Abstract:
A trough-like support piece extends within a supply tube in a housing and supports a stack of beverage container lids. A spring biases a plate to urge the stack frontwardly to engage against a plurality of spring-loaded members which extend from the housing frontwardly of the plate. A cover is hinged to the housing and has two guide rods which extend rearwardly toward the lids. Three plastic claws are flexibly supported on a support member which is mounted front-to-back movement on the guide rods. A pull rod extends from the support member through the cover and is biased rearwardly by a spring. Each claw member is connected by flexible bands to claw stops, and the claws are thus positioned to engage with the frontmost lid of the stack. A user by pulling on the dispensing handle causes the claws to move frontwardly to extract a single lid and drop it onto inclined supports removal by a user. By use of such a dispenser in convenience stores and the like contact by customers with lids other than those dispensed is avoided.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to apparatus for dispensing articles in general, and to apparatus for dispensing individual beverage container lids in particular. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Untended selection of goods is increasingly popular with consumers. From petroleum to food products, purchasers appreciate the immediate satisfaction and lowered cost provided by self-service. Many convenience stores and restaurants provide cafeteria line or serve-yourself type vending of prepared food, often for take-out or on-the-road consumption. Beverages dispensed from a fountain are typically served in paper or plastic cups, which, to prevent spilling, are provided with molded plastic lids. These lids have a resilient flange which snaps into engagement with a bead formed in the lip of the beverage container. Individual cup dispensers have long been available which permit the removal of a single cup without contamination or disturbance of the remaining supply. Container lids, however, differ from cups in that no deep graspable surface is provided. 
     In order to prevent contamination of the lid supply, especially where multiple users will be drawing on the supply, it is essential that the dispenser isolate the supply of lids from the single lid dispensed. Furthermore, to reduce litter and waste, it is desirable that a dispenser dispense only one lid at a time, a goal complicated by the fact that the resilient plastic lids have a tendency to stick together. 
     One known lid dispenser utilizes a tightly coiled spring disposed above a dispensing opening, with an attached lever which may be depressed to release a frontmost lid for selection by a consumer. Such a device undesirably permits consumer contact with the supply, and may not deliver the desired repeatable performance in dispensing. Other known dispensers engage the underside of a lid and through a series of linkages extract a single lid. These mechanically complicated devices tend to be overly voluminous and consume excessive countertop space. 
     What is needed is a compact lid dispenser which repeatably dispenses single lids from a supply which is isolated from contact with the user. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The lid dispenser of the present invention has a trough-like lid support piece which extends within a supply tube in a housing and supports a stack of beverage container lids. A spring biases a plate to urge the stack frontwardly to engage against a plurality of spring-loaded members which extend from the housing frontwardly of the plate. These members, or pagers, which allow only a single lid to be dispensed at a time, are locked against frontward pivoting, but may freely pivot rearwardly for convenient loading of the lid supply tube. A cover is hinged to the housing and has two guide rods which extend rearwardly toward the lids. Three plastic claws are flexibly supported on a support member which is mounted for front-to-back movement on the guide rods. A pull rod extends from the support member through the cover and is biased rearwardly by a spring. Each claw member is connected by flexible bands to positionable fasteners which are fixed in radial slots in the support member which allow some radial movement of the claws as they engage a cover. Depth stops extend from the claws and position them with respect to the frontmost lid of the stack. A user, by pulling on the dispensing handle, causes the claws to move frontwardly to extract a single lid and drop it onto inclined supports for removal by a user. By use of such a dispenser in convenience stores and the like contact by customers with lids other than those dispensed is avoided. 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a dispenser for beverage container lids which dispenses a single lid without contamination of the lid supply by contact with a user&#39;s hands. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a lid dispenser which dispenses single lids in response to a pull on a handle. 
     It is also an object of the present invention to provide a lid dispenser which may be loaded through the same opening as lids are dispensed. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a lid dispenser which will repeatedly dispense lids untended and with minimal maintenance. 
     Further objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an exploded isometric view of the lid dispenser of this invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the cover opened. 
     FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the cover closed. 
     FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 3 taken along section line 4--4. 
     FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 4 taken along section line 5--5, showing the actuator in a retracted position. 
     FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 5 with the actuator shown in a retracted position. 
     FIG. 7 is an isometric view, partly exploded, of the claw assembly of the apparatus or FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 8 is a partly exploded fragmentary isometric view of the apparatus of FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 9 is a fragmentary rear elevational view showing the break-away claw of the apparatus of FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 10 is a simplified perspective view of a stack of lids being inserted in the apparatus of FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 11 is a top plan view of the break-away claw of FIG. 9. 
     FIG. 12 is rear elevational view of a single pager of the apparatus of FIG. 1. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring more particularly to FIGS. 1-12 wherein like numbers refer to similar parts, a lid dispenser 20 is shown in FIG. 1. The dispenser 20 is configured to repeatably dispense individual ranged container lids 22 on the demand of a user in such a way that each user touches only the dispensed lid. The dispenser 20 may be adjusted and reconfigured to accept and dispense lids of varying dimensions. 
     The dispenser 20 has a box-like housing 24 which may be positioned on a counter or mounted within a cabinet. A cylindrical lid supply tube 26 is fixed within the housing 24 rearward of the housing front wall 28. The housing front wall defines a circular lid dispensing opening 30 through which dispensed lids are discharged from the supply tube 26. As shown in FIG.2, a three-walled upwardly-opening trough-like lid support piece 32 is positioned within the supply tube 26 and extends from the front wall 28 to the rear wall 34 to the lid supply tube 26. The lid support piece 32 has a tab 36 which extends downwardly adjacent the housing front wall 28 and which is connected to the housing and held in place at a desired position by an adjustment screw 38. The lid support piece is fixed in place to the rear wall 34 of the supply tube 26. 
     A lid dispensing plate 40 is positioned within the supply tube 26 rearward of the stack 42 of lids supported on the support piece 32. The lid dispensing plate 40 has a lower slot 44 through which the lid support piece extends and a cylindrical collar 41 which extends rearwardly from the plate. A coiled spring 46 extends between the rear wall 34 of the supply tube 26 and the lid dispensing plate 40 and biases the dispensing plate against the rear of the stack 42 to urge the lids toward the lid dispensing opening 30. The spring is retained within the plate collar 41, and the collar restricts undesired tilting of the plate 40. To assist in centering a stack of lids against the plate 40, the plate is provided with indicia 47 in the form of concentric circles. The indicia 47 may be affixed by such means as silk-screen printing. 
     As shown in FIG. 8, four lid restraint members or pagers 48 are pivotably mounted adjustable arms 50 which extend radially into the space immediately frontward of the dispensing opening 30. Each pager and 50 has a radial slot 51 through which an adjustment screw 52 extends into the front wall 28 of the housing. The slot 51 permits the pager to be positioned on the pager arm 50 with respect to the lids carried on the lid support piece to properly engage with the flange 54 of the frontmost lid of the stack. Each pager arm 50 is constrained to move only radially by a pager guide 56 which has two parallel ridges 58 which guide the movement of the pager arm. 
     Each pager 48 is formed of molded polycarbonate plastic and is pivotably mounted on a metal pin 60 which extends through the pager arm 50. A torsion spring 61 extends between each pager 48 and the pager arm 50. 
     Each pager 48 has two wings 62 which extend radially outwardly from a narrow curved lip 64. The metal pin 60 extends through the wings 62. A narrow planar stop 65 extends from the sidewall 66 of the pager beneath the pager arm 50 and engages with the pager arm. The stop 65 prevents the pager 48 from pivoting frontwardly about the pager arm 50, yet does not interfere with inward pivoting of the pager. 
     As shown in FIG. 12, each pager presents a rigid, unyielding lip 64 to the frontmost lid in the stack which is urged frontwardly by the lid plate 40. However, when loading lids into the supply tube, the pagers pivot rearwardly on the pins 60, and are returned to their original positions by the springs 61. The torsion springs 61 have noncoiled segments 67, 68 which engage within a bore 69 in the pager arm and with the pager sidewall 66 respectively. 
     To more effectively grip lids, a resilient strip 71 of polyurethane is adhesively attached to the curved pager sidewall 66. 
     In cases where it becomes necessary to remove an entire stack of lids from the supply tube without dispensing individually, each pager may be pivoted frontwardly to bring the stop 65 around the pager arm 50, and the stack removed without interference with the pagers. This forward pivoting of the pagers requires sufficient force to flexibly deform the polycarbonate. Such a force is greater than that which can be applied by the lids and the lid supply plate. To aid in repositioning the pagers after they have been pivoted frontwardly, the front inner corner of each pager arm 50 defines a curved cam surface 70 over which the stop 65 travels. 
     As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a rigid box-like cover 72 is mounted to the front wall 28 of the housing 24 by two plastic hinges 74. The cover 72 has a vertical front wall 76 which is preferably formed of transparent plastic such as a break-resistant acrylic under the brand name Implex, manufactured by Rohm &amp; Has, to allow the user to view the lids to be dispensed. Four side walls 78 extend rearwardly from the front wall 76 and engage against the housing front wall 28 when the cover is closed. The cover 72 is pivotable on the hinges 74 between a closed position, shown in FIG. 3, in which the dispenser 20 is ready for use, and an open position, shown in FIG. 2, for loading of the dispenser with lids. The cover 72 is held in the closed position by a spring-loaded hook 80 and catch 81 shown in FIG. 5. The hook 80 engages with a catch 81 mounted to the front wall 28 of the housing 24. 
     Lids 22 are held positioned against the pagers 48 by the spring 46 and dispensing plate 40. Individual lids 22 are removed from a stored position by an extractor assembly 82 which is mounted to the cover 72 for front-to-back movement. The extractor assembly 82 consists of a claw support member 84 to which are mounted three adjustably positionable extractor claws 86, 88. The extractor assembly 82 is mounted on an actuator rod 90 which extends through the cover front wall 76. A handle 92 is attached to the actuator rod 90 in front of the front wall 76, and is marked with indicia 94 providing instructions for use of the dispenser, i.e., the word &#34;PULL.&#34; As shown in FIG. 4, a coiled spring 96 extends between the front wall 76 of the cover and the claw support member 84. The spring 96 biases the extractor assembly 82 rearwardly into engagement with the frontmost lid 22 of a stack 42. The actuator rod 90 is threaded and extends through a plastic guide collar 98, shown in FIG. 3. A hex nut 99 is threaded on the rod 90 to permit adjustment of the depth of travel of the extractor assembly 82, by adjustment of the length of the rod 90 and handle 92 assembly. 
     As shown in HG. 5, two support posts 100 extend rearwardly from the cover front wall 76 and extend through annular plastic collars 101 which are affixed to the front of the claw support member 84. The collars 101 serve as bearings as the extractor assembly 82 travels on the support posts 100. 
     As shown in HG. 7, the three claws 86, 88 are mounted for radial adjustment in three radially extending slots 102, 104, 106. The upper slot 102 extends vertically, with a side slot 104 located at 98° from the vertical and the other side slot 106 located at 262° from the vertical. The claws 86 in the upper slot 102 and the side slot 104 are of a fixed configuration and have an L-bracket shaped body composed of a base 108 which is wider than the slot. and a rearwardly extending arm 110. A curved rim 112 extends inwardly from each arm 110 The rims 112 are flat plates which pass over a lid and engage behind its flange 54. The claw 88 which is in the slot 106 closest the hinges 74, is formed of a body having a pivotably connected base 114 and arm 116, to permit the arm to break away and fold frontwardly, as shown in FIG. 11, when the cover 72 is closed and the claw encounters the lid stack. When the cover is closed the claw 88 remains folded frontwardly. A spring 118 extends between the base 114 and arm 116 to bias the arm rearwardly. To restore the arm 116 to a rearward orientation, the pull handle is pulled rearwardly once the cover 72 is closed on the housing 24. This resets the claw 88 to a proper position engaged with the frontmost lid. 
     Plastic screws 119 are positioned on the front of the claw support member 84 and extend through the slots 102, 104, 106 to engage loosely with the claw bases 108, 114. Nubs 120 extend rearwardly from each claw base. Positionable two-part fasteners 122 serve as claw stops and are positioned in the slots 102, 104, 106 and tightened in place to set the desired radial position of the claws 86, 88. Resilient bands 124 are looped between each fastener 122 and the claw nub 120 in the same slot. The bands 124, which may be of rubber or resilient plastic, allow slight tilting and radially outward movement of the claws as the extractor assembly moves into engagement with a lid 22. 
     Narrow slots 126 are formed in each claw arm 110, 116 and positionable depth stops 128 are mounted in the slots 126 and extend radially inwardly from the arms 110, 116. The depth stops 128 are plastic cylinders attached by fasteners 130 to nuts 132 on the outward sides of the arms. The depth stops 128 engage against the front of a lid 22 when the extractor assembly 82 is released. The stops 128 arc adjustable from front to mar to accommodate the particular spacing between the front of a lid 22 and the lid flange 54. 
     As shown in HG. 4, two plastic triangular gussets 134 are affixed to the cover 72 between the cover lower side wall 78 and the cover front wall 76. The gussets 134 are in the path of a dispensed lid 22 and direct the lid so it protrudes out a rectangular lid removal opening 136 formed in the front wall of the cover 72 beneath the actuator handle 92. 
     The operation of the dispenser 20 is illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6. When the handle 92 has not been pulled, the dispenser is in its unactuated condition. The extractor assembly 82 ts biased against the stack of lids 22, as shown in FIG. 5. The lips 64 of the pagers are engaged against the front of the flange 54 of the frontmost lid 22, and the rims 112 of the three claws 86, 88 are engaged with or closely spaced from the rear of the same flange 54. The depth stops 128 are engaged against the front 138 of the lid. 
     When the handle 92 is pulled, the extractor assembly 82 begins to move frontwardly, causing the somewhat flexible plastic lid 22 to deform. More particularly, the flange 54 of the frontmost lid 22 is bent to clear the pagers 48, and is effectively pulled by the claw rims 112 forward and separated from the stack 42 as shown in FIG. 6. The arms of the side claws 86, 88 do not interfere with the downward motion of the extracted lid 22. Hence, once free from the stack 42, the lid 22 falls downwardly from the extractor assembly 82 to engage the gussets 134 and be positioned for grasping by a customer through the lid removal opening 136. 
     When the stack 42 has been depleted to only one lid 22, the claws 86, 88 will extend into three clearance openings 140 in the lid dispensing plate 40 so the rims 112 are able to reach behind the lid flange 54. 
     Once the stack 42 has been exhausted, the dispenser is loaded, as shown in FIG. 10, by opening the cover 72, aligning the new stack 42 with the appropriate circular indicia 47, and pressing the stack into the supply tube 26 past the pagers 48 which bend rearwardly with applied pressure. The loading technique is sufficiently simple that an untrained operator may effectively load the dispenser 20 with substantially no instruction. 
     The complete adjustability of the dispenser 20 permits it to be used for dispensing lids of a wide range of sizes. Typically a dispenser might be called on to dispense lids for beverage containers from eight fluid ounces to forty-four fluid ounces. At the time of installation of the dispenser 20, a technician will adjust the position of the lid support piece 32 up or down, the radial position of the pagers 48, the pull length of the actuator rod 90, the radial position of the positionable fasteners 122, and the depth of the depth stops 128. Once set, the adjustments need not be interfered with until it is desired to load the dispenser with a different type of lid. Lid dimensions vary not only with respect to size of container, but also from manufacturer to manufacturer. 
     It should be noted that although the dispenser 20 has been illustrated as a stand-alone housing unit, it may also be fitted within a cabinet, in which case the cabinet will function as the housing for the dispenser. Furthermore, although the plastic portions of the dispenser have been illustrated as opaque for clarity in the illustrations, for better visibility of the dispensed lids, the extractor assembly and the pagers and pager arms may be fabricated of transparent plastic. 
     It is understood that the invention is not confined to the particular construction and arrangement of parts herein illustrated and described, but embraces all such modified forming thereof as come within the scope of the following claims.