system that facilitates the movement of products inside recycling vending machines located in hospitals, shopping malls, libraries, airports, train and bus stations, and metro and metrobus stops.

[0004] State of Art

[0005] In the current technology, product feeding conveyors become contaminated over time due to liquids remaining in the recycled products fed into the vending machine spilling onto the conveyor belt. Over time, these contaminants accumulate, affecting the proper functioning of the conveyor belt. Furthermore, since the weight of the products fed into the vending machine is measured via the conveyor belt, these accumulated contaminants affect accurate weight measurements.

[0006] For the conveyor to function properly, the conveyor belt should be cleaned at regular intervals to prevent material accumulation around the feeding and discharging points and to ensure accurate weight measurement. In order to clean the conveyor belt, the entire conveyor assembly must be disassembled, the belt removed, and then reassembled because the electrical wiring is located inside the belt. This process results in a waste of time and extra labor.

[0007] The patent application document numbered TR2022 / 006181 , which falls under the known state of the art, describes infeed and outfeed mechanisms for a conveyor. The infeed and outfeed mechanism components are designed to be easily mounted and removed from the conveyor frame, facilitating replacement, cleaning, or maintenance. The said application document does not mention the wireless electrical module structure, which is housed within a waterproof main body and can be removed and reinstalled as a single piece when cleaning of the conveyor belt is required.

[0008] As a result, due to the inadequacy of existing solutions to address the needs described above, a development in the relevant technical field has become necessary.

[0009] Brief Description of the InventionThe invention is inspired by existing situations and aims to solve the aforementioned problems.

[0010] The purpose of the invention is to develop a conveyor unit system that facilitates the movement of products within recycling vending machines located in hospitals, shopping malls, libraries, airports, train and bus stations, and metro and metrobus stops.

[0011] Our invention is a conveyor unit system that operates with a wireless electrical module housed within a waterproof main body. When cleaning the conveyor belt is required, the conveyor unit, as a single piece, is removed from its housing in the recycling machine without the need for tool-assisted disassembly, washed directly, and once dry, is easily positioned back into its housing.

[0012] The design of the structure as a single, waterproof unit facilitates cleaning, and thanks to sensors located inside the unit, various data such as the conveyor group's operating hours, fault status, and maintenance schedule can be measured and accessed instantly via wireless data transmission.

[0013] The structural and characteristic features and all the advantages of the invention will be more clearly understood by means of the figures given below and the detailed description written with references to these figures; therefore, the evaluation needs to be made taking these figures and detailed description into account.

[0014] Figures to Help Understand the Invention

[0015] Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of the conveyor unit system, which is the subject of the invention.

[0016] Figure 2 is a top view of the housing in the conveyor unit system, which is the subject of the invention.

[0017] Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the housing in the conveyor unit system, which is the subject of the invention.

[0018] Figure 4 is a rear view of the housing in the conveyor unit system, which is the subject of the invention.

[0019] Description of Part References1 . Conveyor unit system

[0020] 2. Conveyor belt

[0021] 3. Drive motor

[0022] 4. Drive mechanism

[0023] 5. Spring tension mechanism

[0024] 6. Weight sensor

[0025] 7. Metal detector

[0026] 8. Main body

[0027] 9. Stand with connection point

[0028] 10. Stand without connection point

[0029] 11. Power unit with connection point

[0030] 12. Power unit without connection point

[0031] 13. Data unit with connection point

[0032] 14. Data unit without connection point

[0033] Detailed Description of the Invention

[0034] In this detailed description, the preferred embodiments of the system (1), which is the subject of the invention, are described only for the purpose of better understanding the subject.

[0035] This invention relates to a conveyor unit system (1) that enables the product to move forward inside recycling vending machines located in hospitals, shopping malls, libraries, airports, train and bus stations, metro and metrobus stops.

[0036] The system (1) according to the invention, whose perspective view is presented in Figure 1 , comprises the following:❖ Conveyor belt (2) that ensures the products thrown into the vending machine are transported into the vending machine without slipping,

[0037] ❖ Drive motor (3) that initiates the movement necessary for the movement of the conveyor belt (2),

[0038] ❖ Drive mechanism (4) that transmits the motion it receives from the drive motor (3) to the conveyor belt (2) and positions the conveyor belt (2) on it for rigid operation,

[0039] ❖ Spring tension mechanism (5) that facilitates the mounting of the conveyor belt (2) positioned on the drive mechanism (4) and allows adjustment of the desired tension of the conveyor belt (2) after mounting,

[0040] ❖ Weight sensors (6) that are positioned at the pressure points of the energy stand to measure the weight of the products thrown into recycling while they are on the conveyor belt (2),

[0041] ❖ Metal detector (7) that enables the detection of metal waste thrown into the recycling machine.

[0042] ❖ Main body (8) that is waterproof and brings together all the elements necessary for the system (1) to work,

[0043] ❖ Stand with connection point (9) that is located inside the main body (8), with a conductive slide or connection contact pin on it to provide energy and data transfer,

[0044] ❖ Stand without connection point (10) that is located inside the main body (8), provides power and data transfer via wireless connection such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.,

[0045] ❖ Power unit with connection point (11 ) that is located inside the main body (8) and receives the energy needed by the conveyor group and other elements from the stand with connection point (9) via a connection element such as a pin,

[0046] ❖ Power unit without connection point (12) that is located inside the main body (8) and receives the energy needed by the conveyor group via the stand without the connection point (10) using Wifi, Bluetooth and other wireless connections, ❖ Data unit with connection point (13) that analyzes data such as the working hours, maintenance hours, and fault status of the conveyor group thanks to the data from the weight sensors (6) and metal sensors (7) located inside the main body (8) and transmits this data to the data station located on the connection point stand (9) via a connection element such as pin, cable and so on, and❖ Data unit without connection point (14) that analyzes data such as the working hours, maintenance hours, and fault status of the conveyor group thanks to the data from the weight sensors (6) and metal sensors (7) located inside the main body (8) and transmits this data to the wireless data unit located on the stand without a connection point (10) via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and other wireless connections, when cleaning of the conveyor belt (2) is required, is removed from its housing together with the main body (8), the stand with connection point (9), the stand without connection point (10), the power unit with connection point (11), the power unit without the connection point (12), and the data unit with connection point (13) as a single integrated piece, without the need for tool-assisted disassembly from the recycling machine, and which, after the washing process is completed, is repositioned back into its housing together with the other components as a single piece without the need for tool-assisted installation.

[0047] The system (1 ) can function as a single modular unit thanks to its elements located inside the waterproof main body (8). When cleaning of the conveyor belt (2) is required, the elements located inside the body (8) can be removed from the recycling machine as a single piece without the need for tool disassembly, from the slot in which they are located. Once the cleaning process is complete, these components are easily repositioned into their housings as a single piece, without the need for any tools.

[0048] Designed as a waterproof unit in a single body (8), the system (1) provides ease of cleaning, and at the same time, many data such as the working hours, fault status, and maintenance time tracking of the conveyor group can be measured and accessed instantly thanks to wireless data transmission via weight sensors (6) and metal detectors (7) located inside the main body (8).

[0049] The conveyor belt (2) is mounted on the rail via the stand with connection points (9) or the stand without connection point (10).

[0050] The stand with connection point (9) distributes power via the power unit with connection point (11) shown in Figure 3. The stand without connection point (10) distributes power wirelessly via the power unit without connection point (12).The stand with connection point (9) and the stand without connection point (10) are also responsible for data transmission. The stand with connection point (9) transmits data via the data unit with connection point (13). The stand without connection point (10) transmits data wirelessly via the data unit without connection point (13).

[0051] The spring tension mechanism (5) keeps the conveyor belt (2) taut and allows the product on it to move forward.

[0052] When the drive motor (3) is started, the drive mechanism (4) is activated and the conveyor belt (2) starts to move forward. Data from the metal detector (7) in Figure 2 is sent wirelessly to the data unit without connection point (14) via the power unit without connection point (12). These data are then sent from the data unit without connection point (14) to the stand without connection point (10). Alternatively, in port transmission, the data received from the detector (7) is sent to the data unit with connection point (13) in Figure 4 via the power unit with connection point (11). These data are then sent from the data unit with connection point (13) to the stand with connection point (9). The same processes are carried out for the data transmitted from the weight sensors (6).

[0053] The conveyor belt (2) is separated from the rail by sliding it from the stand with connection point (9) or from the stand without connection point (10). Thanks to the waterproof main body (8), the conveyor belt (2) can be easily cleaned by washing it under water.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A conveyor unit system (1) that has a conveyor belt (2) which ensures that the products thrown into the vending machine are transported into the vending machine without slipping, and a drive motor (3) which initiates the movement necessary for the movement of the conveyor belt (2), a drive mechanism (4) which transmits the motion it receives from the drive motor (3) to the conveyor belt (2) and positions the conveyor belt (2) on it for rigid operation, and a spring tension mechanism (5) which facilitates the mounting of the conveyor belt (2) positioned on the drive mechanism (4) and is used to adjust the desired tension of the conveyor belt (2) after mounting, weight sensors (6) which are positioned at the pressure points of the energy stand to measure the weight of the products thrown into the recycling machine while they are on the conveyor belt (2) and a metal detector (7) to detect the metal waste thrown into the recycling machine, and enables the product to move forward inside recycling vending machines located in hospitals, shopping malls, libraries, airports, train and bus stations, metro and metrobus stops, characterized by comprising:❖ a main body (8), which is waterproof and brings together all the elements necessary for the system (1) to work,❖ a stand with connection point (9) located inside the main body (8), with a conductive slide or connection contact pin on it to provide energy and data transfer,❖ a stand without connection point (10) located inside the main body (8) that provides power and data transfer via wireless connection such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.,❖ a power unit with connection point (11), which is located inside the main body (8) and receives the energy needed by the conveyor group and other elements from the stand with connection point (9) via a connection element such as a pin,❖ a power unit without connection point (12), which is located inside the main body (8) and receives the energy needed by the conveyor group via the stand without connection point (10) using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and other wireless connections,❖ a data unit with connection point (13) that analyzes data such as the working hours, maintenance hours, and fault status of the conveyor group thanks to the data from the weight sensors (6) and metal sensors (7)located inside the main body (8) and transmits this data to the data station located on the stand with connection point (9) via a connection element such as pin, cable and so on, and❖ a data unit without connection point (14) positioned within the main body (8), which analyzes data such as operating time, maintenance time, and fault status of the conveyor group by means of data obtained from weight sensors (6) and metal sensors (7), and transmits these data via wireless communication such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or similar wireless connections to a wireless data unit located on the stand without connection point (10); and which, when cleaning of the conveyor belt (2) is required, is removed from its housing together with the main body (8), the stand with connection point (9), the stand without connection point (10), the power unit with connection point (11), the power unit without connection point (12), and the data unit with connection point (13) as a single integrated piece without the need for tool-assisted disassembly from the recycling machine, and, after completion of the washing process, is repositioned into its housing together with the other components as a single piece without the need for tool-assisted installation.

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