US1396385A - Coin-controlled mechanism - Google Patents

Description

F. W. STICE. COIN CONTROLLED MECHANISM. APPLIQAIION FILED NOV. 22, 1919. RENEWED MAR. 16, 1921. 1,396,385.

M M J m 1 m w a F. W. STICE. COIN CONTROLLED MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 22, I919. RENEWED MAR. 16.192!- 1,396,385.

L 2. I Hm 3 8M .wp Mu W m g a v0 m 12 w 7 WW I J Z Q Ex w w 5 H I 6 Hn LII}: I 2 II? Q I IIM IWII m I H E UNITED STATES FRED W. STICE, OF TAMA,

IOWA.

COIN-CONTROLLED MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 8, 1921.

Original application filed June 16, 1919, Serial No. 304,486. Divided and this application filed November 22, 1919, Serial No. 339,876. Renewed March 16, 1921.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, Fnno IV. Srron, a citizen of the United States, residing at Tama, in the county of Tama and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coin-Controlled Mechanisms, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to vending machines and its object is to provide a novel and simple construction and arrangement of parts whereby the machine will be inoperative to deliver goods unless a coin or token representing the purchase price be inserted, the present application being a division of an application filed by me June 16, 1919, Serial No. 304,486.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings and will be hereinafter fully described, the novel features being subsequently particularly pointed out in the claim.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of a vending machine embodying my invention, the parts being shown in the retracted or normal position;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the ejector drawn forward so as to project a card through the casing;

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section taken in the plane of the coin tube;

Fi 4 is a horizontal section taken substantially on the line H of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of a portion of the ejector slide, a part of the plunger being shown in dotted lines.

In carrying out my invention, I employ a housing or casin consisting of a base plate 1 and vertical si e and end walls 2 connected by a top plate 3, the top plate being formed with a suitable opening to permit the placing of cards within the housing and a cover 4: being provided to close the said opening, as will be readily understood. In the base plate near the forward end of the same, I provide a discharge opening 5, through which the coins may drop into the coin box, it being understood that the base plate will be secured upon a table or pedestal or other fixed support, and a coin box or other suitable receptacle will be provided below the discharge opening 5 to collect the coins. Upon the base plate within the housing, I secure a guide frame 6 consisting of Serial No. 452,723.

side bars arranged in parallelism and having their rear ends connected by a cross bar or stop 7. In the opposed inner faces of the side bars 6, I provide channels 8 which will receive longitudinal ribs or tongues 9 upon the side edges of the ejector slide 10, the said slide being thereby mounted upon the base for reciprocatory movement and being held to the base by the engagement of the said ribs and channels, the inward or rearward movement of the slide being limited by the contact of its rear end with the stop 7, as clearly shown in Fig; 1. In the front end of the slide 10, I provide a central longitudinal notch or open-ended slot 11, and between the terminals of the said slot or notch, I provide the transverse slot or notch 12 which intersects the said slot 11 and will normally register with the inner end of the coin tube 13 which is secured within the housin and has its upper end coincident with a coin slot 14 formed in one side wall of the housing. The intermediate portion of the coin tube is held against lateral movement by a bracket 15 secured to the tube and upon the upper side of the adjacent side bar 6, so that the inner end of the tube will always be in the plane occupied by the transverse notch or slot 12 when the e'ector slide is retracted. Upon one of the side bars 6, I provide a longitudinal open frame or guideway 16 and through the said open frame or guideway projects a lateral arm or extension 17 projecting from one side of the plunger 18, the said plunger being equipped with a handle bar or pull rod 19 extendin through the front side of the casing and fitting closely in the opening 20 provided therefor. The lateral guide arm 17 and the guide frame 16 are constructed with interengaging tongues and grooves, as indicated at 21, so that the plunger may reciprocate freely and will be caused to move in a rectilinear path. The plunger is normally held retracted by a spring 22 having its rear end secured in any convenient manner within the housing, as, for instance, to a pin 23 at the rear end of the base plate 1 and having its front end secured to the rear side of the lateral guide arm 17, as shown most clearly in Figs. 3 and 4. The main body of the plunger is disposed in the central longitudinal plane of the housing and at its lower end is constructed with a tongue 24 disposed within the slot 11 so as to play freely therein and normally bearing against the rear end wall of said slot under the influence ofthe spring 22, so that theejector' slide willbe normally held in the position shown in Fig. 1, with thetransverse notch or slot 12 in rear of the coin discharge opening 5 and in the plane of the coin tube. The plunger is also constructed with a coin-receiving recess or seat 25 in one side immediately 1n advance of thesaid tongue 24 so that when a coin is deposited in the coin tube, it will gravitate through the said .tube and will enter the recess or seat 25, resting uponfthe base plate 1 and within the notches 12. If the plunger be then drawn forward, the coin will be held firmly against the front walls of the notches 12 by the force exerted through the tongue 24 against the rear side of the coin,

' so that the ejectorslide will be drawn forward. If, however, the plunger be drawn forward without a coin bemg inserted, the

tongue 24 will merely rideforward through the slot 11 without imparting movement to the ejector slide and, therefore, no card will be delivered. As soon as the end .of the card has been projected through the delivery opening 26 in the front wall of the casing, as shown in Fig.2, the hold upon the plunger will be released, whereupon the spring 22 will contract and-withdraw the plunger so that its tongue 24 will bear against the rear end wall of the slot 11 and release the coin, which will then drop through the discharge opening 5 to the coin box. e i

The cards, indicated at 27ers supported within a frame consisting of front and rear standards 28 and clelats2 9 secured to and extending between said standards at the sides of the same. The standards are connected at their upper endsby cross bars- 30 and to the rear standards I secure a plate 31which constitutesa back rest and gage-for the cards so that they may be piled evenly within the frame, as"will be readily understood. A weight or follower 32 is placed upon the pile of cards so that they will be causedto positively gravitate to the cleats 29. as the lowermost cards are successively withdrawn. As shown most clearly in Fig. 3, the cards rest at their side edges upon the cleats 29 and are uncovered between the said cleats 7 sothat the ejector fingers 33 arranged below the cards mayreadily engage thebottom card and project the same asthe ejector slide 10 is drawn forward. The fingers 33 are curved upon their rear edges, as shown at 3%, and their points 35 project slightly forward so that when the fingers are extending upwardly, the points will readily take into the under side of thebottom card and cause the same to move forward with the slide and ejector. The fingers 331are carried by a plate 36 hingedto the upper sideof the ejector slide 10 and held normally in the position shown in Fig. 1 by a spring 37 "secured to and extending between the rear slde of" the hinged plate at the upper edge of the same and the upper side of the ejector slide 10, a stop pin or rest 38 being provided upon the slide to limit the rearward movement. of the hinged plate under the influence of said spring, as will be readily understood. As the ejector slide is drawn forward, the fingers 33 will be held in engagement with the bottom card by the pin or rest 38, so that the card will be caused to move forward with the fingers and slide. Upon the rearward movement of the ejector, however, the curved edges 84 of the fingers will be in engagement with'the bottom card and will cause the fingers to swing forwardly against the tension of the spring 37 so that the ejector will have no effect upon the cards during its inward or-rearward'movement. V

It is intended that care shall be observed in placing a stock of cards in the machine so that all the cards in the pile.will be of the same thickness, and, across the front end of the card supporting frame, I provide a gage plate orbar 379 which is secured at its ends to'the frontstandards 28. This gage plate'orbar is providedat its ends with slots 40 through which securing bolts or screws 41 are inserted into the standards, the slots permitting a limited: verticaladj ustment of the gage plate so that it may be set according toxthe thickness of the cards placed in the machine and will permit only one card at a time to be delivered, all the cards except the bottom .one being held against withdrawal by the plate, while the bottom card will be permitted to pass'under the lower edge of the plate-and through the delivery opening 261 As each card is withdrawn, the weight of'the remainingcards and the follower 32 will cause the cards" to descend so that the lowermost of tlieremaining cards-will be in position to'be engaged by the ejector lingers. r

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the. accompanying drawings, it will be readilyunderstood that I have'provided an exceedingly simple machine wherebypersons desiring postcards may obtain the: same without the services of a salesman, a single post card being delivered with certaintyand rapidity after a coin has been inserted in the machine and no card being deliveredunless a coin is in: serted. After a card has been withdrawn, the vmechanism automatically. and immediately returns 'to normal? positionso that. a second card mayibe delivered'up'on the in-. sertion of a second coin. 'Theparts. are compactly arranged. so that the machine will occupy but little space and, owing to its simplicity of construction it may be produced at a slight cost and will not be apt to get out of order. A coin is shown in position at 42 in Fig. 2.

It will, of course, be understood that the machine may be used for the sale of postals, stamped or unstamped postcards, or other forms of cards.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

In a vending machine, the combination of a closed casing having a coin-discharge opening in its bottom, an ejector head resting on the bottom of the casing and having an open-bottom coin seat near one end and an open-ended notch extending across said seat and in communication therewith, a coin tube disposed laterally in the casing with its inner end adjacent and above the slide, a plunger arranged above the slide and provided in one side with a recess to receive a coin from the coin tube, a lateral arm extending from the opposite side of the plunger, a guide in which said arm plays, a tongue depending from the plunger and playing in the said open-ended notch whereby to move across the coin seat when no coin is deposited or to clamp the coin in said seat and actuate the slide when a coin is deposited, and means acting on the plunger to hold the same and the slide normally retracted.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

FRED W. STICE. a s.]

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