Sanitized vending machine having cup retention-and-release mechanism

摘要

A sanitized vending machine includes product and cup dispensing mechanisms and an actuation mechanism. The product dispensing mechanism, holding product items, rotates through a product dispensing cycle to dispense them. The cup dispensing mechanism, holding a stack of cups, rotates through a cup dispensing cycle to dispense an empty cup to an intermediate location in a drop chute spaced above a final discharge location. Dispensing cycles occur in predetermined sequence enabling dispensed product items to be received in a previously dispensed cup. A cup retention-and-release mechanism disposed about and adjacent to the drop chute at the intermediate location converts between a cup hold position, wherein the empty cup is caught and retained at the intermediate location awaiting receipt of dispensed product items into the cup, and a cup release position, wherein the cup now having dispensed product items received therein is released and enabled to drop to the discharge location.

主权项

1. A sanitized vending machine, comprising:
a product dispensing mechanism adapted to hold a plurality of product items and rotate through a product dispensing cycle during which said product dispensing mechanism dispenses one or more of product items; a cup dispensing mechanism adapted to hold at least one stack of cups and rotate through a cup dispensing cycle during which said cup dispensing mechanism dispenses a cup from the stack; a drop chute disposed below and in communication with said product and cup dispensing mechanisms and being adapted to receive the dispensed product items and cup and guide the dispensed product items and cup to an intermediate location in said drop chute, being spaced below said product and cup dispensing mechanisms, and therefrom to a discharge location, being spaced below said drop chute and intermediate location therein; a cup retention-and-release mechanism disposed about and adjacent to said drop chute at said intermediate location thereof, said mechanism being adapted to convert from a cup hold position, wherein a dispensed cup is caught and retained at said intermediate location awaiting receipt of the dispensed product items into the dispensed cup, to a cup release position in response to receipt of the dispensed product items in the dispensed cup, wherein the dispensed cup with dispensed product items therein releases and drops to said discharge location; and an actuation mechanism including
a rotatable actuator adapted to cause rotation of said product and cup dispensing mechanisms, anda handle coupled to said rotatable actuator and adapted to be turned by a user to rotate said rotatable actuator through an actuation cycle that causes rotation of said product and cup dispensing mechanisms through said respective product and cup dispensing cycles in a predetermined sequence so that the dispensed cup is guided to and received at said intermediate location of said drop chute at the completion of one actuation cycle and the dispensed product items are guided to and received in the dispensed cup being located at said intermediate location during the next actuation cycle thereby ensuring that only a cup with product items therein is dropped to said discharge location; wherein said cup retention-and-release mechanism includes a plurality of pivotal ledges spaced apart from one another and being mounted to said drop chute about said intermediate location in said drop chute to undergo pivotal movement between inward extended positions defining said cup hold position and outward retracted positions defining said cup release position; wherein said cup retention-and-release mechanism also includes a plurality of springs spaced apart from one another and being disposed so as to bias said pivotal ledges to assume said inward extended position in which said dispensed cup is caught and retained by said pivotal ledges at said intermediate location awaiting dispensing of product items therein, the bias of said springs being preselected such that the weight of the dispensed cup alone is insufficient to overcome the bias of said springs whereas the weight of the dispensed cup with the dispensed product items therein is sufficient to overcome the bias of said springs so as to thereby cause said pivotal ledges to pivot to said outward retracted positions, allowing said dispensed cup and product items therein to drop to said discharge location.