Abstract:
A vending machine has one or more resilient members placed in each row from which products are vended. As product moves through the row, the product abuts against the resilient member and is forced into an upright and aesthetically pleasing orientation. Further forward movement forces the resilient member out of the path of the product&#39;s movement.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/039,138, filed Mar. 25, 2008 in the name of Breitenbach et al. entitled System, Method, and Apparatus for vending machine disclosures including: inventory auto-planogram, wireless mobile drink system, energysmart energy reduction systems, vending operator account portal, consumer account portal and dispending systems and hardware modifications. This application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present disclosure is directed to a vending machine and more particularly to a technique that allows soft-packaged product within the vending machine to be presented in a more aesthetically pleasing manner. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Vending machines ubiquitously decorate the daily lives of many people. Early machines had an opaque face usually emblazoned with a company or product logo. The opaque face allowed (and continues to allow for those machines so equipped) the product to be stacked in a manner that lacks aesthetic appeal. The advent of vending machines with a transparent front required operators to arrange the product in a manner that provided some aesthetic appeal. While some vending machines use tilted shelves to provide for gravity feed vending, more commonly used dispensing mechanisms include a spiral feed mechanism or a push plate mechanism. All three mechanisms allow for ready viewing of the entire row of the product by a prospective customer. However, because the mechanisms have to be sized for the largest item to be vended, the mechanisms lend themselves to additional aesthetic concerns. For example, product that leans or has folded may create the impression that the product may not vend properly. This appearance may lead the customer to make a different purchase or forego a purchase. The popularity of bottled water with its ever changing packaging has exacerbated the need for vending machines which support the product to provide the desired aesthetic appearance. Spiral column dispensers and push plate dispensers are not well suited for dispensing the contemporaneous generation of soft packaged products. Rather than replace the vending machines with dispensing mechanisms adapted to accommodate the current packaging styles, a need exists for an improvement which allows product to be presented in an aesthetically pleasing manner and diminishes the likelihood of misvended product. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a conventional glass-faced vending machine; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a row within a conventional spiral feed vending machine with product misaligned within the row; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a row within a conventional push plate vending machine with product misaligned within the row; 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a top view of a first embodiment of a stabilizer with a product abutting thereagainst; 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a top view of the first embodiment without a product; 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a front elevational view of the first embodiment; 
         FIG. 7  illustrates a front elevational view of a second embodiment of a stabilizer; 
         FIG. 8  illustrates a top view of the second embodiment; 
         FIG. 9  illustrates a top view of a third embodiment of a stabilizer; 
         FIG. 10  illustrates a top view of a fourth embodiment of the stabilizer; 
         FIG. 11  illustrates a vertical support that may be used with a push drive vending machine; 
         FIG. 12  illustrates a front elevational view of a shield that may be used with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG. 13  illustrates a row of a spiral feed vending machine with a fourth embodiment of a stabilizer. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present disclosure addresses some of the shortcomings explained above as well as addresses other issues by adding one or more resilient stabilizers to the rows from which the product is vended. The resilient members urge the product packaging into a desired orientation or prevent the product packaging from falling into an orientation that is aesthetically unattractive or might cause the product to be misvended. In an exemplary embodiment, the resilient member is spring loaded and abuts the product as it urges the product into the desired orientation. In another embodiment, a plate positioned behind the product may be used to help support the product in a desired orientation. 
     By way of further explanation,  FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional vending machine  10  with cabinet  12  having a transparent front  14  made out of glass or transparent polymeric material. A customer may view an interior cabinet  16  through the front  14 . The vending machine  10  may further have a user interface  18  that comprises a touchscreen or comparable input/output device as is well understood. The vending machine  10  may further include a cash acceptor  20  through which the user may pay for product as is well understood and a hopper  22  through the user may retrieve vended product, again as is well understood. If the user is owed change from part of a transaction, the change may be dispensed through a change return slot  24 . 
     Within the interior cabinet  16 , a plurality of rows  26  may be arranged in shelves. As illustrated,  FIG. 1  includes a spiral feed mechanism  28  in which product  30  is placed and through which the product  30  dispensed. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates a plurality of rows  26  on a single shelf within a spiral feed style vending machine  10 . Rows  26  may be divided one from another by dividers  34 . In particular, a first row  26 A is empty and the row illustrates a base plate  32  and the spiral mechanism  28 . Conceptually, the spiral mechanism  28  may be divided into slots in which product  30  rests. That is, there is a first slot  36  which is closest to the front  14  and which is the slot where product  30  is most readily visible to the customer (see row  26 B). Likewise, there is a second slot  38  which is one slot removed from the first slot  36  (i.e., behind first slot  36 ). If a product  30 A is tilted or folds (e.g., a bag of chips), a prospective customer may fear that the product will not vend correctly (a “misvend”) and not purchase the product. One of the reasons that the product  30 A may be misaligned is that a row  26  is sized to accommodate a number of different products including some which may be relatively wide compared to others (e.g., a bag of chips compared to a bottle of water). This sizing means that the rows may be too wide for some products, allowing lateral movement of the product. This lateral movement may allow the product to fold, tip or otherwise be misaligned. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates a conventional push plate dispensing mechanism in a few rows  26  of the vending machine  10 A. As illustrated, each row  26  includes a push plate  42  attached to a base  44 . The base  44  is driven by a motive force such as a motor, a magnet, or the like. When the command to vend a product is received, the motive force advances the push plate  42  towards the front  14  of the vending machine  10 A, pushing the product past a stationary, rigid wedge  40  as is well understood. Again, because the rows may be too wide, product  30 A may tilt, fold, or otherwise be improperly positioned within the row such that a customer may fear a misvend. 
     While the present disclosure only illustrates a spiral feed mechanism and a push plate feed mechanism, it should be appreciated that vending machines equipped with gravity feed mechanisms or other product advancement tools may also benefit from using the inventive concepts of the present disclosure. 
     The present disclosure provides a solution to this problem in the form of a resilient member positioned proximate a front end of each row. In a first embodiment, illustrated in  FIGS. 4-6 , the resilient member  46  is a spring loaded hinged arm. Specifically, the resilient member  46  includes a first arm  48  that has a first end that is folded back to form a clip  50 . Adhesive or foam pads may be provided on interior surfaces of the clip  50  to help the clip  50  attach to the dividers  34 . The first arm  48  further includes a hinge end (not labeled) opposite the clip  50  that attaches to and/or forms part of a hinge  52 . The resilient member  46  further includes a second arm  54  having a first straight portion  56  that has a hinge end (not labeled) that also attaches to and/or forms a part of the hinge  52  and a distal end (not labeled). The distal end of the straight portion  56  is attached to or integrally formed with a second arcuate portion  58  that is curved so as to accommodate a beverage container such as cans, bottles or other curved objects, such as product  30  (illustrated as a can). A spring  60  is coupled to the hinge  52  so as to provide resilience to the resilient member  46 . As better illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the spring  60  biases the second arm  54  open and against the direction of product flow (illustrated by arrow  62 ) as the products  30  are vended. 
     While the first arm  48  is illustrated as being about half the length of second arm  54 , other ratios are contemplated. Likewise it is possible that the entire length of the first arm  48  forms part of the clip  50  rather than merely a portion. 
     The resilient member  46  of  FIGS. 4-6  as well as other resilient members described herein may be made of any suitable material such as a metal or polymeric material. In a particularly contemplated embodiment, the resilient members are made from a clear polymeric material. 
     In a second embodiment, illustrated in  FIGS. 7 &amp; 8 , a resilient member  64  is formed by a base  66  coupled to a trapezoidal sliding member  68 . The trapezoidal sliding member  68  is biased outwards by a spring  70  into the path of a product  30  being vended along direction of product flow  62 . The trapezoidal sliding member  68  includes a first slanted surface  72  which is adapted to abut a product  30  and a second slanted surface  74 . Note that advertising, promotional or instructional indicia may be readily displayed on the second slanted surface  74 . As the product  30  is advanced towards the front  14  of the vending machine, the product  30  pushes against the first slanted surface  72 , compressing the spring  70 , and clearing the path of the product  30 . As the product  30  pushes past the resilient member  64 , the spring  70  pushes the trapezoidal sliding member  68  outwardly back into the path of the next product  30 . 
     A third embodiment is illustrated in  FIG. 9  with resilient member  76 . Resilient member  76  includes a base  78  and a moving arm  80 . Arm  80  is biased outwardly by a spring  82 . The base  78  is generally cup shaped to hold the spring  82 . The moving arm  80  extends laterally out into the path of a product  30  being vended along direction of product flow  62 . 
     A fourth embodiment is illustrated in  FIG. 10  with resilient member  84 . Resilient member  84  includes a base  86  and a spring wheel  88 . The base  86  is generally cup shaped, and the spring wheel  88  is biased outwardly into the path of a product  30  being vended along direction of product flow  62 . 
     Each of the resilient members described herein is designed to extend laterally into path of the product flow  62 . By doing so, the product  30  is pushed against (i.e., abuts) the resilient member. By forcing the product against the resilient member, the product  30  is held in an orientation that meets the aesthetic needs of the vendor. That is, the product is upright, not tilted, and appears that it will vend properly. Likewise, the resilient nature of the resilient member means that as product is pushed past the resilient member by the movement of the spiral arm or the push plate, the resilient member will slide out of the way, allowing the product to advance past the resilient member. 
       FIG. 11  illustrates a supplemental device that helps support products  30  in a desired orientation. Specifically, for a push plate style vending mechanism, an extended plate  90  may be secured to the push plate  42  that extends above the height of the dividers  34  and may, in an exemplary embodiment, be approximately the height of a twenty ounce or pint sized bottle of water. Other heights are also contemplated and are within the scope of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 12  illustrates another supplemental device that helps prevent deformation of the packaging of the product  30 . In particular, a flexible shield  92  may be positioned between the product  30  and an upper corner  94  of the resilient member  100 . Thus, the sharp edge of the upper corner  94  does not poke into the thin walled (e.g., flexible) packaging and allows the packaging to maintain its original shape when the packaging abuts the resilient member  100 . Note that resilient member  100  represents another embodiment of the resilient member. The resilient member  100  includes a first surface  102  that abuts the product  30  and a second surface  104 . A spring hinge  106  connects the first surface  102  to the second surface  104  and biases the resilient member  100  into a generally triangular shape. As the product  30  is advanced, the spring spreads, pushing the second surface  104  into a generally parallel relation to the first surface  102  such that the product  30  may pass through. After the product  30  has passed the hinge  106 , the spring hinge  106  contracts, drawing the resilient member  100  back into its generally triangular shape. 
     While it is contemplated that the resilient members may be positioned proximate the front of a given row  26 , it is possible that a plurality of resilient members may be used at different points along a given row  26 . For example, as illustrated in  FIG. 13 , a plurality of resilient members  96  may be positioned along the dividers  34 . As illustrated, the resilient members  96  alternate on which sides they are positioned, although such is not required. Likewise, the resilient members  96  are another embodiment wherein the resilient member  96  comprises a single plastic or acrylic “L” shaped gate or flop. The material of the resilient member  96  is strong enough to hold a can upright when a can abuts the resilient member  96 . 
     While particular embodiments have been disclosed herein for particular types of vending machines, it should be appreciated that variations in the material, shape and size of the resilient member as well as differences between types of vending machines may be accommodated without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.