First-in first-out vending machine
US6415953B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 3, 2000 |
| Grant date | Jul 9, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 13, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG07F11/32
- WIPO fieldControl
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A vending machine has a housing or casing supporting one or more interior shelves or trays upon which beverage containers can be placed in a position to be viewed by a customer through a window in the front of the machine. The window is located in a door on the front of the machine that is used to stock the machine with fresh product from the front. Product containers are urged toward a vending channel at the rear of the machine and away from the stocking door, thus assuring a first-in first-out movement of each product container to assure freshness. The containers can be urged toward the vending channel by a spring, by gravity (as by placing them on an inclined tray surface and allowing them to slide toward the vending channel at the rear of the machine), or by means of a conveyor, e.g., a vibratory or belt conveyor. Each container in turn upon reaching the vending channel is released by a dispensing means into the vending channel through which it falls toward the product retrieval outlet at the front of the machine. An improved dispensing mechanism that acts positively to eject each container into the vending channel is also described.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.