Programming presets in a vending machine

• US 7,251,546 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2003
• Issued: 07/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Munroe Chirnomas
• Original Assignee: Munroe Chirnomas
• Inventors: Chirnomas, Munroe
• Primary Examiner(s): Crawford; Gene O.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Waggoner; Timothy
• Application Number:
  US10/505,829
• Publication Number:
  US 20060074523A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,616 Days
• Field of Search: 700/231, 700/242
• US Class Current: 700/242
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/004 Restocking arrangements therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/02 from non-movable magazines
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/165 using xyz-picker or multi-dimensional article picking arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/1657 the picking arrangements using suction
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/62 in which the articles are stored in compartments in fixed receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/02 Devices for alarm or indication, e.g. when empty; Advertising arrangements in coin-freed apparatus alarms or warning devices indicating the interruption of flow to be metered G07F15/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/10 Casings or parts thereof, e.g. with means for heating or cooling

Abstract

A vending machine apparatus comprising a housing defining an internal cavity and an article storage area where predetermined groups of stored articles are located at predetermined positions within the housing. An article retrieval device is associated with the housing for moving articles to be vended from the storage area to a dispensing area. A user interface and control apparatus allows a user of the dispensing apparatus to initiate an article dispensing operation, and generates control signals for causing controlled movement of the article retrieval device so that a user selected article is retrieved from a predetermined location in the article storage area and moved to the dispensing area. The user interface and control apparatus includes a memory for storing therein a plurality of sets of control information, each of a plurality of sets of control information being required for generating proper control signals for the retrieval device when the storage area has disposed therein a corresponding predetermined arrangement of the groups of stored articles. A selection device coupled to the control apparatus allows selection of a given one of the sets of control information in the memory when a corresponding predetermined arrangement of the groups of articles are stored therein, so that when a desired article is selected by a user, it is properly retrieved from the predetermined location in the article storage area and moved to the dispensing area.

Claims

1. A machine for dispensing articles, the machine comprising:

a housing;

a storage area disposed within the housing for storing articles to be dispensed, wherein said stored articles are located at predetermined positions within the storage area so that a cross-section view of the storage area defines a predetermined one of a plurality of possible article storing plan-o-grams for said stored articles;

an article retrieval device associated with the housing and able to retrieve articles from the storage area, for moving articles to be dispensed from the storage area toward a dispensing area; and

user interface and control apparatus for allowing a user of the dispensing apparatus to initiate an article dispensing operation, and for generating control signals which cause controlled movement of the article retrieval device so that an article selected by the user is retrieved from a predetermined location in the article storage area and moved toward the dispensing area,

wherein said user interface and control apparatus includes;

a memory for storing therein a plurality of sets of control information, each one set of said plurality of sets of control information being required for generating the proper control signals for the article retrieval device when the storage area has disposed therein a corresponding one of said plurality of possible article storing plan-o-grams for said stored articles; and

a selection device coupled to said control apparatus, for allowing selection of a given one of said sets of control information stored in the memory, so that when a desired article is selected by a user, it is properly extracted from the predetermined location in the article storage area and moved toward the dispensing area.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

at 1east one predetermined group of said articles to be stored in the storage area has a plan code associated therewith, said plan code corresponding to a predetermined one of said sets of control information stored in the memory.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said plan code comprises a bar code, and said selection device comprises a bar code scanner, for inputting to the control apparatus information sufficient to select a given one of said sets of control information stored in the memory.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said plan code comprises an electronically stored code, and said selection device comprises a scanner adapted to read the electronically stored code, and for inputting to the control apparatus information sufficient to select a given one of said sets of control information stored in the memory.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said article storage area includes an apparatus for storing said articles in a plurality of paraxially aligned columns, and said article retrieving device comprises a robotically controlled article pick-up head which is extendible into said storage area along said columns to retrieve said articles stored therein.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said article storage area includes an apparatus for storing said articles in a plurality of paraxially aligned rows, and said article retrieving device comprises a robotically controlled article pick-up head which is extendible into said storage area along said columns to retrieve said articles stored therein.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of said sets of control information also includes additional information specific to each of said articles in the predetermined plan-o-gram one, said additional information being one or more of price information and freshness information specific to each of said articles in the predetermined plan-o-gram.

5. A method for reloading a vending machine with articles to be vended, comprising:

placing one group of a plurality of predetermined groups of articles at a predetermined position within a storage area of the vending machine, each group comprising a plurality of different types of said articles that are selectable from the vending machine, said placing corresponding to a given one plan-o-grams of articles, of a plurality of possible different predetermined plan-o-grams of articles that could be placed within the storage area;

programming an article retrieval device of said vending machine to retrieve a proper one of said stored articles, by selecting and inputting to said vending machine one of a plurality of predetermined sets of control information, each of said sets of control information being required for generating the proper control signals for the retrieval device when the storage area has disposed therein a given one of the plurality of predetermined different plan-o-gram of articles.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said selecting is done by accessing a memory having stored therein a plurality of said sets of control information.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said selecting comprises accessing a memory that is located in the machine and which has been pre-programmed with a plurality of the predetermined sets of the control information.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein each of said sets of control information also includes additional information specific to each of said articles in the predetermined plan-o-gram one, said additional information being one or more of price information and freshness information specific to each of said articles in the predetermined plan-o-gram.

12. A machine for dispensing articles, the machine comprising:

a housing;

a storage area disposed within the housing for storing articles to be dispensed, wherein said stored articles are located at predetermined positions within the storage area so that a cross-section view of the storage area defines a predetermined one of a plurality of possible article storing plan-o-grams for said stored articles;

an article retrieval device associated with, the housing and able to retrieve articles from the storage area, for moving articles to be dispensed from the storage area toward a dispensing area; and

user interface and control apparatus for allowing a user of the dispensing apparatus to initiate an article dispensing operation, and for generating control signals which cause controlled movement of the article retrieval device so that an article selected by the user is retrieved from a predetermined location in the article storage area and moved toward the dispensing area,

wherein said user interface and control apparatus includes;

a memory for storing therein a give one of a plurality of sets of control information, each one set of said plurality of sets of control information being required for generating the proper control signals for the article retrieval device when the storage area has disposed therein a corresponding one of said plurality of possible article storing plan-o-grams for said stored articles; and

an input device coupled to said control apparatus, for allowing input to said memory of said given one of said sets of control information, so that when a desired article is selected by a user, it is properly extracted from the predetermined location in the article storage area and moved toward the dispensing area.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said article storage area includes an apparatus for storing said articles in a plurality of paraxially aligned columns, and said article retrieving device comprises a robotically controlled article pick-up head which is extendible into said storage area along said columns to retrieve said articles stored therein.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein:

at least one predetermined group of said articles to be stored in the storage area has a plan code associated therewith, said plan code corresponding to a predetermined one of said sets of control information stored in the memory.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said plan code comprises a bar code, and said selection device comprises a bar code scanner, for inputting to the control apparatus information sufficient to select a given one of said sets of control information stored in the memory.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said plan code comprises an electronically stored code, and said selection device comprises a scanner adapted to read the electronically stored code, and for inputting to the control apparatus information sufficient to select a given one of said sets of control information stored in the memory.