Patent Publication Number: US-6902084-B2

Title: Container dispenser

Description:
This application claims benefit of Provisional Application No. 60/391,408, filed Jun. 26, 2002. 

   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of Invention 
   This invention relates to a container dispenser and, more particularly, to a machine for automatically dispensing containers of beverages and the like. 
   2. Description of the Prior Art 
   Automatic dispensing machines are known and are used to dispense beverage containers as well as containers containing food. The beverage dispensers are by far the most common and machines are known for dispensing cans, glass bottles and plastic bottles. In the soda industry, glass bottles were replaced by cans many years ago and, today, plastic containers are replacing cans. The modem consumer is more health conscious and bottled water is extremely popular along with a host of non-carbonated flavoured water based beverages as well as fruit juices and sport drinks. Most containers for beverages have an elongated shape and plastic containers and soda cans have greater longitudinal strength than lateral strength. Vending machines for beverages typically store and move the containers through the machine horizontally. It is important to have a large number of selections on the machine as there are a large number of different products available. It is also important to have large storage facilities for each selection. Previous machines have a relatively low number of selections. Those previous machines that have a large number of selections have a low storage capacity for each selection or they are susceptible to becoming jammed, or they are too complex or expensive to manufacture. 
   Some previous vending machines jam frequently or the containers are damaged while they are moved within the machine or the machines fail too frequently. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide a dispensing machine that stores the containers vertically within the machine and continues the vertical orientation up to the time that each container is released to the outlet. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a dispensing machine that can readily provide twelve or more selections. It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a dispensing machine of conventional size that stores twenty four or more containers for each selection when the machine has been filled with containers. 
   A container dispensing machine is used for automatically dispensing containers where each container has a base and a top with said top being smaller than said base. The dispensing machine comprises a plurality of vertical guides means arranged in at least one set, the vertical guides means being sized so that a plurality of containers can fit within each of the guide means longitudinally with said base being located beneath said top. There are two abutments rotatably mounted in a plane substantially normal to a longitudinal centre axis of the at least one set. An actuation is connected to rotate the two abutments by part of one turn in the plane for each activation. Each of the two abutments has a cutaway portion. The two abutments are an upper abutment and a lower abutment. The abutments are oriented so that the cutaway portion of the upper abutment is vertically offset from the cutaway portion of the lower abutment by at least the distance that the two abutments rotate in one activation. The abutments rotate about the longitudinal centre axis of the at least one set. The upper abutment is sized to rotate without damaging the containers on the lower abutment, the abutments being separated by less than a height of one container. The vertical guides have an opening therein corresponding to a level of the upper abutment to allow the upper abutment to pass through the vertical guides. The dispensing machine has an outlet for any containers that pass the lower abutment. 
   Preferably, the vertical guides are a plurality of tubes, said tubes being arranged in a set with two abutments for each set. 
   A method of dispensing containers from a dispensing machine stores and dispenses containers longitudinally from vertical guides within a housing of the machine. The containers have a base and a top with the top being smaller than the base. The method comprises arranging a plurality of vertical guides in at least one set, locating two abutments and a plane normal to a longitudinal centre axis of the at least one set, mounting the abutment vertically apart from one another by a distance that is less than a height of one container, locating a cutaway portion in each abutment, offsetting the cutaway portions from one another, locating the abutment on an actuator to rotate the abutments, filling the guides with containers and activating the actuator to dispense containers from the at least one set at the rate of one container for each activation. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the drawings: 
       FIG. 1  is perspective view of a dispensing machine having a housing containing fifteen sets of tubes; 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a cluster of three sets of tubes; 
       FIG. 3  is a side view of the cluster of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  is an end view of the cluster of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an actuator; 
       FIG. 5A  is a side view of an actuator; 
       FIG. 6  is a partial perspective view of one set of tubes with a front tube removed to expose the actuator; 
       FIG. 7  is a partial perspective view of one set of tubes viewed from beneath the actuator; 
       FIG. 8  is a top view of an upper abutment; 
       FIG. 9  is an edge view of the upper abutment; 
       FIG. 10  is a top view of a lower abutment; 
       FIG. 11  is an edge view of the lower abutment; 
       FIG. 12  is a schematic bottom view of a set having four cylindrical tubes; 
       FIG. 13  is a schematic top view of the set of  FIG. 12 ; 
       FIG. 14  is a bottom view of a set of four tubes with containers located in said tubes; 
       FIG. 15  is a schematic perspective view of containers on the actuator; 
       FIG. 16  is a schematic perspective view of the containers shown in  FIG. 15  with an upper front container removed; and 
       FIG. 17  is a perspective schematic view of a set of four tubes having a square cross section. 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   In  FIG. 1 , there is shown a dispensing machine  2  having a housing  4  containing fifteen sets  6  of tubes  8 . The housing  4  has a front  10  and a rear  12 . A door (not shown) of the housing  4  has been omitted. The door would be hinged to a front  10  of the housing  4  to provide access to an interior of the housing  4 . The refrigeration equipment and the wiring of the dispensing machine are considered to be conventional and are not described. 
   The sets  6  are arranged in five clusters of three sets each mounted side by side within the housing  4 . Each cluster  24  of three sets extending from front to rear of the housing  4  is mounted on a tiltable support  14 . The second cluster from the right in  FIG. 1  is tilted forward as shown. In the tilted forward position, all of the tubes  8  within the cluster of three sets can be filled with containers  16  by placing the containers longitudinally into a top of each of the tubes  8 . Each container has a top and a base and the top is smaller than the base. The containers are placed right side up in the tubes  8  with the base of each container located beneath the top. When all of the tubes of all of the sets of the tilted forward cluster have been filled with containers, that cluster is tilted back into the housing. A second cluster of three sets of tubes is then tilted forward and those tubes are filled with containers. This process is repeated until all the clusters of three sets each have been tilted forward and filled with containers. By filling the machine in an orderly fashion with a different beverage in each set of four tubes, the dispensing machine  2  can provide a selection of fifteen different beverages. In some cases, an operator of the dispensing machine may decide to place a more popular beverage in more than one set. Also, an operator might decide to set up the machine with fewer than fifteen selections so that each beverage occupies more than one set of the machine and the machine is designed to activate each of the sets for the same beverage in succession until all of the sets for that selection are empty. 
   Each set  6  of four tubes  8  is bound together near a top and bottom by straps  18 . A chute  20  extends beneath the tubes  8  to carry any container  16  passing through any of the tubes to an outlet  22 . The container  16  shown on the chute  20  is shown for purposes of illustration only. Preferably, the machine will not be operable when a group of tubes is tilted forward. An operator may want the machine to be operable when the door is open for testing or start-up purposes. Also, the machine is preferably designed so that when one cluster of three sets each is tilted forward, none of the other clusters can be tilted forward. In other words, the machine is preferably designed so that only one cluster can be tilted forward at one time. When one cluster is tilted forward, the remaining clusters are preferably locked in position. The number of sets that can be contained within a particular housing will vary with the diameter of the tubes and the number of tubes in each set. A larger housing can be designed to accommodate more sets. 
   In  FIG. 2 , there is shown one cluster  24  of three sets  6  of tubes  8  mounted on the tiltable support  14 . The support  14  has an opening  26  to receive a pivot rod (not shown). A rear of the tiltable support  14  has a slot  28  therein to receive a bar (not shown). When mounted in the housing, the clusters  24  can be tilted forward one at a time about the pivot bar for filling purposes. After the tubes have been filled, the clusters  24  can be tilted back into the housing one at a time. When the bar fully enters the slot  28 , further rearward tilting will be prevented and the tubes will be substantially vertical. Each set of tubes is held together with straps  18 . 
   In  FIGS. 3 and 4 , there is shown a side view and front view of the clusters  24 . The same reference numerals are used in  FIGS. 3 and 4  as those used in  FIG. 2  to describe those components that are identical. 
   In  FIG. 5 , there is shown a perspective view of an actuator  30 . In  FIG. 5A , there is shown a side view of the actuator  30 . The actuator  30  has a shaft  32  with a lower abutment  34  affixed to the shaft  32  by a locking collar  36  beneath the lower abutment  34 . The locking collar  36  is welded to the lower abutment  34 . The locking collar is locked in position on the shaft  32  by set screws (not shown) in FIG.  5 . An upper abutment is held in position on the shaft  32  by a locking collar  36  located immediately beneath the abutment  38 . The locking collar  36  is welded to the upper abutment  38 . A motor  40  is mounted at the top of the shaft  32 . The motor is connected to rotate the shaft about its longitudinal centre axis through a coupling  42 . The shaft is mounted in a bearing  45  located beneath the upper abutment  38 . A height of the lower abutment  34  on the shaft  32  is adjustable. A height of the upper abutment  38  in the embodiment shown is not adjustable, but the upper abutment could be designed to be adjustable. Since the lower abutment is adjustable, the distance between the two abutments is adjustable within a per-determined range. A centering collar  43  centres the shaft  32  within a sleeve  44 . The sleeve  44  has a square cross section. The sleeve  44  surrounds the shaft  32  between the abutments  34 ,  38 . Two projections  46  (only one of which is shown) extend out each side of the sleeve  44  between the tubes (not shown in  FIGS. 5 and 5A ) to support the actuator  30  and tubes on the support  14  (not shown in FIGS.  5  and  5 A). Both the shape of the sleeve  44  and the projections  46  prevent the sleeve  44  from rotating. There is one actuator  30  mounted in each set of tubes. It can be seen that each of the abutments  34 ,  38  has a cutaway portion  48  on one side. It can also be seen that the cutaway portions  48  are oriented 180° apart from one another. There are many different ways that the actuator can be designed to achieve the desired result. 
   In  FIG. 6 , the actuator  30  is located between the tubes  8 . The front tube has been omitted from  FIG. 6  to expose the actuator. There are openings  52  located in the tubes  8  to accommodate the upper abutment  38 . The shaft  32  and abutments  34 ,  38  rotate in a clockwise direction when viewed from a top. In  FIG. 6 , the actuator  30  is slightly different from the actuator  30  shown in  FIGS. 5 and 5A  as there is a gap between the coupling  42  and the upper abutment  38  of the actuator  30  in FIG.  6 . The same reference numerals are used in  FIG. 6  as those used in  FIGS. 1 and 5 . If it is desired to access the actuator for repairs or replacements, the straps  18  can be severed. When the repair is accomplished, the straps can be replaced to assemble the set. 
   In  FIG. 7 , there is shown a bottom view of the set  6  of four cylindrically shaped tubes  8 . The same reference numerals are used in  FIG. 7  as those used in  FIGS. 1 and 6  to describe those components that are identical. It can be seen that a container  16  has exited the front tube  8  past the cutaway portion  48  of the lower abutment  34 . The container  16  has passed by the lower abutment  34  and will fall to the outlet (not shown in FIG.  7 ). The containers in each of the remaining three tubes of the set  8  are prevented from exiting the tubes  8  by the lower abutment  34 . It can be seen that there are containers  16  in the two side tubes  8 . The rear tube  8  is not shown in  FIG. 7 , but the rear tube  8  would also have a container that is prevented from exiting the tube by the lower abutment  34 . 
   In  FIG. 8 , there is shown a top view of the upper abutment  38  and in  FIG. 9  there is shown an edge view of the upper abutment  38 . It can be seen that the upper abutment  38  has an opening  54  therein to receive the shaft  32 . A straight edge  56  is tilted downward as can be best be seen from  FIG. 9. A  cutaway portion  48  is located just beyond the straight edge  56 . It can be seen that the upper abutment  38  has a shape similar to approximately two-thirds of a circle. The edge  56  is bent downward to add strength to the upper abutment  38 . 
   In  FIGS. 10 and 11 , there is shown a top view of the lower abutment  34 , together with an edge view of the lower abutment  34 . It can be seen that the lower abutment  34  has an opening  56 . An edge view of the lower abutment  34  is shown in FIG.  11 . It can be seen from  FIGS. 10 and 11  that the lower abutment  34  is significantly larger than the upper abutment  38 . A straight edge  58  of the lower abutment  34  slopes slightly downward to add strength to the abutment  34 . A cutaway portion  48  is located just beyond the straight edge  58 . The lower abutment has a shape equal to approximately two-thirds of a circle. 
   In  FIG. 12 , there is shown a bottom schematic view of a set  6  of four tubes  8 . In  FIG. 13 , there is shown a schematic top view of a set  6  of four tubes  8 . The actuator  30  fits within an interstice  62  between the four tubes  8 . The same reference numerals are used in  FIGS. 12 and 13  to describe those components that are identical to the components of  FIGS. 1 and 5 . The relative sizes and shapes of the lower abutment  34  and the upper abutment  38  is readily apparent. Also, it can be seen that abutments are oriented 180° apart from one another with the two straight edges facing in opposite directions. The cutaway portions  48  of the two abutments are also oriented 180° apart from one another. The abutments each have a shape similar to a segment of a circle. The projections  46  extend through part of the tubes  8 . Since  FIGS. 12 and 13  are schematic views, the thickness of the tube wall is not shown. In an actual assembly, the thickness of the tube walls takes up most of the thickness of the projections so that the projections extend only slightly into an interior of the tubes. 
   In  FIG. 14 , there is shown a bottom view of one set  6  of four tubes  8  with containers  16  in each of the tubes  8 . The same reference numerals are used in  FIG. 14  as those used in  FIG. 12  to describe those components that are identical. It can be seen that the container  16  in the bottom right of  FIG. 14  is supported by the upper abutment  38  and the remaining three containers in the other tubes  8  are supported by the lower abutment  34 . In operation, the actuator moves 90° during each activation. The container in the tube  8  in the bottom right (not shown) that had been resting on the lower abutment  34  has been the most recent container to have passed by the lower abutment to the outlet (not shown in FIG.  14 ). When the abutments rotate 90° (counterclockwise when viewed from the bottom) in the next activation, the container  16  in the upper right will pass by the lower abutment to the outlet. When a set is filled with containers after being completely empty, one activation is required before the set will dispense a container. After rotating, the machine can be designed to stop dispensing containers when there is one container left on the lower abutment of each set. With this design, the set will dispense a container upon the first activation. The actuator is fixed vertically relative to said tubes by pressure from the tubes applied to the actuator from the straps. 
   In  FIG. 15 , there is shown a schematic perspective view of seven containers  16  on the actuator  30  with the tubes removed to expose the containers and part of the actuator. In  FIG. 16 , there is shown a schematic perspective view of six containers  16  mounted on the actuator  30 . The actuator is in the same position in  FIGS. 15 and 16 . The difference between the two figures is that the front container  16  on the upper abutment  38  shown in  FIG. 15  has been removed in  FIG. 16  to expose more of the actuator  30 . The same reference numerals are used in  FIGS. 15 and 16  as those in  FIGS. 1 and 5  for those components that are identical. In  FIG. 15 , there are three containers  16  resting on the lower abutment  34 , one at each side and one at the rear. The container that had been at the front on the lower abutment  34  would have fallen to the outlet upon the last activation of the actuator  30 . On the upper abutment  38 , only the front container  16  is actually resting on the abutment. The other three containers (the two containers at the side and the one container at the rear) are resting on the containers that are located immediately beneath each of those other containers. The containers have a neck that converges at the top and the top is narrower than the base. It can be seen that each of the containers  16  has a height that is greater than the distance between the two abutments  34 ,  38 . 
   In  FIG. 16 , set screws  63  are shown on the coupling  42  and on the locking collar  36 . For ease of explanation, the seven containers  16  shown in  FIG. 15  are labelled ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’, ‘e’, ‘f’, ‘g’. The six containers shown in  FIG. 16  that are identical to the containers of  FIG. 15  are labelled ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’, ‘e’, ‘f’ respectively. In the position shown in  FIG. 15 , the container at the front that had been resting on the lower abutment  34  immediately before the actuator  30  moved to the position shown in  FIG. 15  has fallen past the lower abutment  34  to the outlet (not shown). The actuator can be set up to rotate either clockwise or counterclockwise, but, in the embodiment shown, the actuator always rotates in the same direction. Also, in the embodiment shown, the actuator rotates 90° for each activation. Assuming that the actuator  30  rotates in a clockwise direction when viewed from above, in the next activation from that shown in FIG.  15 , the container ‘a’ will be above the cutaway portion  48  of the lower abutment  34  and will fall to the outlet (not shown). The container ‘d’ will fall onto the upper abutment  38 . In the second activation from that shown in  FIG. 15 , the container ‘b’ will fall to the outlet and the container ‘e’ will fall onto the upper abutment  38 . Simultaneously, the container ‘g’ will fall onto the lower abutment  34 . In the third activation from that shown in  FIG. 15 , the container ‘c’ will fall to the outlet and the container ‘f’ will fall onto the upper abutment  38 . Simultaneously, the container ‘d’ will fall onto the lower abutment  34 . In the fourth activation from that shown in  FIG. 15 , the container ‘g’ will fall to the outlet. Simultaneously, the container ‘e’ will fall onto the lower abutment  34 . As containers ‘c’, ‘e’, ‘f’, and ‘g’ fall onto the lower abutment  34 , any containers in the tube (not shown) immediately above ‘c’, ‘e’, ‘f’, and ‘g’ will take the place of containers ‘d’, ‘e’, ‘f’ and ‘g’ in the position shown in  FIG. 15 , in succession. In other words, containers will be replenished from containers located in the same tube as long as containers are available. 
     FIG. 17  shows a set  64  of four rectangular tubes  66 . An interstice  68  for the actuator  30  is created by angling off an inner corner of each of the tubes  66 . Except for the angled inner corner, the tubes would have a square cross section. The same reference numerals are used in  FIG. 17  to describe those components that are identical to the components of  FIGS. 1 and 5 . The sets  65  operate in the same manner as the sets  6  with the cylindrically shaped tubes. The actuator  30  is identical to the actuator shown in FIG.  5  and is not described in detail. The square tubes can be used to dispense products having a rectangular shape, but tubes having a circular cross section can be used to dispense containers having a rectangular cross sectional shape as well. Similarly, containers having a circular cross section can be dispensed from square or rectangular tubes. The only requirement is that the containers fit properly within the tubes. It would not be desirable to have a container with an extremely small cross section dispensed from tubes having a relatively large cross section where there is a possibility that the containers within a tube will become misaligned with one another. For example, if the cross sectional area of the tube is so large relative to the cross sectional area of the container, that two containers could partially overlap, the columns might become jammed. 
   Each set  6  of four tubes  8  has one actuator  30  including one motor  40 . Each of the motors is connected to selection means (not shown) so that when a consumer makes the deposit of an appropriate amount of money to the machine, the consumer can select the beverage in any one of the fifteen sets  6 . When a particular set is activated, the motor for that set will rotate the actuator 90° and the container that is on the lower abutment  34  immediately before the cutaway portion will fall to the outlet as soon as the abutments rotate. The selection means and the wiring for the dispensing machine is not shown as it is conventional. The dispensing machine can contain heating means or refrigeration means depending on whether the machine is for hot or cold beverages. Usually, the containers will be bottles and will contain beverages. However, the dispensing machines can be used to dispense containers containing products other than beverages. The dispensing machine can also be used to dispense rectangular or square containers. The machine will dispense any diameter of container or any size of container as long as it is small enough to slide easily within the tubes and has a large enough cross section relative to the cross section of the tubes that it will not become misaligned with containers immediately above or below it to the extent that two or more containers will overlap. Containers must also have a smaller top than a base so that a top portion of a container can be located above the upper abutment when the container rests on the lower abutment. The distance between the two abutments must be less than the height of one container and, preferably, the container narrows at a neck thereof. Adjustments may have to be made to the machine when containers of a different height are used. The machine will accommodate containers of a different height within a certain size range without any adjustment being made. The distance between the abutments can be manually adjusted to extend the range of containers that can be dispensed by a particular actuator. To dispense containers having a height outside of the extended range, a different size actuator will have to be used. The manual adjustments of the actuator are limited by the sleeve  44  and by the length of the shaft  32 . A completely different size range can be dispensed with a shorter or longer actuator than that shown in FIG.  5 . As shown in the drawings, the containers must be taller than the distance between the lower abutment and the upper abutment and the container must be shaped so that the upper abutment does not damage the container as the upper abutment rotates. In other words, the neck of the container has to be narrow enough at the height of the upper abutment to allow the upper abutment to rotate without damaging the containers immediately adjacent to the upper abutment. If a container has a narrower base than a top, an actuator can be chosen with the appropriate distance between the abutments to dispose the containers. 
   The machine can dispense gable topped containers, for example milk cartons, with a small adjustment added to ensure that the gable topped containers are oriented correctly and the correct orientation is maintained. For example, in a machine with square or rectangular tubes, the tubes could be sized so that the milk cartons can be oriented correctly within the tubes when the tubes are filled and that orientation is maintained by the tubes themselves. Obviously, if the diameter of the tubes or cross sectional sides of the tubes is smaller in a particular machine, then many more sets of tubes can be included. Preferably, the machine is used to dispense containers having a size of approximately 600 millilitres or larger. Obviously, the larger the cabinet or housing or the smaller the diameter or size of the tubes, the greater number of sets of tubes that can be contained within the housing. There is preferably one selection for each set of tubes. A decision might be made to have more than one selection apply to the same product. Alternatively, the machine could be designed so that it has fewer selections than the number of sets and some selections are designed to operate more than one set. For example, if a manufacturer has a product that is much more popular than other products, the manufacturer might decide to design the dispensing machine so that a selection for the most popular product will dispense containers from, for example, four sets of tubes. The control must then be set up to empty the sets sequentially from the same selection. In other words, the actuators are activated for the first of the four sets until the first set is empty and so on until all four sets are empty. The preferred number of tubes in each set is four. However, sets can be designed to have fewer than four guides or more than four guides in each set. The offset between the upper and lower abutments relative to one another must be adjusted as the number of guides in each set changes. 
   Existing cabinets have inside dimensions of approximately 34.5 inches in width by 21 inches in depth. When tubes are used having an outside diameter of 3.5 inches, a total of twelve sets of tubes (four tubes per set) can be easily mounted within the cabinet. The present invention can be used with new installations or it can be used to retrofit existing cabinets. New cabinets are now available having an inside width of 36.5 inches and an inside depth of 22 inches. Fifteen sets of four tubes each having an outside diameter of 3.5 inches per tube can easily be mounted within the new cabinet. This provides a maximum of fifteen selections. Tubes having an outside diameter of 3.5 inches can accommodate plastic containers having a volume of approximately 600 millilitres quite readily. The sizes provided are examples only and the invention is not limited to particular sizes or particular dimensions. Other vertical guides could be used in place of the tubes shown. However, tubes are believed to be the most cost effective. While the embodiment shown in the drawings with four tubes per set rotates 90° for each activation and has the cutaway portions offset by 180°, the cutaway portion of the upper abutment could be offset from the cutaway portion of the lower abutment by 90° instead of 180°. In that event, the vertical offset of the abutments would equal the activation distance. An advantage of the present invention is that the sides of the container can be completely redesigned without requiring any adjustment to the machine.