MULTI-SIDED VENDING MACHINE

• US 20110172813A1
• Filed: 01/11/2011
• Published: 07/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert Baric
• Original Assignee: Robert Baric
• Inventors: BARIC, Robert
• Granted Patent: US 9,098,959 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/232
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/10 two or more magazines having a common delivery chute
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/001 Interfacing with vending machines using mobile or wearable devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/009 User recognition or proximity detection
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/10 Casings or parts thereof, e.g. with means for heating or cooling

Abstract

A vending machine has a housing with a first side and a second side opposite the first side. A first dispensing slot is located at the first side of the housing, and a second dispensing slot is located at the second side of the housing. A central product storage stores product to be dispensed from the vending machine. A product delivery system selectively delivers product from said product storage to the first dispensing slot and said second dispensing slot.

Claims

1. A vending machine comprising:

product storage for storing product to be dispensed from the vending machine;

at least two dispensing sides for dispensing product from the vending machine; and

,

at least one non-dispensing side.

2. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein said at least two dispensing sides are on opposite sides of said vending machine.

3. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein said product storage is in a center of said vending machine.

4. The vending machine of claim 1, further comprising:

a processor;

at least two display devices communicating with said processor, each of said at least two display devices located at a respective one of said at least two dispensing sides; and

at least two input devices communicating with said processor, each of said at least two input devices located at a respective one of said at least two dispensing sides to receive information from a user.

5. The vending machine of claim 1, further comprising a receiver for communicating with a remote processor to receive a dispense command, whereby the processor dispenses product from said vending machine in response to the received dispense command.

6. The vending machine of claim 1, further comprising a chute configured to receive product from said product storage and direct the product to one of the at least two dispensing sides.

7. The vending machine of claim 6, wherein each of the at least two dispensing sides have a dispensing slot, and said chute directs the product to the dispensing slot for the one of the at least two dispensing sides.

8. The vending machine of claim 6, wherein said chute comprises a planar panel which rotates about a central axis.

9. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein said chute has a wing portion hinged to the planar panel, and a post connected to a vending machine housing, wherein the post pushes the wing portion upward as the panel rotates downward, to direct product to the one of the at least two dispensing sides.

10. A vending machine comprising:

a storage side for storing product to be dispensed from the vending machine; and

,

a dispense side for receiving product from said storage side and dispensing product from the vending machine, wherein the dispense side is directly adjacent the storage side and the dispense side includes all of the electronics needed to operate the vending machine.

11. The vending machine of claim 10, wherein the storage side does not include any electronics not appropriate for this space.

12. The vending machine of claim 10, wherein said storage side can be positioned directly adjacent a fuel dispenser.

13. The vending machine of claim 10, wherein said storage side and said dispensing side are separate and distinct from each other and form a vertical side-by-side or horizontal above-below relationship.

14. The vending machine of claim 10, wherein the electronics are contained in unclassified space outside Class 1 Division 2 space, and the storage side is in Class 1 Division 2 space.

15. A vending machine comprising:

a housing having a first side and a second side;

a first dispensing slot at the first side of the housing;

a second dispensing slot at the second side of the housing;

product storage for storing product to be dispensed from the vending machine; and

,

a product delivery system for selectively delivering product from said product storage to the first dispensing slot and said second dispensing slot.

16. The vending machine of claim 15, further comprising a first user input at the first side of the housing for selecting a first desired product, a second user input at the second side of the housing for selecting a second desired product, wherein said product delivery system delivers the first desired product to the first dispensing slot and delivers the second desired product to the second dispensing slot.

17. The vending machine of claim 16, wherein said product delivery system comprises a planar panel which rotates about a central axis, wherein the planar panel rotates to the first side to deliver the first desired product to the first dispensing slot, and rotates to the second side to deliver the second desired product to the second dispensing slot.

18. The vending machine of claim 16, wherein said housing is rectangular in shape and said first side is opposite from said second side.

19. The vending machine of claim 16, wherein said housing is circular in shape.

20. The vending machine of claim 15, further comprising a processor having a wireless detector for wirelessly detecting a unique ID of a user cell phone, associating a transaction with the unique ID, and generating a message to the user based on the transaction.

21. The vending machine of claim 15, further comprising a processor having a detector for detecting a unique user characteristic and associating a transaction with the unique user characteristic.

22. The vending machine of claim 15, said housing further having a third side and a fourth side.