Patent ID: 6490502
Filing Date: 2002-12-03
Classification: G07F,G07G

Abstract:
An article dispensing system operable in a dispensing mode or a stocking mode to dispense products selected from a plurality of products comprising a dispensing module including a carousel having a plurality of product compartments to store the plurality of products therein selectively rotatable between a dispensing station, a rejecting station and a stocking station by a carousel positioning device having a carousel position detector to determine the rotational position of the carousel relative to the dispensing station, the rejecting station or the stocking station and a drive motor to selectively position the carousel relative to the dispensing station, the rejecting station or the stocking station, a product detector to selectively detect the product at the dispensing station, and a product ejector to selectively eject product at the dispensing station and a product rejector to selectively eject product at the rejecting station, and a system control including a product input to select product to be dispensed from the article dispensing system operatively coupled to said carousel positioning device and said carousel position detector, said product detector, said product ejector and said product rejector such that when the article dispensing system is operating in the dispensing mode said carousel position device rotates the product compartment designated to contain the selected product to the dispensing station and said product ejector ejects the selected product from said product compartment when the selected product at the dispensing station is detected and rotates said product compartment designated to contain the selected product from the dispensing station to the rejecting station and said product rejector ejects the product at the rejecting station when product other than the selected product is detected by said product detector at the dispensing station and rotates said product compartment designated to contain the selected product from the dispensing station to the stocking station to allow restocking of the selected product to be stored in designated product compartment when the designated product compartment is detected by said product detector at the dispensing station when operating in the stocking mode.