Automatic vending system

• US 4,120,452 A
• Filed: 08/12/1976
• Issued: 10/17/1978
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/1975
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ishimoto, Tasuku, Kimura, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Cook, Daryl W.
• Application Number:
  US05/713,643
• Time in Patent Office: 796 Days
• Field of Search: 235/61.7 R, 235/61.7 B, 235/381, 235/380, 349/149 A, 349/152, 340/149 A, 340/152
• US Class Current: 235/381
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/342 Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/343 Cards including a counter
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/02 by keys or other credit registering devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/025 by means, e.g. cards, providing billing information at the time of purchase, e.g. identification of seller or purchaser, quantity of goods delivered or to be delivered
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/002 Vending machines being part of a centrally controlled network of vending machines

Abstract

A vending system is disclosed which is adapted to be installed in a hotel or the like for permitting the guests to buy articles in a refrigerator or vending machine in a guest room without use of coins. When a guest inserts his memory holder into a vending machine and selects an article, an article code or codes representative of the article or articles he bought are transferred from a transmitter in the vending machine into the memory holder, and an accounting machine reads out the data in the memory holder to prepare a bill. Optical, magnetic or high frequency data transmission is used between the vending machine and the memory holder and between the memory holder and the accounting machine so that no data transmission line is required.

Claims

1. An automatic vending system for use in a hotel or the like, comprising:

a plurality of vending machines each of which stores a plurality of articles to be sold and is enabled to sell an article by selection means, each of said machines including a transmitter capable of generating a serial article code representative of an article selected by said selection means and clock means;

a portable individual identification means for sequentially serially holding the article codes generated in response to the operation of said selection means for selecting a desired article after said identification means has been inserted into the vending machine;

an accounting meachine for reading the article codes from said identification means so as to calculate the sum of the prices of the articles sold for liquidation by a holder of said identification means;

the transmission of the signals between the vending machine and the identification means being made by wireless coupling means;

a selected article being sold in response to a sale signal, and means for generating said sale signal only when the article code recorded in the identification means coincides with the article code generated by said transmitter after the article code generated by said selection means has been stored in said identification means.

2. An automatic vending system for use in a hotel or the like, comprising:

a plurality of vending machines each provided with a transmitter for generating an article code representative of an article to be sold, a main memory comprising a shift register for receiving coded digital signals corresponding to sales information for each sales operation, x-bits of each coded signal comprising one block of information, a logic circuit for generating a first control signal for enabling said vending machine when the x-bits stored closest to the first stage of said shift register changes when said sales information is entered therein, and a logic circuit for generating a second control signal for disabling said vending machine when the x-bits stored closest to the last stage of said shift register changes;

a plurality of memory holders, each holder being capable of enabling each of said vending machines to place the corresponding machine in a sales mode upon insertion of said memory holder into said vending machine, each memory holder storing the code of the article purchased via the corresponding vending machine;

each of said vending machines including a transmitter for generating a serial digital article code, clock means, and means for enabling said vending machine to discharge an article upon insertion of the memory holder therein;

said memory holder including a shift register for storing the article codes, the data stored in said shift register being read out by applying wireless control signals to a clock input element of said memory holder, said memory holder including a battery power supply therefor;

an accounting machine for reading the article codes from each of said memory holders and for calculating the sum of the prices for the articles sold via each memory holder, and for preparing a bill for said sum; and

signal transmission means for transferring signals between each vending machine and a corresponding memory holder inserted therein, and for transferring signals between the accounting machine and each memory holder inserted therein.

3. An automatic vending machine for use in a hotel or the like, comprising:

a plurality of vending machines each provided with a transmitter for generating an article code representative of an article to be sold, said transmitter generating a digital sales information code in response to an article selection signal, said vending machine having a comparison circuit for comparing the sales information code generated thereby with a sales information code transmitted thereto, and for generating an error signal when said codes do not correspond to each other;

a plurality of memory holders, each holder being capable of enabling each of said vending machines to place the corresponding machine in a sales mode upon its insertion of said memory holder therein, each memory holder having a main register for storing a digital code corresponding to an article via said vending machine, said main register comprising a shift register having an input side and a last stage side;

means for transferring said sales information code in the form of a serial digital data signal into said memory holder, said memory holder including a changeover circuit for selecting either the input side or the last stage side of said shift register, in response to a changeover signal;

means for transmitting a signal corresponding to the content of said shift register, to said transmitter of said vending machine;

said comparision circuit comparing said sales information code signals when said input side of said memory holder shift register is selected, and said vending machine including means for detecting the overflow of said shift register of said memory holder when said last stage side thereof is selected, said memory holder also including a battery power supply therefor;

an accounting machine for reading the article codes from each of said memory holders and for calculating the sum of the prices of articles corresponding thereto, and for preparing a bill for said sum; and

signal transmission means for transferring signals between each vending machine and a corresponding memory holder inserted therein, and for transferring signals between the accounting machine and each memory holder inserted therein.

4. An automatic vending machine for use in a hotel or the like, comprising:

a plurality of vending machines each provided with a transmitter for generating an article code representative of an article to be sold;

a plurality of memory holders each for enabling each of said vending machines to place said machine into a sales mode upon insertion of said memory holder therein, and for storing sales information identifying the article purchased, each memory holder also including means for storing an identification number in the memory holder and means for erasing said sales information and said identification number when the same are read out;

means for re-writing said identification number in said memory holer after said number has been read out;

means for storing a new desired identification number in said memory holder in response to a registration mode signal;

an accounting machine for reading the article codes from each of said memory holders, for calculating the sum of the prices of the corresponding articles and preparing a bill; and

signal tranmission means for transferring signals between each vending machine and a memory holder inserted therein, and for transferring signals between the accounting machine and a memory holder inserted therein.

5. An automatic vending system for use in a hotel or the like, comprising:

a plurality of vending machines each provided with a transmitter for generating an article code representative of an article to be sold;

a plurality of memory holders, each memory holder being capable of enabling each of said vending machines to place said vending machine into a sales mode upon insertion of said memory holder into said vending machine, each memory holder including means for storing sales information including the code of the article to be purchased;

each vending machine including means for determining that said sales information has been correctly stored in said memory holder, means for discharging an article from said machine in response to said determination, and means for storing a cancel mark in said memory holder when it is not possible to discharge the article;

an accounting machine for reaching the article codes from each of said memory holders, calculating the sum of the prices of the articles corresponding thereto, and preparing a bill; and

signal transmission means for transferring signals between each vending machine and the memory holder inserted therein, and for transferring signals between the accounting machine and the memory holder inserted therein.