Patent ID: 7766145

Claim:
A product transfer assembly for use in a machine for vending products, said transfer assembly comprising: (a) a central support member adapted to be supported in a generally upright orientation; and (b) a plurality of separate transfer segments mounted along and about said central support member such that said transfer segments are disposed in a spaced relationship above and below one another, each of said transfer segments including a ramp of substantially helical shape with opposite entrance and exit ends, said entrance and exit ends being spaced substantially above and below one another and substantially adjacent to the same side of said central support member, said ramps of adjacent ones of said transfer segments being of opposite helical shapes such that said ramps together define a path of travel taken by an item of product downward and in contact with said ramps which path includes a plurality of spaced apart portions substantially helical in shape and reversing the direction of travel of the product item, relative to a generally vertical reference axis, going from one portion to the next portion of said path.