US1680238A - Vending machine - Google Patents

Description

R. H. BAKER VENDING MACHINE Filed A 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Aug. 7, 1928.2 1,680,238

R. H. BAKER VENDING MACHINE Filed Dec. 6, 1919 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Wmvgsgig, VINVEIIVTOR. J

A I '4 KM- ATTORNES".

Aug. 7, .1928.

.R; H. BAKER VENDING mcam'n Filed Dec. 6; 1919 '4. Sheets-Sheet w mvsssas:

" I INVENTOR.

Mam.

' ATTORNEY;

Patent Aug; 7, 1928.

rate

RQLLYN H. BAKER, OF DAYTON, OHIO, AS SIGNOR TO THE BAKERUFACT-URI'NG COMPANY, OF DAYTO-1\T,,OHIO, A CQRPOBA'FION OF OHIO.

VENDING MACHINE.

Application filed December 6, 1919. Serial No. 342,973.

ecessor, it relates primarilyfto' devices for vending cups and beverages, some of its provisions are applicable to machines of other kinds; vendingcupsonly, for example. .On'e of the objects of my present invention,

is to increase the capacity of the cup vend ing section, so that a much larger number of gaps may-be placed in, the machine than beore.

Another object is to provide for this in l creased capacity without increasing the height of thecup storage space or the number' of cups Whose Weight must be sustained by the cup vending mechanism.

Another object is to provide greater se- I .20 curity forthe stock of cups, whereby the customer is prevented from removing more than the single cup. whichv hers entitled to remove.

. Another object is to provide against in-' uly to certain parts of the mechanism,

should the'cups obstruct. the movements or proper action of the parts. I I

. Another object is-to facilitate the removal of thebottom cupfrom the stack, by enaac bling the cup', vending-device to grip the stack of cups, sothat the bottom cup may be'pulled loose from the stack even if it tendsto stick to the cup above it.

and greatly strengthened cup dispensing devicc;*one that will be very positive in its action, under all circumstances.

Another object is ;to simplify the construction ofthe'doormechanism of the delivery a0 eompartment,'in a Way which not only reduces the cost of makingvthe machine but diminishes the. chances for disorder.

Another object .is to render the entire mechanism inoperative after the cup full" T 5 of beverage has been drawn from the reservoir, until the. door has. been allowed to,

close. a

Other-objects, and. advantages derived from my improved construction, will be disao closed'as the-detailed description proceeds. In my former application, above mentioned, I provided a single tubular magazine for nested-paper cups, at the lower end of which vasn cup dispensing device. In the 3 present machine I- use an improved cup d\is when the operating handle is in normal ,upper segment, its

pensing mechanism and operate it by 1 an improved mechanism. But my improved magazine arrangement may also be used with the original cupdevice. I also continue to use the tubular magazine which feeds cups to the dispensing device. The supply of cups contained in this magazine issupplemented by a plurality of auxiliary magazines, which are brought successively lnto position to deliver their contents to the main magazine. I am aware that plural magazines to be emp tied-successively ,have been used'by others, but beiieve I am the first to introduce a dispensing magazine whose supply is ,automatically replenished from timeto time from auxiliary magazines; also the first to rebeen exhausted. I

In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a side. elevation of my improved machine, a portion of thehoodor enclosing casing being removed, and such parts of the mechanism as are not directly associated with the cup device omitttd orindifierently shown. I

Fig. 2 is a fragmental plan view of a por-- plenish a magazine before its contents has tion at the mechanism for moving theauxiliary magazines successively .into position.

Fig. 3 is another fragmental planview of the auxiliary magazine mechanism, showing' the parts in a different position.

; Fig. 4 isa plan view of the auxiliary magazine and itssupporting-structure. Another object is to provide a simplified Fig. 5 is an elevational detail view, showmagazines as they are brought successively into place 7 Fig. 6 is a sectional .elevational view on line 6-6, Fig. 7 Of-my improved cup vendmg device, s'howing'the position offthe parts '95 position.

Fig. 7 device. with the magazine removed, the. parts being in the same'positionas in Fig. 6. we

Fig. 8 is a composite viewof the upper and lower segment.

Fig. 9-is a view of a; modfiedb'tormfof in e e e1n 'serrated..- 4 g "10a Fig. 10' is a plan view taken on line 1010, Fig. 1 for the purpose of illustrating :certain features of my improved door mech amsm.

is a .plan view the cup vending that is, the entire machine has not;

shown in a single figure, because the parts This lever is composed of two since the parts normally act as though they lower portion of my machine, showing the.

beverage reservoir and ice receptacle 5 this View is to be consldered a part of F1 1; een

shown in 1 would then havebeen too small to properly disclose them.

Referring now to the drawings, more particularly Fi 1, the numeral 25 desig= nates a base pfiite on which are mounted certain parts that I am about to describe. In order to render the drawings more simple much of the supporting structure has been omitted and it is sufiicient to say that at a suitable distance above the base 25 is an upper base plate 26. On this up er base is mounted a cup dispensing device 2 above which is a magazine 28 containingcups 30. The cup dispensing mechanism is operated by the crank '29, which is seen in dotted lines in Fig. 1, in a manner to be hereinafter described for the present it is sufficient to say that the motion of the crank is oscillatory, it being moved counter-clockwise and clockwise, alternately, and that as cups 30 are withdrawn one by one the stack in the magazine 28 is gradually lowered. I will now describe means for replenishing the supply. The crank 29 is rigidly attached to a. shaft 40; on this shaft is rigidly secured a. con-' centric 41, which is mutilated to form a cam 42.. A 'lever 43, is mounted to rock on "a fixedcenter 44 carried by the upper base 26. parts, but

were integral, the fact .that they are not will be ignoredfor the resent; The first operation performed by t e customer, after inserting the necessary coin (in a slot not shown), is to rotate the shaft 40 by means of the crank .29 somewhat over half of a revolution, counter-clockwise, as seen in Fig. 1. The lower end of the lever 43 carries a roller 45 which normally rests on the concentric 41, but when the crank .is operated as above described the concentric. is rotated till the cam 42 reaches approximately the position indicated by dotted "lines, carrying the cam entirely clear of the roller 44 and allowing the lever 43 to rock to the position shown in dotted lines, the lever being moved to this position by a spring 46. Upon the return of the crank to its normal position the cam 42 engages the-roller 45 and rocks the lever 43 up to its normal position, the roller riding on the concentric during the remainder of the movement of the crank. At the upper end of the magazine 28 is mounted a plate 50, on which a carrier 51 is mounted to rotate on an axis 52 (see also Fig.4). The'carrier 51 supports four tubular auxiliary magazines 53, each of which is adapted to receive'a stack of cups; The

tubes 53 are open at both ends, and the cups,

which are inserted at the upper end, drop down and rest upon the plate 50. The plate is provided with an annular rib 54 on which the cups rest, and this enables them to slide freely as the carrier 51 rotates. The plate 50 is providedwith. a circular hole 55, which registers with and is approximately the same size as the dispensing magazine 28, and Whenever the carrier swings to a position where one of the tubes 53 registers with this hole thecontent of that tube dropsby gravity into the magazine 28.

The axis 52 is a shaft rigidly secured to the carrier, and it extends through the plate 50 and below the plate carries a ratchet Wheel 60. A lever 61 is mounted to rock on the shaft 52, said lever being connected lever 61 isrocked from the position it oc cupies-in Fig. 3 to the position it occupies in Fig. 2. The lever carries a spring-actuated pawl 63 pivoted at 64, which pawl is provided with an arm 65. When the lever assumes the position it occupies in Fig. 2 the arm 65 invades dispensing magazine 28 a short distance, as is seen in Fig. 2, provided the stack of cups in the magazine has been lowered sufliciently to permit this invasion. Otherwise the'arm is arrested-by coming in contact with the cups, as .indicated with dotted lines in Fig. 2. When it is so arrested the pawl 63 1S kept from engaging theratchet wheel 60, and upon thereturn of the crank 29 to its normal position the lever 61 swings idly and the carrier 51 is not moved. When the stack of cups has been lowered to such an extent that T the arm 65 can swing into the magazine the pawl 63, on the return of the crank, en-

gages a tooth of the ratchet 60 and moves one operation of the crank. On the other hand, by adding teeth to the ratchet wheel 60 and shortening the stroke of lever 61, the mechanism may be arranged so that three or more operations of the crank 29 will benecessary to bring a new auxiliar magazine into place. This adaptability is a desirable feature, as while moving the carrier by two steps is quite satisfactory in the present case it might in some cases be desirable to utilize more or fewer movements of the crank for the purpose. More or fewer auxiliary mag-.

azinesmay be mounted on the carrier. and the ratchet mechanism'mo'dified accordingly.-

the pawl itself, 70, and a tail 72, thesetwo parts being mounted torock on a common fixed axis 73, which is supported by means not shown. By means of a compression spring 74 the two, parts of the pawl are.

yieldingly held in a certain relationship, this 7 relationship being. determined by a pin 75 compelled to .yiel

on the tail bearing againsta lug 76 on the pawl (see Fig. 5), The pawl is .held in pl ace'in a notch 71- by the lever 43 bearing against the tail 72, as in Fig. 1. 5 When the crank is operated soas to cause the -,lever 43 to move away. from the tail 72; the pawl is rocked outof the notch in which it has reposed, by a spring 77 attached to the .tail 72, to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1; on the return of the lever 43 to its normal position thetail72 is returned to its normal position, as in Fig. 1. This brings the pawl 1nto engagement with the carrier while the carrier is still in motion and-before a notch 71 has arrived to receive it; as the tail is moved into dposition the spring 74 is' allowing the pawl to bear'against the perimeter ofthe carrier till the notch reaches the pawl, which is then thrown into the notch by the spring. As it takestwo operations of, the crank to bring a fresh auxiliary magazine into place, it follows that after the first of these operations the carrier etc 5 with the pawl midway between two 'notc es; No notches are provided at these intermediate points] because they might interfere with replenishing the magazines, as will be explained presently. The

' absence of intermediate notches necessitates the pawl remaining'displaced with respect machine is operated too rapidly, preventing. .the' possibility of the carrier over rotating.

to the tail, with consequent compression of 'sn'in 74 but this is of no cons uence.

l a a The portions of the perimeter' of the carrier intermediate the notches 7l are. made slight 1y spiral, so as to make'the wall at the far side of each notch somewhat higher'fthan' the wall at the nearside. This high far wall serves as a stop ,in the event that the When the caretaker comes to renew the i supply of cups he may find the supply enmagazine in lace over the main magazine.

tirely exhausted, even in the main magazine 28, and findthe carrier in one of the intermediate positlons; i.. e., with'no auxiliary In such case ehas only to. turn the carrier around by hand one-eighth of a revolution when it will be stopped by the pawlit) d e dropping into onset the notches, 71, an

. is enabled to do this by reason of the fact that there are no intermediate notches.

Replenishment of the magazines is a very simple operation. If the main magazine is empty the caretaker simply drops a stack of cups-into the auxiliary magazine above it, which will drop clear through to the cup dispensing device. It is immaterial which auxiliary is above the main magazine at the time this is done, as they are all alike. The main magazine may be partly full, or it may be quite full and the stock extend up into the auxiliary magazine above it. He simply fills all of the auxiliary magazines to the top and that is all he needs to do. It is to be noted that the magazines are free'from' mechanism or any other encumbrance; there is nothing which might. be overlooked or forgotten by operation of the machine.

the caretaker'an'd later interfere with the In order to guard against injurious strains I in case the cups should become jammed in the magazine, orif for any other reason the free movement of the carrier were impeded, I make the lever 43 in two parts, yieldingly connected.- This will be understood by refere-nee to Fig. '1, where the lower angular member of thelever, indicated by the numeral 80, is seen to be mounted on the same axis as the lever proper, '43. The connection between the parts 43 and 80 is made rigid in one direction by a lug 81 carried by the lower end of the former, bearingagainst the edge ofthe latter at 82, and the parts are yieldingly held inthis position by a compressiouspring83, one end of which is seated in the bottom of 'a pocket formed in member 80, and a rod 84 whose head bears on. the outer end of a springv and'passing through the spring, through the member 80 .and lug 81, has a nut 85screwed on its end,

whereby the tension of the spring may be adjusted. If when the crank is returned to normal position the lever 43 wereobstructed,

the'member 8.0 would be moved as usual, while the compression of'the spring 83 allowed tl1e' lever 43 to remain stationary, thereby preventing-injury to the mechanism. Althou such an occurrenceis very 1mprobable unless the machine is out of order,

a provision of this kind serves-to prevent serious injury to theparts; furthermore, it-

is quite ossible the obstruction ofthe lever 43 woul prove to be only temporary, and that in the next or some subsequent operation of the crank the troublewould adjust itself and the machine go on operating without having failed to erform its ultimate duty. For example, if the trouble arose from failure of a new stack of cups to drop properly intothe main magazine, the ma- China would still be in condition to sell a cup and drinkto each customer without fail.

as long as any] cups: remained in' the main and during all of this'time there is the possimagazine. So that from the time the trouble arises until it manifests'itself to a customer the machine might make forty orfiftysales,

lJU

I bility that the trouble may correct itself, or

' (see Fig. which is formed by a circular wall 91-, circular doors 92, the upper baseplate 26 and a bottom plate 93 (see also Fig. 1). This part of the apparatus is well 1 described in the above mentioned application and it is only necessary now'to describe certain improvements in the mechanism for supporting and operatingthe doors. As before, each door is carried by an upper and lowerhinge arm 94, said arms being mount.- ed to swing on a central rod 95, each' arm having a rearward extension 96. The extensions of the upper arms are connected by a pair of links 97, one end of each link being pivotally attached at 98 to one of the extensions, with the free ends of the links pivotally. connected to each other at the knuckle 99, the links being of such length that when the doors are together, in other words closed, the two links lie in a straight line, forming a toggle which revents the doors being moved apart. ThlS is clearly shown in' Fig. 10, where it will readily be seen that any attempt to open the doors would tend to swing the extensions 96 toward each other,

which cannot be done while the links are in alignment. To open thflvdOOIS it is necessary to break the toggle, i. e., to move the knuckle .99 away from a straight line drawn from one center 98 to the other, and by drawing the knuckle away from the door axis 95 the extensions are swung toward each other, swinging the doors apart, as is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 10. The lower arms are similarly connected, and in order to obtain a simultaneous operation of both'pairs of links I have used as pivots 99 tenons formed on the ends of a vertical bar 100, and operate the doors by moving the bar backwardor forward by mechanism now to be described.

' A lever 101 is pivoted at 102 to the u per.

base 26 and is drawn toward the axis 0 the doors by a spring 103. The lever is' connected to the bar 100 bya link 104, that is (ill pivotally attached to the bar and has a slot 105' through which the lever passes. The link is kept in its proper position on the lever by pins\106. A cam 107, rigidly secured to the shaft 40, engages a roller 108 mounted on the lever 101 and swings the lever'away from the axis of the doors on the initial or counter-clockwise movement of the'crank29; this draws the bar 100 to the rear of the'machine and opens the As ;soon as the crank is returned to 1ts normal position, removing the cam 107 from the 'path of the roller108, the spring 103 tends to draw the lever forward and close the door.

But the lever is then restrained by the re-. taining pawl 109, mounted on the base 25, and a pin 110 carried by the lower end of the lever, enga 'ing'the pawl until after the cup, which has fieen set on the bottom of the compartment to be filled with beverage as the crank is returned, is removed from the comto the lever by a separate link. The advantage of the present arrangement is that- 'the upper and lower hinge arms may now be alike, the links also may be the same, and it is less trouble to assemble the parts than before.

Asin my previous machine, the liquid is drawn from a reservoir located below the base plate with a pump operated by the crank. For this pur ose I mount a gear 120 on the shaft 40, wit which is enmeshed a rack 121; connected to the lower end oi the rack is the piston rod .122 of the pump 123, shown in Fig. 11, which figure is to be treated as part of Fig. 1. It is not'necessary to describe the pump further than to say that it is rigidly attached to the lower side of the base plate 25, and that it is so constructed that its cylinderfills with liquid onlthe counter-clockwise movement of the crank, which liquid is discharged into a cup which has been set on the bottom 93 of the compartment, 011 the return of the crank to normal .position. The base plate is supported on lugs 124 secured to' the upper inside wall of the ice chamber 125, which constitutes the main support or bodyof the machine. The operating mechanism above the base 25 is covered by a casing 0r hood 126, while the portion of the base outside of the hood'is covered by an'insulated cover 127,

and lift off the base plate25, thepump, of "course, coming with the plate. In order/ to protect the pump and also to afl'ord an op portunity to work on the mechanism when 1t is not in place on the machine, I provide the base with three or more legs 129, that project slightly farther than the pump on which to stand the base. When in place 1n the machine these legs extend down in the space reserved for ice, so that even 1f the legs have become soiled when standlng on the floor or elsewhere they are not put in the reservoir, with'the possibllity of contaminat ing its contents. On the other hand, the legs keep the pump from contact with the floor and possible soilure.

I will now describe. the mechanism fordispensing cups, but wish to preface the description-by'saying that the present device embodies thebroadly new principle which was employedin the machine disclosed in the application mentioned above namely, that any ot overcome these in removing the cup. The,

magazine 2,8i's supported by a'plate 135, which in turn is carried by four sleeves 136 that rest on the upper base 26. Screws 137,

that pass through the plate 135, sleeves 136 and. screw into the base 26,;hold the magazine firmly in lace.

aguide or bearin for'a-ndoscillatory operating ring 139, w ich is a simple annulus witha short arm.140 extending from one side. The'operatingring-is interposed between two expansibl'e rings, each comprismg a series 0 flat segmental elements 141. Each segment has two slots punched in it, comprising a part 142 which is concentric to the axis of the operating ring, and a part 143 that is eccentric to said axis, and the op-' erating ring carries studs 144 thatplay in these slots. The slots of the upper and lower segments are preferably just alike,

but by inverting the segments of one series they are made to 'act reciprocally; that is, when one group of 8171165144 s playing in the concentric part of the slots in one series of segments e' other group of studs is playing in thegeccentric part of the slots 1n the other series of segments, and vice versa.

' The resultof this arra'ngement'is that during the first half of a movement of the operating ring ina given direction one series of segments is stationary, the studs movmg 1n the concentric part of its slots, while the other series of segments is being moved radially by reason of the studs on the operating ring moving in the eccentric part of its slots.

; During'the remainder of the movement of the operating ring the segments of the first series are moved, while those of the second" series..remainf stationary. The relation of the concentric-and eco'entricfparts of the slots 4 Each of the. sleeves acts as a journa for a roller 13 8,these rollers being arranged around and serving asis such that when the studs 14.4 are inthe fconcentric part of the slots the ring formed 'by'these-segments is in a state of contrac- 11011; also, when the operating ringis midway between the extremities of its range of movement, both rings are contracted. I will now describe the mechanism for operatingthe cup dispensing device.

In my former machine I rotated. the o erating'ring in one direction during t e counter-clockwise motion of the crank and the crank. In 'my present mechanism the "operating ring is oscillated once. during the counter-clockwise movement of the crank and remains stationary during the return of the crank. For this purpose I mount an arm Y 150 'on a rock shaft 151 and connect the arm to the arm 140 of the operating ring by a link or rod 152. Secured to arm 150, orto the rock shaft is'an arm 153,-to which is otally attached a bifurcated pawl or lever 154. In a hubsecured on the end of shaft 40 I set a stud 155, its axis parallel but offset with i reference to the'axis of the shaft,.and forming in efiectacrank or wrist pin on the end of the shaft. When the parts are-in normal position, as in Fig. 1, this stud lies in piv- H in the opposite direction upon the return of 5 the slot 156 formed in the lever 154. A flat spring 157 secured to'the arm 150 keeps the lever 154 pressed gently against' the hub that carries the stud 155. Duringthe early partpf the movement of the crank the stud 155, moving in an arc, rocks the lever 154 to the right, the arm 150 being simultaneously rocked to the right. Because of the stud traversing an arcual path it presently re-,

verses the direction of movement of-the lever 15 1and then rocks it'to the left, finally returning it to its normal'position as the stud passes the up er extremity of the long tine of the fork, urther movement of the stud having no effect on the lever. On the return movementof the stud it passes the end of the long time without moving the lever and presently reaches the. end of'the short tine. The end of the short tine is beveled, as is indicated by a; dotted line, and when the stud engages this bevel the lever is swung .on its pivot, allowing the stud to continue on its way. When the stud reaches the posi-.

tion shown in Fig.1, the "lever is thrown back'to its normal position-by the spring 157 and the parts are once more in normal position. At one point the slot 156 1 0 is broadened-by cutting away the short tine. This permits a limited movement of the crank 29 without disturbing the lever 154; 'it also leaves plenty of room for the stud to enter the slot on the return of the crank. 1.2;

If througliwearing ofthe parts, o r for any other reason, the lever. has not been moved quite to'its normal position during the first movement of the crank, the stud Wlll. engage v the left hand wall of the slot and move the lever to its right position asthe crank reaches home. i

Thus a complete cycle of the cup dispens- 1ng mechanism is effected during the first half of a cycle of the crank. That is, beginning with the parts as they are in Fig. 1, the upper rin of segments 141 being contracted, as in *igs. 6 and 7, (1) the lower ring is contracted; 2) the upper ring is expanded; (3) the upper ring is contracted,

and (4) 'the lower ring expanded. The cups I use are made of paper and have an out wardly extending flange at their upper edge. Being smaller at their lower than their slits in one side to show the cups within. Assuming the machine to contain a supply of I cups, and the parts to be in normal position,

' contracted it will grip the body of the second the stack of cups in magazine 28 will be supported by the upper ring of the cup dis-- penser. The contraction of the lower ring prepares it for supporting the stack of cups, and upon the expansion of the upper ring, the stack drops till the flange on the lower cup comes to rest on the lower ring. In the third stage of the cycle the upper ring is contracted around the exposed part of the second cup then when the lower ring is expanded the stack again depends upon the upper ring for support. The cup device is so positioned on the upper base 26 that the lower end of the stack of cups hangs in the compartment 90, the base 26 having an aperture which permits this. The door having opened during the operation of the cup mechanism, the customer is now enabled to reach into the compartment, grasp the cup and pull it loose from the next cup, to which it is attached by friction and possibly some adhesion. But since the upper ring is contracted around the body of the next cup he cannot detach it, as the flange will not pass through the contracted ring.

In the machine disclosed in my former application previously referred to, I relied entirely on'the flange on the cup to prevent more than one cup being taken. The present cup dispensing device may be arranged to act in \this same way, but I have devised an improvement which consists in making the. upper ring of such diameter that when cup and not rely on the flange to prevent the cup bein removed. The manner of doing .rthis is il ustrated in Fig. 8,'which is a composite View of theupper and lower sector,

1 11. The upper sector is made like the full line portion of the figure, the circle formed by the four arcual edges that confront the cup being small enough to grip the cup.

The dotted are, having a slightly longer. radius than the other, shows the position of lit] sible without destroying the cup. In warm weather, or when the machine. is in a warm place, the paraflin with which the cups are coated is apt to get a little soft andmake theeups stick together. In such cases it is easier to loosen the lower cup "if'the stack is not free to move. If the stack is securely gripped, the customer may applya rotary strain on the cup, which is very effective for detaching it. With the present method of' operating the cup device the staekremains in the I, grip of the .upper ring when the crank returns to its home p0s ition,so that even if the customer holds the door open he does not have an opportunity to pull on a cup when it is protected by its flange only, as was the case in my former machine. To prevent his holding the door open and attempting to extract cups during the next operation, when the crank has reached the point in its movement at which the lower llll Hui

ring is supporting the stack and the upper ring is expanded, I providemechanism which prevents re-operation of the machine till after the door has closed. Thismechan-ism will now be described.

On a fixed center 160 I loosely mount a lever 161 which has a stud I62 projecting laterally from its lower end into the path of the vertical bar that connects the door toggles together. One extremity of the concentric 41 terminates at the cam 49., as described; the other extremity of this concentric terminates in a radial face 163. The lever 161 is adapted to swing b gravity so that its upper end gets under t is face 163, and acts as a lock to prevent the crank 29 rotating. The parts are so pro ortioned that when the door is quite close the bar 100 bearing against the. stud 162 will hold the upper end of the lever 161'out of the path of the concentric 41. This is the normal condition and is shown in Fig. 1. When the crank is operated the concentric' ll ro- Hill been gripped by the upper ring, in the fourth stage of the cup dispenser cycle.

. When the door starts to open, the lever 161,

being released from restraint by the bar 100,

rocks by gravity till its upper end lies against the concentric 41. It isthusready to drop ,under the face 163 as soon as the crank reaches home, and there is no way to dislodge it except to allow the door to close. So the machine islocked till the door has closed.

Although I have shown the on device with four-segments in eachring, ,t is number is not essential. It may be made with three, fiveor more segments in each ring. The present on device embodies a principle that was emp 'oyed 1n my-former dev1ce,

. which is the encircling of the cups by mem: bers having the contourof-the parts they the sides of the cups.

encircle, and moving to and from the cup-in paths which if extended would lead through This ermits of considerable pressure being applied for the purpose of gripping the cups, and also prmits of the gripping faces being serrate without danger of cuttingor abrading the cups. \Vith cups of the kind I prefer to use, the distance between the lips of the adjacent cups will be from one-eighteenth to -onetwenty-fifth of the height of a single cup,

according to size-of cup used, from which it follows that to cut a stack in two it would be necessary to cut through from eighteen to twenty-live 'c'ups. It follows, therefore,that

= there: are from eighteen .to twenty-five circular thicknesses of paper, one within the other and in close contact, to sustain the pressure of the segments against the cup that is being gripped. This, coupled with the fact that the gripping members encircle the cup,

' makes it possible, notwithstandingthe cups are only papcr,- to.grip them as thoughthey were in a vice, without anydanger of the cups collapsing, The'friction of the studs-- 144 in the slots tends to move the segments tangentially, this thrust being sustained by the rollcrs 135.- As theoperating ring bears against certain of the rollers, according to the direction in which 1t 1's beingmoved, and vto tends to rotate them, there is some slipping of parts in contact with each other. 'While the friction thus encountered is negligible,

" it may be eliminated by making each. roller in three parts; i. e., three separate rollers, one in a plane of each segment and one'in the plane of the operating ring. Other changes in the structure of the cup device or other parts of 'my machine, may be made without departing'from thescopeor intent of the claims. I

Having shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, I claim the following: I

1. In a dispensing device, a tubular magazine'adapted to accommodate a stack of may nested cups, a dispensing mechanism at one end thereof whereby the cups are dispensed one at a time; a revoluble carrier containing a plurality of'auxiliary magazines adapted to register with the dispensing magazine successively as the carrier rotates; an operating element whe'rebythe dispensing means is actuated, a ratchet wheel on said carrier, ,a lever connected to and rocked by the operating element each time it is actuated, a pawl carried by said lever and adapted to engage the ratchetwheel and rotate it intermittently, and an arm carried by the pawl, adapted to engage the cups in the dispensing magazineand prevent the pawl engaging the ratchet wheel, until by its diminution in size the stack is removed from the path of the arm.

2. In a dispensing device, a tubular maga- 'sively into registration with-thedispensing magazine, comprising a ratchet wheel on saidcarrier, a lever connected to and rocked by the operating element each time it is ac- .tuated, a pawl carried by said lever and adapted to engage the ratchet wheel and rotate it intermittently, and an arm carriedby the pawl, adapted to engage the cups in the dispensing magazine and prevent thepawl engaging the ratchet wheel, until by its diminution in size the stack is removed from the path of the arm. R

. 3. In a dispensing device,.a'revo1uble carrier supporting a plurality of auxiliary magazines, a ratchet wheel on said carrier,

a pawl mounted on a lever and adapted to rotate the carrier step byv step as the arm is oscillated; a shaft, a cam thereon, a lever rocked by said cam when the shaft is rotated, a connection between said lever and the pawl-carrying lever, whereby the latter is rocked" and the pawl -made to move the carrier, a stop pawl, notches on the carrier adaptedto receive said pawl, the pawl thereby stopp-lng the carrier at the 'pointwhere the propelling pawl ceases to move the carrier, the carrier being then looked against rotation in either d1rect 1on;'and means, comprising a spring, whereby the stop pawl is moved to enter the notches.

4. In a dispensing device, a dispensing magazine, means for dispensing articles said means is actuated; an auxiliary maga-.

Y zine, and means operated by said operating strain element for moving the auxiliary magazine into a position where its contents can be transferred to the dispensing magazine, said meanscomprising a medium adapted to temporarily yield and thereby avoid abnormal in case of some disarrangement of the dc? vice or its contents.

5. In a cup vending device, two expansible rings arranged one above the other, each adapted, when contracted, to support a stack of nested cups, and when expanded to allow the cups to pass through it; an operating element whereby said rings are expande and contracted alternately and reciprocally; a magazine to contain t e cups and guide them to the rings; auxiliary magazines adapted, when brought into the proper relationship therewith to discharge their contents into the main magazine; and means actuated by said operating element for bringing the auxiliary magazine successively into the required relationship with the main magazine.

6. In a cup dispenslng device, two expansible rings arranged one above the other, each adapted when contracted to encircle a cup and support it; the lower one, when con- 'tracted, having a diameter small enough to support the cup by affording arest for the.

I flange or lip that surrounds the upperedge of the cup, the upper ring having a smaller diameter than the lower one, so that when contracted it will grip the cup below the hp and thereby support it; the rings being spaced apart a distance such that when two or more nested cups are supported by the 11p of thelower one resting on the lower ring,

the upper ring will be in a position to close in and grip the second cup, below 1ts hp; and means for expanding and contracting the rings. J

7.. In a cup dispensing device, two expansible rings arranged one above the other, each adapted when contracted to encircle a cup and support it; the lower one, when contracted, having a diameter small enough to support the cup by affording a rest for the flange or lip that surrounds theupper edge of the cup, the upper ring having a smaller diameter than the lower one, so that when contracted it will grip the cup below the lip and thereby support it; the gripping surfaces being serrated so asto increase the'r gripping power; the rings being .spaced apart a distance such that when two or more nested cups are supported by the lip of the lower one resting on the lower ring, the upper ring will-be in a positionto close in and grip the second cup, below its lipp'indmeanstor expanding and contracting the rings.

mg put on the parts of the device ing the remainder for operating the series of flat segmental plates, arranged one i above the other with an operating ring between them an adapted to oscillate on its own axis, which axis substantially co-incides with the axis of said series of plates; each plate having slots that for a ortion of their lengths are concentric to said axis and for the rema nder of their extent eccentric thereto, the operatin ring carrying studs which extend into sai slots, so that as the ring is oscillated the segments will be moved radially or remain stationary, according to whether the studs are operatin in the concentric or eccentric parts of the s ots; the formation of the slots being so'correlated that when studs are working in the concentric part of the slots in one series of plates, other studs will be operating in the eccentric portions of the slots in the other series of plates, and vice versa. I

10. In a cup dispensing device, two series of flat segmental plates, arranged one above the other with an o crating ring between. thmfadapted to oscillate on its own axis, which axis substantially co-incides with the axle of said series of plates; guide rollers surrounding said operating ring, the aforesald plates lying between said rollers and abutting them and on; each of said plates having two slots to accommodate studs pro:

jecting from the operatingrin a portion of each slot being concentric to t e axis of the ring, With the remainder of the slot eccentr1c thereto, whereby the plates are moved radially in or out, .or remain stationary as the ring is oscillated, according to whether the studs are operating in eccentric or concentric portions of the slots; the-eccentric portions of the slots in one series of plates ing opposite in direction to those in the other series, so that when one series is being moved by the ring. the other series is stationary and vice versa. t

11. In a vending machine, in combination:

a compartment having a door; means for devices whereby the omt which does not.

against removal; means gripp ng devlces, whereby e lower on an re-. p d

caving the lower, cup 7 rom the stack but securaeeaase i 9 to release the stack and grip it at a point which leaves the bottom eupfree; means for opening the door after the stack has become regripped and means to prevent operation of the gripping devices till after the door has been closed.

12. In a vending machine, in combination: a compartment having a door; means for mounting a stack of nested cups so that a customer may, by inserting his hand in the compartment, grasp the lower cup and separate it from the stack; devices whereby the stack is gripped at a point ,above the bottom cup, leaving the bottom cup free to be removed but securing the remainder against removal; van operating element, means 0perated thereby for opening the door during part of the cycle of said element, means also operated by said element for operating said gripping devices during an earlier part of said cycle, whereby to release thestack and grip it at apoint which-leaves the bottom cup free, and means to prevent the operating element beginning a new cyclebefore the door is closed.

13. In a vending machine, in combination: a compartment having a door; means for supporting a plurality of cups in the compartment where they are accessible to the customers hand and removable from the compartment one at a time; means for securing all but one of the cups so that they cannot be removed from the compartment, but leaving that one free to be removed; means for opening the door, means for freeing a new cup after the previously freed one has been removed, and means for preventing the operation of the last mentioned means 1 until after the door has been closed.

14. In a vending machine, in combination:

@a' compartment having a .door; means for encircle the cups loosely ,but afford a support for the lip formed on the upper edge of the cups; an operating element, means operated thereby, whereby the lower ring is contracted, the upper one expanded, allowing the stack to drop till the lip of the bottom cup rests on the lower ring, the upper ring thencontracted so as to grip the exposed part of the second cup, and finally the lower one expanded, so that the lower cup can be detached by hand from the stack; means then operated by the operating element for opening the door, and means which prevents the subsequent operation of the ring mechanism till after the door has been closed.

15. In a vending machine, in combination: a compartment having a door; means for mounting a stack of nested cups therein so that a customer may, by inserting his hand, grasp the lower cup and -remove it from the stack; said means consisting of two expansible rings, one above the other, the upper one adapted to tightly encircle the exposed part of the second cup, thereby holding the stack firmly while leaving the bottom cup free to be detached, the lower one being adapted to encircle the cups loosely but alford a support for the lip formed on the upper edge of the cups; a' reciprocal member which when moved from normal position first contracts the lower ring and then expands the upper ring, and on its return to normal position contracts the upper ring and then expands the lower one; an oscillatory shaft carr in a wrist )in a lever connected to said wrist insuch Way as to be rocked to and fro by approximately one-half of a revolution of the shaft, means for disconnecting the wrist from the lever so' that on the return of the shaft the lever is not rocked, and a connection between the lever and said reciprocal member; means for opening the door after the cycle of'the lever is completed, and means controlled by the door, whereby the shaft is prevented from again rocking the lever till after the door has been closed.

ROLLYN H. BAKER.

Images