CN217880431U - Delivery module and vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

The application discloses delivery module and vending machine. The delivery module comprises a base, two clamping seats, two grabbing rods, a screw rod and a first driving assembly. The two clamping seats are slidably arranged on the base. The two grabbing rods are respectively arranged on the two clamping seats. The screw rod is rotatably arranged on the base and is meshed with the two clamping seats. First drive assembly sets up in the base for the drive lead screw drives two holders and is close to or keeps away from each other, thereby drives two grab bars and is close to or keeps away from each other with the centre gripping or release the goods. The delivery module of this application embodiment can the centre gripping food stretch out or retract to get in a flexible way and put food.

Description

Delivery module and vending machine

Technical Field

The application relates to the technical field of vending machines, in particular to a delivery module and a vending machine.

Background

At present, more and more vending machines, such as bread vending machines, beverage vending machines, coffee vending machines, fast food vending machines, etc., are available in the market to meet the current demand of people for contactless, convenient and fast shopping modes. However, the vending machine on the market can only push the goods from the container, and the goods cannot be taken and placed flexibly.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The embodiment of the application provides a delivery module. The delivery module comprises a base, two clamping seats, two grabbing rods, a screw rod and a first driving assembly. The two clamping seats are slidably arranged on the base. The two grabbing rods are respectively arranged on the two clamping seats. The screw rod is rotatably arranged on the base and is meshed with the two clamping seats. The first driving assembly is arranged on the base and used for driving the screw rod to drive the two clamping seats to be close to or far away from each other, so that the two grabbing rods are driven to be close to or far away from each other to clamp or release goods.

In some embodiments, the goods delivering module further includes a slide rail disposed on the base, the holder includes a moving block and a base, the moving block is slidably disposed on the slide rail, the base is connected to the moving block, and the base is configured to bear the grab bar.

In some embodiments, the holder further includes a sleeve, the sleeve is mounted to the holder body, and the grasping rod is disposed through the sleeve and can move relative to the sleeve.

In some embodiments, the two grab bars are parallel.

In some embodiments, the two grab bars are stainless steel grab bars, and the delivery module further includes two sheaths respectively sleeved on the two grab bars.

In some embodiments, the two holders each include a mating portion, the screw includes a transmission section and two threaded sections located at two opposite ends of the transmission section, the transmission section is mated with the first driving assembly, and the two threaded sections are respectively engaged with the two mating portions.

In some embodiments, the thread turns of the two thread segments are different.

In some embodiments, the first drive assembly includes a clamp drive motor, a drive wheel, and a drive wheel. The clamping driving motor is arranged on the base. The driving wheel is connected with an output shaft of the clamping driving motor. The driving wheel is sleeved on the driving section and meshed with the driving wheel. The clamping driving motor is used for driving the driving wheel to drive the driving wheel to rotate so as to drive the screw rod to rotate, so that the two clamping seats are close to or far away from each other, and the two grabbing rods are driven to be close to or far away from each other.

In some embodiments, the base is provided with two spaced limiting ports, the two grabbing rods respectively penetrate through the limiting ports, and the limiting ports are used for limiting the stroke of the two grabbing rods approaching to or moving away from each other.

In some embodiments, the delivery module further comprises a transmission rod, a sliding block, a connecting piece, a telescopic driving motor and a belt wheel. The transmission rod is rotatably arranged on the base. The slide block is engaged with the transmission rod. The connecting piece is connected with the sliding block and the two clamping seats. The telescopic driving motor is arranged on the base. The belt wheel is connected with the telescopic driving motor and the transmission rod. The telescopic driving motor is used for driving the belt wheel to drive the transmission rod to rotate, so that the sliding block moves along the transmission rod, and the connecting piece drives the two grabbing rods to extend or retract relative to the base.

The delivery module of this application embodiment can the centre gripping food stretch out or retract to get in a flexible way and put food.

Additional aspects and advantages of embodiments of the present application will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of embodiments of the present application.

Drawings

The above and/or additional aspects and advantages of the present application will become apparent and readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a vending machine according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a storage cabinet according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a supply cabinet according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the structure of a storage cabinet according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a vending machine according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic illustration of a lane of certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a portion of the structure of a pickup device according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view of a supply cabinet according to certain embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view of a delivery module according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating another perspective view of a delivery module according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a portion of the supply cabinet of certain embodiments of the present application;

fig. 12 is a schematic perspective view of an insulation box according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present application, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar function throughout. The embodiments described below by referring to the drawings are exemplary only for the purpose of explaining the embodiments of the present application, and are not to be construed as limiting the embodiments of the present application.

In the description of the present application, it is to be understood that the terms "thickness," "upper," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," etc. indicate an orientation or positional relationship based on that shown in the drawings, which is for convenience in describing and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element being referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and thus should not be considered as limiting the present application. And the terms "first", "second" and "first" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more features. In the description of the present application, "a plurality" means two or more unless specifically limited otherwise.

In the description of the present application, it is to be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," and "connected" are to be construed broadly and in one example may be fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrally connected; may be mechanically or electrically connected, or may be in communication with each other; may be directly connected or indirectly connected through intervening media, and may be connected internally or in interactive relation with other elements.

Referring to fig. 1 to 3, the present embodiment provides a vending machine 100, wherein the vending machine 100 includes a storage cabinet 10, a supply cabinet 20, and a transmission mechanism 30. Referring to fig. 2 and 4, the storage cabinet 10 includes a cargo passage 11 and a refrigerating device 12, wherein the cargo passage 11 is used for storing food, and the refrigerating device 12 is used for freezing or refrigerating food. Referring to fig. 3, the supply cabinet 20 includes a heating device 21 and a heat-preserving chamber 22, the heating device 21 is used for heating food, and the heat-preserving chamber 22 is used for storing and preserving heat of food. The conveying mechanism 30 includes a pick-up device 31 and a delivery device 32, the pick-up device 31 is used for conveying the food from the cargo channel 11 to the supply cabinet 20, and the delivery device 32 is used for conveying the food to the heating device 21 and to the thermal insulation bin 22.

Referring to fig. 3, the present embodiment provides a delivery module 323, and the delivery module 323 can be applied to the delivery device 32 of the present embodiment for picking up or releasing food.

The vending machine 100 and the delivery module 323 according to the embodiment of the present application will be further described with reference to the drawings.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4, in some embodiments, the delivery module 323 includes a base 3231, a clamping assembly 3232, a first drive assembly 3233, and a second drive assembly 3234. The clamping element 3232, the first driving element 3233 and the second driving element 3234 are disposed on the base 3231. A first drive assembly 3233 is coupled to the gripper assembly 3232 for driving the gripper assembly 3232 to grip or release food. A second drive assembly 3234 is coupled to the gripper assembly 3232 for driving the gripper assembly 3232 to extend or retract.

Referring to fig. 4, in some embodiments, a gripper assembly 3232 includes two gripper bars 32321. The first driving assembly 3233 serves to drive the two grab bars 32321 toward or away from each other to grip or release food. The second drive assembly 3234 is used to drive the two take-out grab bars 32321 to extend or retract relative to the base 3231. In other embodiments, the gripping assembly 3232 may further include, without limitation, a gripper, a robot, a magnetically attractive gripper, and the like.

In one embodiment, the two gripper bars 32321 are spaced apart from each other, and when gripping food, the delivery module 323 moves into alignment with the food to be gripped, the first drive assembly 3233 drives the two gripper bars 32321 away from each other to a maximum distance, then the second drive assembly 3234 drives the two gripper bars 32321 to extend relative to the base 3231 to grip the food to be gripped between the two gripper bars 32321, and then the first drive assembly 3233 drives the two gripper bars 32321 closer to each other to grip the food. Thus, the delivery module 323 can pick up food of different sizes.

Referring to fig. 4, in some embodiments, the two grasping rods 32321 are substantially parallel, so that the two grasping rods 32321 can hold food more stably. By substantially parallel, it is meant that the two grab bars 32321 may be completely parallel or may be allowed to have a certain angular variation in actual design. In one embodiment, the angle between (extensions of) two substantially parallel grasping rods 32321 can be in the range of [175 °,185 ° ], for example, the angle between (extensions of) two grasping rods 32321 can be in the range of 175 °, 176 °, 177 °, 178 °, 179 °, 180 °, 181 °, 182 °, 183 °, 184 °,185 °, and so forth, to name but a few.

In other embodiments, the two grabbing bars 32321 may be inclined relatively, for example, the distance between the two grabbing bars 32321 is gradually decreased from the end close to the base 3231 to the other end far from the base 3231, and is substantially "eight" shaped, so as to prevent the grabbed food from sliding off the end of the two grabbing bars 32321 far from the base 3231.

In some embodiments, the two gripping bars 32321 are stainless steel gripping bars 32321 to provide high strength, grip and carry heavy food. In some embodiments, the delivery module 323 further includes two sheaths 3236, and the two sheaths 3236 are respectively sleeved on the two grab bars 32321. Sheath 3236 can play the cushioning effect, reduces the influence that vibrations produced food when transporting. For example, the food being held is packaged soup, and the shock absorbing action of the sheath 3236 can reduce shock and prevent soup from spilling or splashing inside the package. The sheath 3236 can also serve an anti-slip function, preventing food from sliding off the grab bar 32321. In some embodiments, the sheath 3236 is provided with anti-slip texture to enhance anti-slip effect.

Referring to fig. 4 and 5, in some embodiments, the delivery module 323 further includes a detection sensor 324, the detection sensor 324 is disposed between the two grabbing bars 32321 and faces a direction in which the food is to be grabbed, for detecting whether the food exists between the two grabbing bars 32321, so as to drive the two grabbing bars 32321 to approach each other to grab the food in a case that the food exists between the two grabbing bars 32321. In one embodiment, the detection sensor 324 is a photoelectric sensor, a sensing signal of which is triggered in case that the food is already positioned between the two grab bars 32321, and the first driving assembly 3233 drives the two grab bars 32321 to approach each other to clamp the food according to the sensing signal. In yet another embodiment, the detection sensor 324 is an infrared sensor capable of detecting a distance between the food between the two grab bars 32321 and the infrared sensor, so as to determine a placement position of the food when the delivery module 323 drops the food. For example, the two grab bars 32321 are arranged to pick up food with being retracted to the nearest position with respect to the base 3231, in which case the distance detected by the infrared sensor is the reference distance. In the case where the two grip bars 32321 are protruded with respect to the base 3231 to place the food in the heating device 21 or the warming compartment 22, the infrared sensor can detect the protruded distance of the food with respect to the reference distance to trigger a sensing signal in the case where the food is protruded with respect to the reference distance by a proper distance, and the first grip assembly 3232 drives the two grip bars 32321 away from each other to drop the food according to the sensing signal, thereby dropping the food at a proper position.

In some embodiments, the base 3231 defines two spaced-apart limiting holes 32311, the two grabbing rods 32321 respectively pass through the limiting holes 32311, and the limiting holes 32311 is used for limiting the distance of the two grabbing rods 32321 to approach or move away from each other.

For example, in a case where it is necessary to pick up food, the first driving assembly 3233 drives the two grab bars 32321 away from each other for a predetermined time, which is greater than or equal to a time required for the two grab bars 32321 to move from a closest position close to each other to a farthest position away from each other. In this way, it can be ensured that the two grab bars 32321 can move from any position to the farthest position away from each other, which is the farthest end where the two stopper ports 32311 are away from each other. In some embodiments, the farthest position where the two grab bars 32321 are away from each other may be set as a reset position where the grab bar 32321 is moved out each time food is grabbed, to ensure that the grab bar 32321 can grab the food of the largest size.

Referring to fig. 3, in one embodiment, the food taken by the delivery module 323 is a lunch box 200, and the lunch box 200 includes a box body and a flange extending outward from the box body. When the lunch box 200 is clamped, the two grabbing bars 32321 only need to be close to each other to be positioned below the flanging, so that the flanging can be borne on the two grabbing bars 32321, and the clamping force provided by the two grabbing bars 32321 to the box body is mainly used for placing the lunch box 200 to slide off. If the stroke of the two grab bars 32321 approaching each other is not limited, it may cause the two grab bars 32321 to approach each other too close to press the lunch box 200, resulting in deformation or damage of the lunch box 200. The limiting port 32311 limits the approaching stroke of the two grabbing rods 32321, so that the food can be prevented from being deformed or damaged due to excessive clamping of the food in the process that the two grabbing rods 32321 clamp the food.

In some embodiments, the base 3231 may also be provided with only one limiting opening 32311, and the two grabbing bars 32321 are disposed through the limiting opening 32311, and the limiting opening 32311 is used to limit the distance between the two grabbing bars 32321. Since the distance at which the two grab bars 32321 approach each other is not limited, the delivery module 323 can pick up a small-sized food.

Referring to fig. 4, in some embodiments, the first driving assembly 3233 further includes two clamping seats 32331, and the two clamping seats 32331 are slidably disposed on the base 3231. The first driving assembly 3233 is used for driving the screw rod 32333 to move the two holders 32331 toward or away from each other, so as to move the two grabbing rods 32321 toward or away from each other to grab or release goods.

In certain embodiments, first drive assembly 3233 further comprises a slide rail 32332. The slide rail 32332 is disposed on the base 3231, and the two holders 32331 are slidably disposed on the slide rail 32332 and can move along the slide rail 32332 to approach or move away from each other. In some embodiments, the clamp housing 32331 includes a housing body 323311 and a moving block 323312. The moving block 323312 is slidably disposed on the slide rail 32332, the seat body 323311 is connected to the moving block 323312, and the seat body 323311 is used for carrying the grabbing rod 32321.

In some embodiments, the number of the sliding rails 32332 is two, each of the clip seats 32331 includes two moving blocks 323312, and the two moving blocks 323312 of each of the clip seats 32331 are slidably disposed on the two sliding rails 32332, respectively. In this way, the movement of the two holders 32331 toward or away from each other can be more stabilized.

Referring to fig. 4 and 5, in some embodiments, the delivery module 323 further includes a position sensor 3237 for detecting whether the two holders 32331 are located at extreme positions close to or far from each other. In one embodiment, the two holders 32331 can move toward or away from each other at the same stroke synchronously, and the position sensor 3237 is used to detect the position of one of the holders 32331 and determine whether the two holders 32331 move to a limit distance toward or away from each other according to the position of the one of the holders 32331. For example, the position sensor 314 is two photoelectric sensors, which are fixedly connected to the base 3231 and located below the seat body 323311, and are sequentially disposed along the direction of the two clamping seats 32331 facing each other, wherein one of the photoelectric sensors is disposed at an extreme position of the clamping seat 32331 far away from the other clamping seat 32331, and the other photoelectric sensor is disposed at an extreme position of the clamping seat 32331 close to the other clamping seat 32331. In the case where the holder 32331 is located at an extreme position away from the other holder 32331, the holder body 323311 shields the photosensor at that position, and the other photosensor is not shielded; similarly, in the case where the holder 32331 is located at an extreme position near another holder 32331, the holder body 323311 shields the photosensor at that position, and the other photosensor is not shielded; in the case where neither of the two photosensors is shielded, the holder 32331 is located between the farthest or closest extreme positions. In this way, the position of the holder 32331, and thus the two grab bars 32321, can be determined according to the shielded condition of the two photoelectric sensors.

Referring to fig. 4, in some embodiments, the holder 32331 further includes a sleeve 323313. The sleeve 323313 is mounted on the housing 323311, and the gripping rod 32321 is disposed through the sleeve 323313 and can move relative to the sleeve 323313 along a direction of extending or retracting relative to the base 3231. In this way, when the two holders 32331 approach or move away from each other, the two sleeves 323313 can be driven to approach or move away from each other, so as to drive the two grabbing rods 32321 arranged on the sleeves 323313 to approach or move away from each other; also, the grip rod 32321 can move in a direction of extending or retracting relative to the base 3231 relative to the sleeve 323313, so that the movement of the two grip rods 32321 toward or away from each other does not interfere with the movement of the two grip rods 32321 to extend or retract relative to the base 3231.

Referring to fig. 4, in some embodiments, the first driving element 3233 further includes a screw rod 32333, and the screw rod 32333 is rotatably disposed on the base 3231 and engaged with the two holders 32331. The first driving assembly 3233 is used for driving the screw rod 32333 to rotate. The two holders 32331 are restricted by the slide rail 32332 from rotating with the rotation of the screw rod 32333, and therefore, when the screw rod 32333 rotates, the two holders 32331 move in the axial direction of the screw rod 32333 by engagement with the screw rod 32333, so that the two holders 32331 approach or separate from each other.

In one embodiment, the number of the screw rods 32333 is two, and the screw rods are engaged with the two holders 32331, respectively. The first driving assembly 3233 is configured to drive the two screw rods 32333 to rotate, so as to drive the two holders 32331 to move, and make the two holders 32331 approach or move away from each other.

Referring to fig. 5, in another embodiment, the screw rod 32333 is single, the two clamping seats 32331 each include a matching portion 323314 disposed on the seat body 323311, the screw rod 32333 includes a transmission section 323331 and two threaded sections 323332 disposed at two opposite ends of the transmission section 323331, and the transmission section 323331 is matched with the first driving element 3233. The mating portions include threaded bores, and the two threaded segments 323332 engage threaded bores (not shown) of the two mating portions 323314, respectively. The thread directions of the two thread sections 323332 are different, and the transmission directions of the two thread sections 323332 are opposite when the screw rod 32333 rotates, so that the two matching parts 323314 are driven to approach or move away from each other when the screw rod 32333 rotates, and the two clamping seats 32331 approach or move away from each other.

Referring to fig. 4 and 5, in some embodiments, first drive assembly 3233 further includes a clamp drive motor 32334, a drive wheel 32335, and a drive pulley 32336. The driving wheel 32335 and the driving wheel 32336 are gears, the driving wheel 32335 is connected to an output shaft of the clamping driving motor 32334, and the driving wheel 32336 is sleeved on the transmission section 323331 of the screw rod 32333 and is meshed with the driving wheel 32335. The clamping driving member is used for driving the driving wheel 32335 to drive the driving wheel 32336 to rotate so as to drive the screw rod 32333 to rotate, so that the two clamping seats 32331 are close to or far away from each other, and the two grabbing rods 32321 are driven to be close to or far away from each other. For example, in the case where the grip driving motor 32334 is rotated in the forward direction, the two grip seats 32331 are driven to approach each other; in the case where the grip driving motor 32334 rotates reversely, the two holders 32331 are driven away from each other. In one embodiment, the clamping driving motor 32334 is a stepping motor, which can finely control the distance that the two clamping seats 32331 approach or depart from each other, so as to make the two grabbing bars 32321 approach or depart from each other by a proper distance, thereby avoiding the deformation or damage of the food (the package of the food) caused by the food being excessively clamped due to the large moving step length that the two grabbing bars 32321 approach each other.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4, in some embodiments, second driving assembly 3234 includes a driving rod 32341, a sliding block 32342, two connecting members 32343, a telescopic driving motor 32344, and a pulley 32345. The transmission rod 32341 is rotatably provided on the base 3231, the slider 32342 is engaged with the transmission rod 32341, and two links 32343 connect the slider 32342 and the two grasping rods 32321. The telescopic driving motor 32344 is arranged on the base 3231, the belt wheel 32345 is connected with the telescopic driving motor 32344 and the transmission rod 32341, and the telescopic driving motor 32344 is used for driving the belt wheel 32345 to drive the transmission rod 32341 to rotate. When the transmission rod 32341 rotates, the rotation of the slider 32342 connected to the catch lever 32321 via the connecting element 32343 is restricted, so that the slider 32342 cannot rotate with the transmission rod 32341, but moves in the axial direction of the transmission rod 32341 by the engagement of the slider 32342 with the transmission rod 32341. The two connecting members 32343 move together with the sliding blocks 32342 to move the two grabbing rods 32321, so that the two grabbing rods 32321 extend or retract relative to the base 3231. For example, in the case of forward rotation of the telescopic drive motor 32344, the two grab bars 32321 are extended with respect to the base 3231; with the reverse rotation of the telescopic drive motor 32344, the two grab bars 32321 are retracted relative to the base 3231.

Referring to fig. 4, in some embodiments, the sliding block 32342 includes a engaging portion 323421 and two extending portions 323422 extending from opposite sides of the engaging portion 323421. The engaging portion 323421 is configured to engage with the transmission rod 32341, and the two connecting members 32343 are respectively sleeved on the two extending portions 323422 and can slide relative to the extending portions 323422 to move toward or away from the engaging portion 323421. Thus, in the case where the engaging portion 323421 moves along the transmission rod 32341, the two extending portions 323422 can drive the connecting member 32343 to move together with the slider 32342, so as to drive the two grasping rods 32321 to extend or retract relative to the base 3231; in a case where the two grip bars 32321 are close to or distant from each other, the two connection members 32343 can slide relative to the extension portions 323422 to be close to or distant from the engagement portions 323421 so as not to hinder the two grip bars 32321 from being close to or distant from each other.

In another embodiment, the two grabbing bars 32321 may also be directly connected to the sliding block 32342, which is not limited herein.

In some embodiments, the telescoping drive motor 32344 is a stepper motor to refine the distance that the two grab bars 32321 are driven to extend or retract relative to the base 3231 to place the food in the proper position.

Referring to FIG. 4, in some embodiments, the delivery device 32 further includes an in-position sensor 325. The position sensor 325 is disposed on the base 3231 for detecting the position of the slider 32342 relative to the base 3231. In one embodiment, the in-position sensor 325 is an electro-optical sensor fixedly mounted to the housing 323311 and positioned below the connection member 32343 for detecting a zero position of the slider 32342. The zero position of the slider 32342 is indicative of the position of the slider 32342 when the two grab bars 32321 are retracted to the nearest position relative to the base 3231. When the sliding block 32342 is away from the zero position, the connecting piece 32343 is away from the photoelectric sensor, so that the photoelectric sensor is not shielded; when the sliding block 32342 is located at the zero position, the connecting element 32343 is located above the photoelectric sensor and blocks the photoelectric sensor, so as to trigger a sensing signal of the photoelectric sensor, which is used to indicate that the sliding block 32342 has reached the zero position. In some embodiments, after the two grabbing bars 32321 grab the food, the two grabbing bars 32321 retract with the food relative to the base 3231, and after the sensing signal indicates that the sliding block 32342 has reached the zero position, the first delivery rail 321 or the second delivery rail 322 drives the delivery module 323 to move to another position, for example, to a position where the heating device 21 or the thermal insulation bin 22 is located. Thus, the long protrusion of the grab bar 32321 and the collision with other devices during the movement of the delivery module 323 can be avoided.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the delivery device 32 includes a first delivery track 321, a second delivery track 322, and a delivery module 323. The base 3231 is provided on the first delivery rail 321, and is movable in a first direction (Z1/Z2) with respect to the first delivery rail 321. The first delivery track 321 is slidably connected to the second delivery track 322 and is movable relative to the second delivery track 322 along a second direction (X1/X2), the second direction (X1/X2) being substantially perpendicular to the first direction (Z1/Z2). The term substantially perpendicular means that the first direction (Z1/Z2) and the second direction (X1/X2) may be completely perpendicular or may have a certain angle variation allowed in actual design. In one embodiment, the included angle between the substantially perpendicular first direction (Z1/Z2) and second direction (X1/X2) may range from [85 °,95 °, for example, the included angle between the first direction (Z1/Z2) and second direction (X1/X2) may range from 85 °, 86 °, 87 °, 88 °, 89 °, 90 °, 91 °, 92 °, 93 °, 94 °,95 °, and so forth, not to mention one. In this way, the delivery device 32 can move along the first direction (Z1/Z2) and the second direction (X1/X2) which are basically vertical to carry the food, and the food can be flexibly taken and placed.

Referring to fig. 3, in one embodiment, the first direction (Z1/Z2) is a vertical direction, and the second direction (X1/X2) is a horizontal direction. The delivery module 323 can move along the vertical direction relative to the first delivery rail 321, and the first delivery rail 321 can drive the delivery module 323 to move along the horizontal direction relative to the second delivery rail 322, so that the delivery module 323 can move along the vertical and horizontal directions.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the first delivery track 321 includes a first track member 3211 and a coupler 3212. The delivery module 323 is disposed on the first track member 3211, and the joint 3212 connects the first track member 3211 and the second delivery track 322. The engaging member 3212 is configured to drive the first track member 3211 to move along a second direction (X1/X2) relative to the second delivery track 322.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4, in some embodiments, the delivery module 323 further includes a slider 3235, the slider 3235 connects the base 3231 and the first track 3211, and the slider 3235 is configured to move the base 3231 along a first direction (Z1/Z2) relative to the first delivery track 321. For example, the slider member 3235 is a slider 32342, the first track is a slide rail 32332, and the first track member 3211 extends in a first direction (Z1/Z2). The slider member 3235 can slide along the first track member 3211 to move the base 3231 relative to the first delivery track 321 along a first direction (Z1/Z2).

In yet another embodiment, the base 3231 may be slidably connected to the first delivery rail member to be movable in the first direction (Z1/Z2) relative to the first delivery rail 321, without limitation.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the second cargo conveying track 322 includes a second track member 3221 and a fixing member 3222, and the second track member 3221 is mounted to the fixing member 3222. In one embodiment, the fixing member 3222 may be disposed on the top, bottom, or inner sidewall 252 of the supply cabinet 20, which is not limited herein. In yet another embodiment, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a bracket 27, and the fixing member 3222 is fixedly mounted to the bracket 27.

The moving member 3132 is slidably disposed on the second rail member 3221 to drive the first rail member 3211 to move along a second direction (X1/X2) relative to the second delivery rail 322. For example, the moving member 3132 is a sliding block 32342, the second track member 3221 is a sliding rail 32332, and the second track member 3221 extends along the second direction (X1/X2). The moving member 3132 can slide along the second track member 3221 to drive the first track member 3211 to move along a second direction (X1/X2) relative to the second delivery track 322.

Referring to FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the food sold by the vending machine 100 may be packaged food, such as a meal box 200 (shown in FIG. 3) containing food, a bagged snack, a canned beverage, etc.; it may also be an unpackaged food such as bread, snack, etc. That is, the food may refer to only the food itself, or may refer to the food and the package of the food, and is not limited herein.

Referring to fig. 1, food to be sold in the vending machine 100 is stored in the goods passage 11 and is in a normal temperature, a cold storage state or a frozen state according to different operating positions of the refrigerating device 12. For example, the cooling device 12 includes three operation stages, i.e., a normal temperature stage, a cold storage stage, and a freezing stage, for maintaining the temperature of the storage cabinet 10 at a normal temperature, a cold storage stage, and a freezing stage, respectively.

After the food is sold, the pick-up device 31 can transport the food from the goods passage 11 to the supply cabinet 20, and then the delivery device 32 can transport the food to the heating device 21 for heating, and transport the heated food to the thermal insulation chamber 22 for the user to pick up the food. In this manner, the vending machine 100 can freeze or refrigerate food in the cargo passage 11 to enable long-term storage of food; and can heat the frozen or refrigerated food to a temperature suitable for consumption and store it in the holding bin 22 to avoid the food from being cold or spoiled due to too long time waiting for the user to take the meal.

Referring to fig. 1-3, in some embodiments, the vending machine 100 is capable of vending multiple types of food, and is capable of selectively heating the food depending on the type of food being vended.

Referring to fig. 6, for example, in the case that the vending machine 100 sells packaged snacks, the refrigerating device 12 may be set to a normal temperature operating position, and the snacks are sold and directly sent to the heat preservation chamber 22 for waiting for the user to take food without being sent to the heating device 21 for heating. Under the condition that the vending machine 100 sells beverages, the refrigerating device 12 can be set to be a refrigerating working gear, the beverages can be directly sent into the heat preservation bin 22 after being sold to wait for a user to take meals, the beverages can be maintained at refrigerating temperature under the heat preservation effect of the heat preservation bin 22, and the phenomenon that the beverages are heated to lose ice taste when the external temperature is too high is avoided; alternatively, in the case where the vending machine 100 dispenses hot beverages, the beverages may be fed to the heating device 21 to be heated and fed to the warming compartment 22, and the warming function of the warming compartment 22 can maintain the temperature of the hot beverages to prevent the hot beverages from cooling down. Under the condition that vending machine 100 sells ice cream, can set up refrigerating plant 12 to freezing operating position, need not to send into heating device 21 and heat after ice cream is sold, directly send into heat preservation storehouse 22 and wait for the user to get the meal, the heat preservation effect in heat preservation storehouse 22 can avoid ice cream to get the in-process of meal and melt waiting for the user. In the case where the vending machine 100 sells refrigerated/frozen cooked foods such as fast food, lunch box, etc., the refrigerating device 12 may be set to a refrigerating or freezing operation position to prevent the foods in the storage cabinet 10 from being spoiled, and the sold foods are sent to the heating device 21 to be heated to a temperature suitable for eating and sent to the warming compartment 22 to be warmed to prevent the heated foods from being refrigerated or spoiled.

In some embodiments, the vending machine 100 can also only vend food that needs to be heated, or only vend food that does not need to be heated, without limitation.

Referring to fig. 1, in some embodiments, the storage cabinet 10 and the supply cabinet 20 are separate cabinets. In one embodiment, the holding cabinet 10 and the supply cabinet 20 are fixedly coupled. In yet another embodiment, storage cabinet 10 and supply cabinet 20 are removably connected for transportation after removal and for servicing after removal of storage cabinet 10 and/or supply cabinet 20. In yet another embodiment, the storage cabinet 10 and the supply cabinet 20 are of a unitary structure, and are not limited thereto.

Referring to FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the bottom of the storage cabinet 10 and the supply cabinet 20 are provided with a plurality of casters 103 for supporting the vending machine 100 and facilitating movement of the vending machine 100. In some embodiments, casters 103 are horse wheels, which can switch between a stationary mode and a mobile mode. In case of transportation of vending machine 100, caster 103 can be switched to a mobile mode to enable caster 103 to roll for transportation; when the vending machine 100 moves to the operation point, the casters 103 are switched to the fixed mode to prevent the casters 103 from rolling, and the vending machine 100 is fixed at the operation point.

Referring to fig. 2, in some embodiments, the article retrieving device 31 is disposed in the storage cabinet 10. Referring to fig. 3, the delivery device 32 is disposed in the supply cabinet 20. Thus, the goods taking device 31 can be arranged close to the goods passage 11, and the goods delivering device 32 can be arranged close to the heat preservation cabin 22 or the heating device 21, so that the transportation path of the goods taking device 31 and the goods delivering device 32 for transporting food is shortened, the layout of devices in the vending machine 100 can be more compact, and the vending machine 100 is favorably miniaturized.

In other embodiments, the transfer mechanism 30 may be disposed within the storage cabinet 10, and the delivery device 32 may extend from the storage cabinet 10 into the supply cabinet 20 to deliver the food to the heating device 21 or the warming compartment 22. Alternatively, the transfer mechanism 30 may be disposed within the supply cabinet 20, and the pickup device 31 may be extended from the supply cabinet 20 into the storage cabinet 10 to transfer the food located in the cargo passage 11 to the supply cabinet 20.

Referring to fig. 1, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 includes a pick surface 2511 for a user to pick up food, and the storage cabinet 10 is disposed side by side with the supply cabinet 20 along an extending direction of the pick surface 2511.

For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 1, the face of the hold down bin 22 at which the delivery door 228 is located is the access face 2511 of the supply cabinet 20, and the user can open the delivery door 228 to access the food in the hold down bin 22. The storage cabinets 10 are arranged side by side with the supply cabinets 20 on the left side in the extending direction of the pickup surface 2511. In other embodiments, the storage cabinet 10 may be disposed side by side with the supply cabinet 20 on the right side of the extending direction of the access surface 2511. In some embodiments, the cabinet wall 13 of the storage cabinet 10 on one side of the access surface 2511 in the extending direction is a transparent cabinet wall 13, and the transparent cabinet wall 13 faces the same side as the access surface 2511. The user can view the food for sale in the storage cabinet 10 through the transparent cabinet wall 13 to facilitate the user's selection of food. In some embodiments, a transparent window (not shown) may also be provided in the cabinet wall 13 of the storage cabinet 10 to facilitate a user to view food for sale within the storage cabinet 10.

Referring to fig. 7, in some embodiments, the cargo way 11 includes a layer 111 and a conveying module 112 disposed on the layer 111, wherein the layer 111 is used for carrying food, and the conveying module 112 is used for conveying the food on the layer 111 to the pickup device 31. Therefore, the goods taking device 31 does not need to actively grab the food on the layer board 111, and the goods taking device 31 only needs to be capable of moving to the corresponding position of the layer board 111 to wait for the conveying module 112 to convey the food, so that the design of the goods taking device 31 can be simplified.

Referring to fig. 2 and 7, in some embodiments, the layer 111 includes a plurality of layers 111 stacked in a height direction, and the pick-up device 31 can move in the height direction to pick up food on different layers 111.

Referring to fig. 2 and 7, in some embodiments, the layer 111 includes a plate 1111 and a wall 1112 extending upward from an edge of the plate 1111, a receiving space 1113 is formed between the wall 1112 and the plate 1111, and the receiving space 1113 is used for receiving food. The plate wall 1112 is formed with a delivery port 11121 communicating with the receiving space 2211, and the delivery module 112 is used for pushing the food out of the delivery port 11121. After the food is sold, the goods taking device 31 can move the delivery opening 11121 corresponding to the sold food, and the delivery module 112 can transfer the food from the delivery opening 11121 to the goods taking device 31.

Referring to fig. 2 and 6, in some embodiments, the refrigeration device 12 can generate cold air and deliver the cold air to the cargo channel 11. Referring to fig. 6, the plate 1111 is opened with a plurality of air holes 11111 for the circulation of cold air, so that the cold air can flow through the plurality of layers 111 to ensure that the food in the layers 111 of different heights can be cooled.

Referring to fig. 6, in some embodiments, the cooling device 12 includes an evaporator 121, a compressor 122 and a condenser 123 for generating cool air to cool the storage cabinet 10. In some embodiments, the cooling device 12 further includes a blower (not shown) for blowing cool air toward the cargo channel 11 to facilitate the circulation of cool air at the tier floors 111.

Referring to fig. 2, in some embodiments, the layer 111 is disposed between two opposite (horizontally) inner sidewalls 14 of the storage cabinet 10. The inner sidewall 14 is provided with a thermal insulation layer to insulate external heat of the storage cabinet 10, thereby preventing the external heat from being conducted to the inside of the storage cabinet 10 and improving the refrigerating/freezing effect of the storage cabinet 10.

Referring to fig. 2 and 7, in some embodiments, each of the shelves 111 is provided with a plurality of transfer modules 112, and the plurality of transfer modules 112 divide the accommodating space 1113 into a plurality of sub-spaces, each of which is used for accommodating at least one food. Each of the transfer modules 112 can push out the food received in the corresponding sub-space from the transfer port 11121.

In some embodiments, the transfer module 112 includes a pusher 1121, a synchronization rail 1122, a synchronization member 1123, and a transfer drive member (not shown). The synchronous track 1122 is used for dividing the accommodating space 1113 into a plurality of subspaces, the push plate 1121 is movably disposed on the synchronous track 1122, the synchronizing member 1123 is connected to the push plate 1121 and the transmission driving member, and the transmission driving member is used for driving the synchronizing member 1123 to rotate so as to drive the push plate 1121 to move along the synchronous track 1122 and push the food accommodated in the corresponding subspaces to the delivery opening 11121. In one embodiment, the transmission driving member may be a motor, the synchronizing member 1123 may include a belt and a pulley 32345, the motor may drive the pulley 32345 to rotate, the pulley 32345 rotates to drive the belt to rotate, and the pushing plate 1121 is connected to the belt and moves in the sub-space along with the rotation of the belt, so as to push the food in the sub-space to move. In other embodiments, the synchronizing member 1123 may further comprise a transmission chain and a synchronizing wheel, or a slide rail 32332 and a slider 32342, etc., without limitation.

In some embodiments, the transport module 112 includes a push plate 1121, a synchronization rail 1122, a synchronization member 1123, and a first mating member (not shown), wherein the synchronization member 1123 connects the push plate 1121 and the first mating member. The goods taking device 31 includes a transmission driving member (not shown) and a second mating member (not shown), the second mating member is used for mating with the first mating member, the transmission driving member is used for driving the second mating member to rotate so as to drive the first mating member to rotate, so that the first mating member drives the synchronizing member 1123 to rotate so as to drive the pushing plate 1121 to move along the synchronizing track 1122, and the food is pushed towards the conveying opening 11121. The transmission driving member may be a motor, the synchronizing member 1123 may be a transmission belt and a pulley 32345, and the first engaging member and the second engaging member may be gears or other transmission methods, which are not limited herein. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a transmission driving member for each transmission module to drive the push plate 1121 to move, and only a transmission driving member is provided on the goods-taking device 31 to drive the push plate 1121 corresponding to the subspace where the food is located when the food is taken to move, so that the cost can be saved.

Referring to fig. 2, in some embodiments, a monitoring camera (not shown) is disposed in the storage cabinet 10, and is used for monitoring the food remaining in the cargo channel 11, so as to facilitate timely replenishment of the cargo by the worker.

Referring to fig. 7, in some embodiments, the layer 111 is provided with a gravity sensor 113, and the gravity sensor 113 is used for detecting the weight of the food carried by the layer 111 to determine the food remaining amount of the layer 111, so as to remind the staff of timely replenishment in case that the food remaining amount of the layer 111 is insufficient. For example, each tier 111 is provided with a gravity sensor 113, and the food remaining amount of the entire lane 11 can be obtained by combining data of the gravity sensor 113 corresponding to each tier 111. When the food allowance of the whole goods passage 11 is lower than a preset threshold value, the communication module sends out prompt information to remind workers of timely replenishment.

In some embodiments, the picking device 31 can determine whether there is food left on each layer 111 according to the data of the gravity sensor 113 corresponding to each layer 111, so as to prevent the picking device 31 from picking food from the layer 111 without food.

Referring to fig. 2 and 8, in some embodiments, the pickup device 31 includes a first pickup rail 311, a second pickup rail 312, and a pickup module 313. The second pickup track 312 is slidably connected to the first pickup track 311, and the second pickup track 312 is capable of moving in a first direction (Z1/Z2) relative to the first pickup track 311. The goods picking module 313 is used for carrying food, the goods picking module 313 is arranged on the second goods picking track 312 and can move along a second direction (X1/X2) relative to the second goods picking track 312, and the second direction (X1/X2) is basically vertical to the first direction (Z1/Z2). The term substantially perpendicular means that the first direction (Z1/Z2) and the second direction (X1/X2) may be completely perpendicular, or may be an angle variable allowed in actual design. In one embodiment, the included angle between the substantially perpendicular first direction (Z1/Z2) and second direction (X1/X2) may range from [85 °,95 °, for example, the included angle between the first direction (Z1/Z2) and second direction (X1/X2) may range from 85 °, 86 °, 87 °, 88 °, 89 °, 90 °, 91 °, 92 °, 93 °, 94 °,95 °, and so forth, not to mention one.

For example, in the embodiment of fig. 2, the first direction (Z1/Z2) is a vertical direction and the second direction (X1/X2) is a horizontal direction. The pick-up module 313 can move along a second direction (X1/X2) relative to the second pick-up track 312 to pick up food at different levels on the same layer 111. The second pickup track 312 can move along the first direction (Z1/Z2) relative to the first pickup track 311 to drive the pickup module 313 to move to the layer plates 111 on different layers.

Referring to fig. 8, in some embodiments, the pickup module 313 includes a main body 3131, a moving element 3132, and a moving motor (not shown). The main body 3131 is used to carry food. The moving member 3132 is slidably connected to the second pickup rail 312 and can move in a second direction (X1/X2) relative to the second pickup rail 312. The moving motor is used for driving the moving member 3132 to move along a second direction (X1/X2) on the second pick-up track 312, so as to drive the main body 3131 to move.

Referring to fig. 8, in some embodiments, the pick-up module 313 further includes a belt 3133 disposed on the main body 3131, the belt 3133 is used for carrying food and can move along a third direction (Y1/Y2) relative to the main body 3131, and the third direction (Y1/Y2) is orthogonal to the first direction (Z1/Z2) and the second direction (X1/X2). Referring to fig. 3, after the food is sold, the pick-up module 313 moves to the position of the delivery opening 11121 where the sold food is located, the delivery module 112 pushes the food out of the delivery opening 11121 and delivers the food onto the conveyor 3133, and the conveyor 3133 moves the food along the third direction (Y1/Y2) so that the food leaves the layer 111 and is completely carried on the conveyor.

Referring to fig. 8, in some embodiments, the pick-up module 313 further includes a blocking plate 3134 disposed on the main body 3131 for blocking the food from moving in the third direction (Y1/Y2) to prevent the food from falling off the main body 3131. In some embodiments, the pick-up module 313 further comprises a distance sensor 3135 disposed on the blocking plate 3134. The distance sensor 3135 is used to detect a distance between the food and the blocking plate 3134, and the conveyor belt 3133 can stop moving when the distance between the food and the blocking plate 3134 is less than a preset distance, so that the food stays on the main body 3131.

Referring to fig. 8 and 9, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a transfer platform 23, the pickup device 31 further includes a position sensor 314 disposed on the pickup module 313, the position sensor 314 is configured to detect a position of the pickup module 313 relative to the transfer platform 23, and the pickup module 313 unloads the food onto the transfer platform 23 when the pickup module 313 reaches a predetermined position.

Referring to fig. 8 and 9, in some embodiments, the pickup module 313 further includes a pushing member 3136, and the pushing member 3136 is used for pushing the food to move along a second direction (X1/X2) to push the food to the transfer platform 23. In one embodiment, pusher 3136 is slidably coupled to stop plate 3134 and is slidable relative to stop plate 3134 in a second direction (X1/X2). In yet another embodiment, the main body 3131 is provided with a push track,

for example, the second pickup track 312 moves along a first direction (Z1/Z2) relative to the first pickup track 311, so as to drive the pickup module 313 to move to a position aligned with the horizontal direction of the transfer platform 23, and the pickup module 313 moves along a second direction (X1/X2) toward the transfer platform 23 relative to the second pickup track 312. The position sensor 314 is a distance measuring sensor, and when the distance measuring sensor detects that the distance between the pickup module 313 and the transfer platform 23 is smaller than the predetermined distance, the pickup module 313 stops moving along the second direction (X1/X2), and the pushing member 3136 pushes the food to the transfer platform 23.

Referring to fig. 3 and 9, in some embodiments, the inner sidewall 14 of the storage cabinet 10 adjacent to the supply cabinet 20 is provided with a first passage opening 141, and the first passage opening 141 is used for delivering food out of the storage cabinet 10. Referring to fig. 8, the supply cabinet 20 includes a housing 25, a side wall 252 of the housing 25 adjacent to the storage cabinet 10 is opened with a second opening 2521, the second opening 2521 is aligned with the first opening 141, and the second opening 2521 is used for feeding food into the supply cabinet 20. In some embodiments, the first access opening 141 is adjacent to the second access opening 2521, the relay platform 23 is aligned with the second access opening 2521 and adjacent to the second access opening 2521, and the pick-up module 313 can push the food to the relay platform 23 at the access opening. In yet another embodiment, the transfer platform 23 is spaced apart from the second access opening 2521, and the access device 31 can extend out of the access opening and into the second access opening 2521 to transport the food to the transfer platform 23.

Referring to fig. 2 and 9, in some embodiments, the storage cabinet 10 further includes a first closing device 15 for selectively closing or opening the first access port 141. In the case where no food is transported from storage cabinet 10 to serving cabinet 20, first closing device 15 closes first passage port 141 to isolate cold air in storage cabinet 10, prevent cold air from leaking to cause a decrease in cooling effect, and prevent cold air from entering serving cabinet 20 through second passage port 2521. In a case where the pick-up module 313 transports the food in the storage cabinet 10 to the supply cabinet 20, the first closing device 15 opens the first passage port 141 so that the pick-up module 313 can deliver the food out of the storage cabinet 10 from the first passage port 141.

Referring to FIG. 2, in some embodiments, the first sealing device 15 includes a sealing door 151 and a sealing door actuator 152. The closing door driver 152 is connected to the closing door 151 and is configured to drive the closing door 151 to move relative to the first access opening 141 to selectively close or open the first access opening 141. The closing door driver 152 may be a motor, a cylinder, etc., and is not limited herein.

In one embodiment, a closing door 151 and a closing door driver 152 are provided inside the cabinet 10, and the closing door 151 is slidably coupled with the inner sidewall 14 of the cabinet 10. For example, the closing door 151 is provided with sliding rails or slides, and correspondingly the inner side wall 14 is provided with sliding blocks or rails, which are slidably connected to the sliding blocks. The closing door actuator 152 is used to drive the closing door 151 to slide along the inner side wall 14. Thus, the first closing means 15 does not occupy the space between the first passage port 141 and the second passage port 2521, and the storage cabinet 10 and the supply cabinet 20 can be closely arranged so that the first passage port 141 and the second passage port 2521 are closely arranged to reduce the transmission path of the food.

In yet another embodiment, the closing door 151 and the closing door driver 152 are disposed outside the storage cabinet 10, and the closing door 151 is slidably coupled to the outer sidewall 16 of the storage cabinet 10. For example, the closing door 151 is provided with a slide rail or slide block, and correspondingly the outer side wall 16 is provided with a slide block or slide rail, which is slidably connected with the slide block. The closing door actuator 152 is used to actuate the closing door 151 along the outer sidewall 16. In this manner, the operation of the closed door actuator 152 in a low temperature environment can be avoided to improve the service life.

In yet another embodiment, the closing door driver 152 is disposed at an inner side or an outer side of the storage cabinet 10, the closing door 151 is telescopically disposed within the first access opening 141, and the closing door driver 152 is used to drive the closing door 151 to extend to close the first access opening 141 and to drive the closing door 151 to retract to open the first access opening 141.

Referring to fig. 9, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a second closing device (not shown) for selectively closing or opening the second passage port 2521. In the case where no food is transported from the storage cabinet 10 to the supply cabinet 20, the second closing means closes the second passage opening 2521 to isolate cold air in the storage cabinet 10 from entering the supply cabinet 20 from the second passage opening 2521. In the case that the pick-up module 313 transports the food in the storage cabinet 10 to the supply cabinet 20, the second closing device opens the second passage 2521, so that the pick-up module 313 can transport the food from the second passage 2521 into the supply cabinet 20.

The second closing device may have the same or approximately the same structure as the first closing device, for example, the second closing device may also include a closing door and a closing door driver, which is not limited herein. The location of the second enclosure in the supply cabinet 20 may be similar to the location of the first enclosure 15 in the storage cabinet 10, for example, the enclosure door may be disposed outside, inside or within the second opening 2521 of the supply cabinet 20, and the enclosure door driver may be disposed outside or inside the supply cabinet 20, which will not be described herein.

Referring to fig. 3 and 10, in some embodiments, the heating device 21 includes a heating chamber 211 and a heater 212. A heating chamber 2111 is formed in the heating chamber 211, and a heater 212 is disposed in the heating chamber 211 for heating the food in the heating chamber 2111. The heater 212 is a microwave heater 212, a resistance wire heater 212, a gas stove, etc., and is not limited herein.

In some embodiments, the heating chamber 211 comprises a plurality of chambers to satisfy the heating of a plurality of food items, thereby increasing the meal speed. In one embodiment, a heater 212 is disposed in each heating chamber 211, so that the heating time and the heating temperature of each heating chamber 211 can be controlled individually to adapt to the heating of different kinds of food. In yet another embodiment, multiple heating cartridges 211 share the same heater 212 to save cost. The food can be heated to various degrees by controlling the heating time of the food.

In some embodiments, the heating device 21 further comprises a heating chamber door 213 slidably disposed on the heating chamber 211. In one embodiment, the heating compartment door 213 is vertically movable relative to the heating compartment 211 to close or open the heating chamber 2111.

Referring to fig. 3 and 11, in some embodiments, the thermal insulation chamber 22 includes a chamber 221 and an upper door 222. The compartment 221 is provided with an accommodating space 2211 and a loading port 2212 communicating with the accommodating space 2211. The receiving space 2211 is used for storing food and keeping warm, and the upper door 222 is installed to the compartment 221 in a turnable manner and can shield the upper opening 2212. Referring to fig. 3 and 4, the grabbing bar 32321 can push the upper door 222 to turn over to extend into the receiving space 2211, and the food held by the grabbing bar 32321 is loaded into the compartment 221.

Referring to fig. 11, in some embodiments, the number of the compartments 221 is multiple, the multiple compartments 221 are distributed along the first direction (Z1/Z2) and the second direction (X1/X2), and the delivery device 32 can move along the first direction (Z1/Z2) and/or the second direction (X1/X2) to deliver the food into the corresponding compartments 221.

In some embodiments, the loading door 222 is pivotably coupled to the compartment 221 via a hinge, a pivot, a torsion spring, a hinge, or other coupling element.

In some embodiments, the upper cargo door 222 is provided to the upper end of the upper cargo port 2212 by a hinge (not shown). In this way, the upper door 222 closes the upper port 2212 by its own weight without pushing the upper door 222 to turn over by an external force.

In some embodiments, the hinges comprise self-rebounding hinges for allowing the upper cargo door 222 to automatically close the upper cargo opening 2212. In the case where the upper cargo door 222 is turned without being pushed by an external force, the upper cargo door 222 closes the upper cargo opening 2212 by the resilient action of the automatically resilient hinge. In this manner, the upper door 222 is not limited to be provided above the upper opening 2212, and may be provided at a lower end, a left end, a right end, and the like of the upper opening 2212.

Referring to fig. 3 and 11, in some embodiments, the food sold by the vending machine 100 is packed by the meal box 200. The compartment 221 can stack a plurality of (packaged) foods in the height direction of the compartment 221, and the delivery device 32 can repeatedly grip and release the plurality of foods to be stacked in the same compartment 221. For example, when a user purchases a package at a vending machine, the main food, the dish, and the soup in the package are separately loaded into three lunch boxes 200, and the delivery device 32 can feed the lunch boxes 200 corresponding to the main food, the dish, and the soup into the heating device 21 to be heated and fed into the same compartment 221, so that the three lunch boxes 200 corresponding to the same package can be stacked in the same compartment 221, and the user does not need to take meals from different compartments 221.

Referring to fig. 3 and 11, in another embodiment, the pick-up device 31 stacks a plurality of food items on the transfer platform 23 (as shown in fig. 8), the heating device 21 can receive a plurality of stacked food items, the delivery device 32 can take a plurality of stacked food items from the transfer platform 23 at a time and deliver the plurality of stacked food items to the heating device 21 for heating, and deliver the heated plurality of stacked food items to the same compartment 221.

Referring to fig. 11, in some embodiments, the thermal insulation chamber 22 further includes an alignment unit (not shown). The alignment unit is disposed in the chamber 221 or the loading door 222. Referring to fig. 3, the delivery device 32 further includes an alignment sensor (not shown) disposed on the delivery module 323, and the alignment sensor is used for identifying an alignment unit to align the delivery module 323 with the loading port 2212. For example, the alignment unit is a hall element, and the alignment sensor is a hall sensor. The induction signal is triggered when the hall sensor detects a hall element. Referring to fig. 9, the second driving assembly 3234 drives the two grabbing bars 32321 to extend relative to the base 3231 according to the sensing signal, so as to feed the food into the chamber 221.

Referring to fig. 11, in some embodiments, the insulated compartment 22 further includes a shielding plate 225, the shielding plate 225 and the upper cargo door 222 are used together to shield the upper cargo opening 2212, the shielding plate 225 is provided with two escape slots 2251, and the escape slots 2251 are used for allowing two grab bars 32321 (shown in fig. 9) to move out of the compartment 221.

In some embodiments, the chamber 221 is provided with a heat insulating material to provide a better heat insulating effect for the heat insulating chamber 22. In some embodiments, the upper cargo door 222 and the shielding plate 225 are provided with heat insulating materials on the inner side of the compartment 221, so that the heat insulating effect of the compartment 221 can be improved when the upper cargo door 222 and the shielding plate 225 shield the upper cargo opening 2212.

In some embodiments, the thermal insulation chamber 22 further comprises a thermal insulation member disposed in the chamber 221 for maintaining the temperature of the chamber 221 within a predetermined temperature range. The heat retaining member may include a heater 212 member such as a heating wire, a heat retaining lamp, etc., without limitation. For example, the heat retaining member is a heat retaining lamp capable of generating heat radiation to irradiate the food in the compartment 221 to maintain the temperature of the food and prevent the food from being cooled or damaged. For another example, the thermal insulation member is an electric heating wire, and the thermal insulation chamber 22 further includes a partition plate (not shown) disposed at the bottom of the chamber 221, and the electric heating wire is disposed below the partition plate for heating the partition plate. The food fed into the heat-insulating bin 22 is placed above the partition plate and heated by the electric heating wire. Therefore, the food can be prevented from being scalded due to the fact that the electric heating wire directly contacts with the food for heating.

Referring to fig. 5 and 11, in some embodiments, the upper cargo door 222 is disposed at the upper end of the upper cargo opening 2212, and the shielding plate 225 is disposed at the lower end of the upper cargo opening 2212. Two grab bars 32321 push upper door 222 to turn over at a certain height from the bottom of compartment 221 to feed food into compartment 221, and then descend in compartment 221 to put the food at the bottom of compartment 221, so as to prevent the food from being too high from the bottom of compartment 221 to break the food when the food is loosened. If there are already food in the compartment 221, the two grabbing bars 32321 carry the food and can be stacked on the existing food in the compartment 221 when the food is lowered in the compartment 221 at the position of the two escape grooves 2251 corresponding to the farthest position where the two grabbing bars 32321 are far away from each other, after the two grabbing bars 32321 release the food, the first driving assembly 3233 drives the two grabbing bars 32321 to be far away from each other, and then the first delivery track 321 drives the delivery module 323 to be lowered in the first direction Z2 (as shown in fig. 3) to make the two grabbing bars 32321 enter the two escape grooves 2251, respectively, and then the second driving assembly 3234 drives the two grabbing bars 32321 to retract relative to the base 3231 to make the two grabbing bars 32321 move out of the compartment 221. When the two grab bars 32321 completely fall into the two escape grooves 2251, the external force pushing the upper cargo door 222 to turn over disappears, and the upper cargo door 222 returns to the initial position where it is not subjected to the external force, and shields the upper cargo port 2212 together with the shielding plate 225.

In some embodiments, the thermal insulation chamber 22 further includes an infrared sensor 227 disposed at the bottom of each chamber 221 for detecting whether food exists in the chamber 221, so that the vending machine 100 prompts the user to take meals from the corresponding chamber 221 when food exists in the chamber 221.

In some embodiments, the infrared sensor 227 at the bottom of the compartment 221 is also used to detect whether the delivery module 323 delivers the food into the compartment 221 at a proper position, so as to ensure that the food in the compartment 221 does not block the upper door 222 from returning to the original position after the two grab bars 32321 are retracted relative to the base 3231.

Referring to fig. 11, in some embodiments, the compartment 221 is provided with a delivery port 2213 which is communicated with the receiving space 2211 and is opposite to the delivery port 2212, the delivery port 2213 is used for a user to take food out of the compartment 221, the insulation compartment 22 further comprises a delivery door 228, the delivery door 228 is disposed on the compartment 221 and corresponds to the delivery port 2213, and the delivery door 228 is locked to close the delivery port 2213 when food is in the compartment 221.

In some embodiments, the door 228 is transparent, so that the user can observe the food in the compartment 221 through the door 228, thereby facilitating the user to take the meal. It is also possible to make passers-by who pass through the vending machine 100 see the food in the compartment 221, arousing the desire of passers-by to buy.

Referring to fig. 3 and 9, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a housing 25, and the delivery device 32, the heating device 21 and the thermal insulation chamber 22 are accommodated in the housing 25. In some embodiments, the housing 25 includes a supply wall 251 and an operation panel 253 disposed on the supply wall 251. Referring to fig. 1, the pick-up surface 2511 of the supply cabinet 20 is the outward facing wall surface of the supply wall 251. Referring to fig. 12, the supply wall 251 is provided with an opening 2512, and the opening 2512 corresponds to the outlet 2213 of the thermal insulation bin 22. The delivery door 228 of the thermal insulation compartment 22 shields the delivery port 2213 and the opening 2512. The operation panel 253 is used for the function user to input purchase information. The purchase information may include ordering information, meal taking information, etc., without limitation. In some embodiments, the operation panel 253 may be provided to the storage cabinet 10. For example, in the embodiment of fig. 1, the operation panel 253 is disposed on a side of the storage cabinet 10 facing the same side as the goods-taking surface 2511, which is not limited herein.

In some embodiments, after the user enters ordering information and pays, the food ordered by the user will be sent to the holding bin 22. After the user inputs meal-taking information (e.g., meal-taking code), the corresponding delivery door 228 of the insulated compartment 22 unlocks the open compartment 221 for the user to take the food in the compartment 221.

In some embodiments, the operation panel 253 includes a touch screen for displaying purchase information. The user can touch and operate the touch screen to input purchase information. In yet another embodiment, the operation panel 253 includes a display screen displaying purchase information and operation keys for a user to input the purchase information.

In some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further comprises a main control system (not shown) electrically connected to the operation panel 253 and the transporting mechanism 30 for controlling the transporting mechanism 30 to take the food from the storage cabinet 10, feed the food into the heating device 21 for heating, and feed the food into the holding chamber 22 according to the purchase information.

In some embodiments, the main control system is further electrically connected to the thermal insulation chamber 22, and the thermal insulation chamber 22 can feed back the empty space of the chamber 221 to the main control system, so that the main control system can control the conveying mechanism 30 to convey the food into the empty chamber 221. After the user inputs the meal taking information, the main control system controls the corresponding delivery door 228 of the compartment 221 to unlock and open the compartment 221 according to the meal taking information, so that the user can take the food in the compartment 221.

In some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a network module (not shown) electrically connected to the main control system for connecting to the internet. The user can remotely input purchase information on an online ordering page of the vending machine 100 in the modes of App, applet and the like, and the network module can acquire the remote purchase information of the user, so that the main control system can give a meal according to the remote purchase information. The prepared food is stored in the holding chamber 22 according to the remote purchase information, and the holding chamber 22 can maintain the temperature of the food to prevent the food from being cooled down or damaged while waiting for the user to take the meal. Therefore, the user after ordering does not need to take the meal immediately, and does not need to worry about the cold or bad food caused by untimely taking of the meal. In addition, the user can place an order remotely in advance, so that the user can take a meal from the heat-preservation cabin 22 immediately when arriving at the position of the vending machine 100, and long-time waiting for the meal is avoided.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a ticket printing device 261, and the ticket printing device 261 is electrically connected to the host system for printing the ticket according to the purchase information. The supply wall 251 is provided with a note outlet 254, the note outlet 254 being for the output of notes.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a utensil release device 262, and the utensil release device 262 is electrically connected to the main control system for providing a corresponding amount of utensils according to the purchase information. The supply wall 251 is provided with a dish outlet 255, and the dish outlet 255 is used for outputting dishes.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 further includes a bag dispenser 263, and the bag dispenser 263 is electrically connected to the main control system for providing the bags according to the purchase information. The supply wall 251 is provided with a bag outlet 256, and the bag outlet 256 is used for outputting the bag.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, the supply cabinet 20 includes a placement platform 28 disposed on the pick-up surface 2511, and the user may place food on the placement platform 28 after taking a meal and wait for the output of bills, tableware or packaging bags. In some embodiments, the dishes can be output from the dish outlet 255 to the resting platform 28 to avoid the dishes falling to the floor.

In summary, the delivery module 323 provided in the embodiments of the present application can clamp food to extend or retract, so as to flexibly pick and place food.

In the description herein, references to the description of the terms "certain embodiments," "one example," "exemplary," etc., mean that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the application. In this specification, schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples. Moreover, various embodiments or examples and features of various embodiments or examples described in this specification can be combined and combined by one skilled in the art without being mutually inconsistent.

Although embodiments of the present application have been shown and described above, it is to be understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and not to be construed as limiting the present application, and that changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to the above embodiments by those of ordinary skill in the art within the scope of the present application.

Claims (10)

1. A delivery module, comprising:

a base;

the two clamping seats are slidably arranged on the base;

the two grabbing rods are respectively arranged on the two clamping seats;

the screw rod is rotatably arranged on the base and is meshed with the two clamping seats; and

the first driving assembly is arranged on the base and used for driving the screw rod to drive the two clamping seats to be close to or far away from each other, so that the two grabbing rods are driven to be close to or far away from each other to clamp or release goods.

2. The delivery module of claim 1, further comprising a slide rail disposed on the base, wherein the holder comprises a moving block and a base, the moving block is slidably disposed on the slide rail, the base is connected to the moving block, and the base is configured to support the grab bar.

3. The delivery module of claim 2, wherein the holder further comprises:

the sleeve is arranged on the base body, and the grabbing rod penetrates through the sleeve and can move relative to the sleeve.

4. The delivery module of claim 1, wherein the two grab bars are parallel.

5. The delivery module of claim 1, wherein the two grab bars are stainless steel grab bars, and wherein the delivery module further comprises two sheaths that are respectively sleeved on the two grab bars.

6. The delivery module of claim 1, wherein both of the holders include an engagement portion, the lead screw includes a transmission section and two threaded sections at opposite ends of the transmission section, the transmission section is engaged with the first drive assembly, and the two threaded sections are engaged with the two engagement portions, respectively.

7. The delivery module of claim 6, wherein the thread direction of the two thread segments is different, and wherein the first drive assembly comprises:

the clamping driving motor is arranged on the base;

the driving wheel is connected with an output shaft of the clamping driving motor; and

the transmission wheel is sleeved on the transmission section and meshed with the driving wheel;

the clamping driving motor is used for driving the driving wheel to drive the driving wheel to rotate so as to drive the screw rod to rotate, so that the two clamping seats are close to or far away from each other, and the two grabbing rods are driven to be close to or far away from each other.

8. The delivery module of claim 2, wherein the base defines two spaced-apart limiting openings, the two grab bars respectively pass through the limiting openings, and the limiting openings are configured to limit the distance of the two grab bars from approaching or departing from each other.

9. The delivery module of claim 1, further comprising:

the transmission rod is rotatably arranged on the base;

a slider engaged with the transmission rod;

the connecting piece is connected with the sliding block and the two clamping seats;

the telescopic driving motor is arranged on the base; and

the belt wheel is connected with the telescopic driving motor and the transmission rod;

the telescopic driving motor is used for driving the belt wheel to drive the transmission rod to rotate, so that the sliding block moves along the transmission rod, and the connecting piece drives the two grabbing rods to extend or retract relative to the base.

10. A vending machine, comprising:

the storage cabinet comprises a goods passage and a refrigerating device, wherein the goods passage is used for storing goods, and the refrigerating device is used for freezing or refrigerating the goods;

the supply cabinet comprises a heating device and a heat preservation bin, the heating device is used for heating the goods, and the heat preservation bin is used for storing and preserving heat of the goods; and

a pickup device for transferring the goods from the cargo way to the supply cabinet; and

a delivery device comprising the delivery module of any one of claims 1-9 for delivering the goods to the heating device and to the holding bin.

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