Vending machine with management mode selection indicators

• US 4,834,231 A
• Filed: 04/01/1987
• Issued: 05/30/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/1984
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fuji Electric Company Limited (Fuji Electric Systems Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Awane, Misao, Kobayashi, Satoshi, Hara, Seiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Rolla, Joseph J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US07/033,393
• Time in Patent Office: 790 Days
• Field of Search: 194/215, 194/216, 194/217, 194/218, 194/219, 364/478, 364/479, 221/2, 221/6, 221/7, 221/8, 221/129, 221/14, 340/365 R, 340/365 VL, 340/825.33, 340/825.35
• US Class Current: 194/217
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 5/22 electrically actuated
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/026 for alarm, monitoring and auditing in vending machines or means for indication, e.g. when empty
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/08 Counting total of coins inserted

Abstract

A vending machine includes a plurality of selection switches corresponding to a plurality of items to be sold respectively, and in response to insertion of coins and the subsequent operation of any of selection switches, the item corresponding to the selection switch is vended. A RAM is installed associatedly with a microcomputer, and this RAM contains memory areas for storing the sales quantity and the sales amount on item basis, and these data are renewed at every vending. The RAM further contains a price memory area for storing the sales price of each item. When any of selection switches is operated in ready state of the machine, the price of the item corresponding to that selection switch is read from the RAM and is displayed on the inserted-amount display. Furthermore, when a selection switch is depressed in the state when the management mode is set up, the price of the item corresponding to that switch is displayed likewise. Moreover, in response to a selective operation of the selection switch, the sales quantity and the sales amount of an arbitrary item stored in each memory area of the RAM can be displayed in the management mode. When "continuous confirmation" is given in the management mode, the price, sales quantity or the sales amount as described above can be displayed continuously in sequence for each item.

Claims

1. A vending machine, comprising:

a plurality of selection switches corresponding to a plurality of sales items;

valuable media insertion part accepting insertion of valuable media;

value calculating means for calculating the value of said valuable media inserted through said valuable media insertion part;

memory means having a plurality of memory areas respectively corresponding to said plurality of sales items, each of said memory areas including a first area for storing sales data quantity for each sales item and a second area for storing sales amount data for each sales item;

at least one function key for uniquely indicating one of sales quantity data and sales amount data;

addressing means for addressing a corresponding one of said memory areas of said memory means in response to operation of a respective one of said selection switches, said addressing means addressing one of said first area and said second area of the memory areas in response to the operation of the respective one of said selection switches and the operation of said at least one function key;

reading means for reading one of said sales quantity data and said sales amount data for each sales item from the corresponding one of said first area and said second area of said memory areas addressed by said addressing means;

mode setting means for selectively setting a normal vending mode and a management mode, said calculating means being enabled when the normal vending mode is set by said mode setting means and said reading means being enabled when the management mode is set by said mode setting means;

a common display for displaying said value calculated by said calculating means in the normal vending mode and said sales quantity and said sales amount data for each sales item read by said reading means in the management mode;

a plurality of indicators corresponding to said plurality of selection switches, each of said indicators including at least one of an "on-sale" indicator displaying that the pertinent item is available for sale and a "sold-out" indicator displaying that the corresponding item has been sold out, in the normal vending mode; and

indicator driving means for driving the corresponding one of said plurality of indicators in response to operation of any of said selection switches in the management mode.

2. A vending machine in accordance with claim 1 which further comprises continuous confirmation commanding means for commanding a continuous sequential confirmation of content of the memory areas of said memory means, and address changing means for performing sequential changes of address by said addressing means in response to a command by said continuous confirmation commanding means.

3. A vending machine in accordance with claim 2, wherein said memory means include price memory parts respectively corresponding to said plurality of sale items and for storing price data corresponding to each of the sales items, and further comprising price data inputting means for inputting price data in the management mode set by said mode setting means, and means for writing price data inputted by price data inputting means into the pertinent one of said price memory parts.

4. A vending machine in accordance with claim 1 wherein said at least one function key is a first function key for indicating sales quantity data and a second function key for indicating sales amount data.

5. A vending machine in accordance with claim 1

wherein said plurality of memory areas further includes a third area for storing sales price data;

wherein said addressing means further addresses the third area of the memory areas;

wherein said reading means further reads said sales price data for each sales item from the corresponding third area of said memory areas; and

wherein said common display further displays the sales price data for each sales item read by said reading means in the management mode.

6. A vending machine in accordance with claim 5, further comprising continuous confirmation commanding means for commanding a continuous sequential confirmation of content of the memory areas of said memory means, and address changing means for performing sequential changes of address by said addressing means in response to a command by said continuous confirmation commanding means.

7. A vending machine in accordance with claim 5, wherein said memory means includes price memory parts respectively corresponding to said plurality of sale items and for storing price data corresponding to each of the sales items, and further comprising price data inputting means for inputting price data in the management mode set by said mode setting means, and means for writing price data inputted by said price data inputting means into the pertinent one of said price memory parts.