Multiple drawer and compartment vending
First Claim
1. A multiple drawer vending device comprisinga cabinet;
- a plurality of drawers, each drawer having at least one compartment and being slidably mounted within the cabinet so that each is incrementally movable and controlled between fully closed and fully open positions;
a controller having data corresponding to the contents in each of the at least one compartment in the plurality of drawers and by which access to a particular one of the plurality of drawers and to the at least one compartment therein is controlled by authorization and selection inputs;
each of said plurality of drawers having at least one position control member mounted thereto, each position control member having at least one stop structure thereon comprising a series of progressively positioned control tabs that are spaced apart both horizontally and vertically; and
a drawer opening and position control system working in conjunction with the position control member, with the actuation of the drawer opening and position control system being controlled by the controller to regulate access to a selected drawer and compartment therein.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A multi-drawer and doored vending system in which each drawer has one or a plurality of compartments each holding an items to be vended, and each doored compartment contains at least one item for vending. Drawer control is provided by a drawer opening and position control system comprising an array of spaced apart control tabs on each drawer, a drawer lock and release assembly, and a progressively movable drawer position control bar to control drawer opening in conjunction with the control tabs. Each doored compartment also employs a lock and release assembly. A control system is provided to control user interface, to maintain product inventory counts and to control the vending process. This involves verifying the identity of a user seeking to obtain a vended item, verifying any other system or pre-vend requirements, and permits limited access to a drawer and compartment corresponding to an approved vend selection. An item return compartment is also included.
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Citations
36 Claims
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1. A multiple drawer vending device comprising
a cabinet; -
a plurality of drawers, each drawer having at least one compartment and being slidably mounted within the cabinet so that each is incrementally movable and controlled between fully closed and fully open positions; a controller having data corresponding to the contents in each of the at least one compartment in the plurality of drawers and by which access to a particular one of the plurality of drawers and to the at least one compartment therein is controlled by authorization and selection inputs; each of said plurality of drawers having at least one position control member mounted thereto, each position control member having at least one stop structure thereon comprising a series of progressively positioned control tabs that are spaced apart both horizontally and vertically; and a drawer opening and position control system working in conjunction with the position control member, with the actuation of the drawer opening and position control system being controlled by the controller to regulate access to a selected drawer and compartment therein. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A multiple space vending device comprising
a cabinet; -
a plurality of drawers, each drawer having a plurality of compartments and being slidably mounted within the cabinet so that each drawer is incrementally movable and controlled between fully closed and fully open positions; at least one doored compartment having a closed and locked door, a controller having data corresponding to the contents in each of the compartments in the vending device and by which access to a particular one of the compartments therein is controlled by authorization and selection inputs; each of said plurality of drawers having a position control member mounted thereto, each position control member having a series of stop structures thereon with each being spaced apart horizontally and vertically; each doored compartment having a door lock mechanism; and a compartment opening and position control system working in conjunction with the position control member and door lock mechanisms, with the actuation of the compartment opening and position control system being controlled by the controller to regulate access to a selected compartment in the vending device.
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35. A multiple drawer vending device comprising
a cabinet; -
a plurality of drawers, each drawer having at least one compartment and being slidably mounted within the cabinet so that each is incrementally movable and controlled between fully closed and fully open positions; a controller having data corresponding to the contents in each of the at least one compartment in the plurality of drawers and by which access to a particular one of the plurality of drawers and to the at least one compartment therein is controlled by authorization and selection inputs; each of said plurality of drawers having at least one position control member mounted thereto, each position control member having at least one stop structure thereon; and a drawer opening and position control system working in conjunction with the position control member, with the actuation of the drawer opening and position control system being controlled by the controller to regulate access to a selected drawer and compartment therein, the opening and position control system including a controlled lock mechanism for each of the plurality of drawers; a drawer stop system to control the opening of drawers and to limit access to an authorized portion therein, the drawer stop system being positioned on a central post and positioned to intercept the at least one stop structure; and wherein the at least one stop structure comprises a series of progressively positioned control tabs positioned at spaced apart vertical and horizontal locations and the drawer stop system is controlled to incrementally intercept successive ones of the series of control tabs.
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36. A multiple drawer vending device comprising:
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a cabinet; a plurality of drawers, each drawer having at least one compartment and being slidably mounted within the cabinet so that each is incrementally movable and controlled between fully closed and fully open positions; a controller having data corresponding to the contents in each of the at least one compartment in the plurality of drawers and by which access to a particular one of the plurality of drawers and to the at least one compartment therein is controlled by authorization and selection inputs; each of said plurality of drawers having at least one position control member mounted thereto, each position control member having at least one stop structure thereon comprising a series of progressively positioned control tabs that are spaced apart both horizontally and vertically, and are mounted at spaced apart positions along a linear path positioned at an angle relative to a top edge of a drawer; and a drawer opening and position control system working in conjunction with the position control member, with the actuation of the drawer opening and position control system being controlled by the controller to regulate access to a selected drawer and compartment therein.
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Specification