Split door for vending machine

• US 5,533,645 A
• Filed: 11/01/1994
• Issued: 07/09/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Inland Finance Company (8040 Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fawn Engineering
• Inventors: Walke, Gary L., Wittern, Francis A. Jr., Nerly, Joseph F.
• Primary Examiner(s): SKAGGS JR, H GRANT
• Application Number:
  US08/332,911
• Time in Patent Office: 616 Days
• Field of Search: 221/76, 221/69, 221/87, 221/92, 221/93, 221/94, 221/119, 221/120, 221/121, 221/122, 221/123, 221/151, 221/304, 221/306, 312/97.1, 312/97, 312/91, 312/138.1, 312/139, 312/139.2
• US Class Current: 221/76
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/10 two or more magazines having a common delivery chute
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/62 in which the articles are stored in compartments in fixed receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/10 Casings or parts thereof, e.g. with means for heating or cooling

Abstract

An apparatus and method for maximizing the amount and selection of vendable items from a bucket-type vending machine includes a main access door over an access opening to buckets of the machine. One or more shields are positioned below the access opening but can be selectibly interlocked with the door so that when the access door uncovers the access opening, any of the shields can be raised to cover any or all of the access opening. This arrangement allows each bucket to be subdivided into separate buckets. The selectable shields therefore can close off from access any of the sections of the bucket which are not selected by a customer thereby allowing use of one main access door to facilitate the increased amount and number of selections available from each bucket of the bucket-type vending machine.

Claims

1. A vending machine having a housing, at least one interior generally horizontal support member for supporting a vendable item, the support member being moveable to a position directly in front of an exterior opening in the housing, a door vertically slidable between a closed position covering the exterior opening and blocking access to the support member and an open position allowing a customer access to the support member, the improvement comprising:

a wall dividing the support member into two sections, each section capable of supporting a vendable item;

a shield member supported in a frame mounted to the housing below the opening in the housing and slideably between a normal position substantially below the opening and a blocking position over at least a portion of the opening blocking access to at least a portion of the support member; and

a releasable connection between the door and the shield member, the connection in a normal state locking the door and the shield member together if the door is raised from its closed position so that vertical movement of the door results in vertical movement of the shield member, the connection in a released state allowing vertical movement of the door without corresponding vertical movement of the shield member.

2. The vending machine of claim 1 wherein the machine is a rotating bucket machine and the support member is a bucket of the bucket machine.

3. The vending machine of claim 1 wherein the support member is substantially of similar width to the width of the door.

4. The vending machine of claim 1 wherein a releasable locking mechanism is associated with the door to preclude raising of the door until authorized.

5. The vending machine of claim 1 wherein the support member is dividable by one or more walls into two or more sections.

6. The vending machine of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of shields, one shield for each section of the support member.

7. The vending machine of claim 6 wherein each shield is aligned side-by-side in generally the same plane.

8. The vending machine of claim 1 wherein each shield includes a guide member to guide its slidable movement relative to the housing.

9. The vending machine of claim 1 wherein the releasable connection comprises an actuator member mounted to the housing at one side and connected to the shield, the actuator having an arm which, upon instruction from the machine, moves the shield relative to the door.

10. The vending machine of claim 9 wherein the actuator comprises an electrical solenoid.

11. The vending machine of claim 9 wherein the releasable connector further comprises a first lip on the door and a second lip on the shield, the first and second lips cooperating to interlock when the door is moved vertically and no instruction from the machine is received so that the shield moves upwardly with the door, the first and second lips cooperating to not interlock when the door is moved vertically and an instruction is received from the machine so that the shield does not move upwardly with the door.

12. A method of allowing at least two selections from a single bucket of a rotating type bucket vending machine having a window/door that corresponds with an indexing position of a bucket and which can be vertically raised to allow access to all parts of a bucket which is indexed to the indexing position, comprising:

partitioning the bucket into at least two sections;

blocking off one of the two sections which is not selected by the customer when the window/door is raised, the blocking being accomplished by shielding the non-selected section by a shield that moves with the window/door.

13. An apparatus to increase the number of vendable selections from a single bucket of a bucket type vending machine which allows the customer to select vendable items by a selection input correlated to a specific bucket and the machine rotates the specific bucket to an indexed position in front a sliding door, the door normally being locked in a closed position, but being released when the selection input is made and validated by the machine, comprising:

a flange mounted on a trailing end of the door, the flange having a hook;

a shield slideably mounted adjacent the door and having a flange on a leading end, the flange having a hook;

the hooks of the door and the shield aligned in the same general plane when the shield is in a normal position so that the hooks engage when the door is moved and the shield moves with the door when the door is moved; and

an actuator connected between the shield and the machine, the actuator including a member which is moveable in response to an instruction from the machine to move the shield to a non-aligned position with respect to the door so that the hook of the shield will not will not engage with the hook of the door when the door is moved.

14. A bucket dividing and dispensing system for a bucket type vending machine having a door which in a normal position covers an opening in the machine and is slidable away from the opening to allow access to all portions of a bucket brought in front of the door comprising:

a plurality of secondary doors normally slideably positioned in the machine out of the opening;

a hook on a trailing end of the door;

a hook on a leading end of each secondary door;

the hooks on the door and each secondary door generally aligned to interlock if the door is moved;

a connection on each secondary door; and

a mechanism connected to each connection on each secondary door, each mechanism including an moveable member which moves a corresponding secondary door to a position that does not allow the hook of the secondary door to interlock with the hook of the door when the door is moved.