Automatic vending machine, and item dispensing method for same
US11915562B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignees
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 21, 2020 |
| Grant date | Feb 27, 2024 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 21, 2040 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG07F11/42
- WIPO fieldControl
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An automatic vending machine includes a cabinet, a plurality of item columns, a pickup port and a delivery apparatus, and the delivery apparatus includes a hopper and a hopper drive mechanism. An item dispensing method of the automatic vending machine includes: determining, according to items to be purchased, all of item combination manners having a lowest number of item dispensing operations as candidate item combination manners; determining all of pickup manners for picking up items in each of the candidate item combination manners; determining all of item dispensing paths in one-to-one correspondence to all of pickup manners of all of the candidate item combination manners; and selecting, from all of the item dispensing paths, an item dispensing path having a highest efficiency as a target item dispensing path, and controlling, based on the target item dispensing path, the hopper to dispense items.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.