Escapement for can dispensers and the like

May 29, 1962 i_. w. peterson 3,036,735

ESCAPEMENT FOR CAN DISPENSERS AND THE LIKE

Filed Aug. 12, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1

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ATTOENEYf

May 29, 1962

L. W. PETERSON

3,036,735

ESCAPEMENT FOR CAN DISPENSERS AND THE LIKE

Filed Aug. 12, 1958 '

Sheets-Sheet 2

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United States Patent Office

3,036,735

Patented May 29, 1962

3,036,735

ESCAPEMENT FOR CAN DISPENSERS AND THE LIKE

Lawrence W. Peterson, Horicon, Wis., assignor to Gardner Manufacturing Company, Horicon, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin

Filed Aug. 12,1958, Ser. No. 754,601 8 Claims. (Cl. 221—289)

This invention relates to an improved escapement for can dispensers and the like.

The articles to be dispensed are stacked in a generally upright hopper. The lowermost article engages a switch actuator to control a circuit which is otherwise open at the coin-operated switch, assuming that the dispenser is coin operated. The lowermost article rests on a camming detent which is biased toward article supporting position and has a lost motion connection with a solenoid by which it may be withdrawn from such position to a second position in which the articles in the hopper are lowered but not yet released.

When coin operation energizes the solenoid to move the escapement cam from its first position to its second position, the first thing that happens is the unlocking of the cam which is normally kept locked to avoid theft. The articles are then dropped to an intermediate position. As they drop, they release the switch actuator to open the dispensing circuit and de-energize the solenoid. As the escapement cam moves back to its normal retracted and locked position, it releases the lowermost article and engages the next successive article in the stack in readiness for a further dispensing operation.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of an escapement mechanism embodying the invention.

FIG. 2 is a view of the mechanism on a slightly reduced scale in vertical section.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary detail view of a portion of the mechanism shown in FIG. 2 to illustrate an intermediate position of the parts.

FIGS. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing the next successive position of the parts.

FIG. 5 is a wiring diagram showing an appropriate circuit.

By way of exemplification, the device is illustrated as organized for dispensing cans such as cans of soup. The cans 6a, 6b, 6c are shown stacked in a hopper 7 which communicates with a discharge chute 8. In the angle between the upright wall 9 of the hopper and the inclined top wall 10 of the discharge chute, there is a slot 11 in which there is disposed an escapement cam 15 mounted on a transverse pintle 16 and having an arcuate margin 17 substantially concentric with the pintle, a flat margin 18 which normally lies parallel with the wall 10 in the retracted position of the cam shown in FIG. 2, and a locking detent shoulder 19.

The escapement cam 15 is biased toward the position shown in FIG. 2 by a tension spring 20 having an anchorage at 21 and connected to a pin 22 which projects laterally from the cam 15. The slot 23 of link 24 is also engaged over this pin. This provides a lost motion connection with the armature 25 of solenoid 26. The slack in the lost motion connection is normally taken up by a tension spring 27 connected between the pin 22 which connects the link with the cam 15 and another pin at 28 which connects the link 24 with armature 25.

The link 24 has an integral locking dog 30 which, in the position of the parts shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, is disposed immediately beneath the cam shoulder 19 to prevent the oscillation of the escapement cam 15 unless and until the solenoid 26 is energized to draw its armature 25 from the position of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 to the position of FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, the initial movement of the armature 25 has withdrawn the link 24 against the bias of spring 27 to move the link with respect to cam 15 to the full limit of movement permitted by the slot 23. Thus, before any movement is imparted to the cam 15, the locking dog 30 will have been retracted from beneath the cam shoulder 19. Thereupon, continued movement of the armature will be transmitted to the cam 15 for the oscillation thereof counterclockwise as viewed in the drawings.

In the course of such oscillation of the cam 15, its concentric surface 17 will be withdrawn from beneath the lowermost article 6α in hopper 7, thereby allowing the can or similar article shown at 6α to drop from the position marked I in FIG. 2 to the position marked III in FIG. 4. Here the can 6α will be engaged by the edge 18 of the escapement cam 15 and thereby held in supporting relation to the other articles in the hopper 7 as shown in FIG. 4.

As soon as the solenoid 26 is de-energized, the tension spring 20 will retract the escapement cam 15 back to the position shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, whereby the article 6α will be allowed to roll freely down the chute 8. Its inertia will require an appreciable interval of time before this article rolls from beneath the other articles in the chute. Meantime, the escapement cam 15 will have been restored to the position shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 where its curved lobe 17 will lie beneath the article 6b which is now lowermost in the chute. This article will thereupon descend a bit further than the position shown in FIG. 4 to the position originally occupied by the article 6α in FIG. 2.

Mounted on the front wall 9 of the hopper 7 is a switch 35 having a push button 36 and engaged by an actuator lever 37. As the lowermost can 6α in the hopper passes from position I, FIG. 2, to position ΠΙ, FIG. 4, it will occupy for a brief interval the position shown in dotted lines at II, FIG. 4, in which position the lever 37 which constitutes the actuator for switch 35 will move into the position shown in dotted lines in FIG. 4, thereby permitting switch 35 to operate.

The preferred wiring arrangement is shown in FIG. 5. The coin switch 38 is in series with the contactor of relay 41 which is energized through normally closed hopper switch 35 which, however, is held open by the actuator 37 at all times except during the interval when a can is being dispensed. When the coin switch 38 is closed, the relay 40 is energized to complete a holding circuit which temporarily energizes the solenoid 26 to attract the armature 25 and dispense a single can. As the'successive articles move downwardly in the hopper to a position in which the lowermost article is at the level indicated at II in FIG. 4, the switch actuating lever 37 is temporarily released and the switch 35 closes to energize a reversing relay 41 and thereby to break the holding circuit through relay 40 and deenergize the solenoid 26, thereby permitting the escapement cam 15 to oscillate back to its original position until the coin swdtch 38 is closed with another coin.

Due to the locking detent and the lost motion between link 24 and the escapement cam 15, unauthorized operation of the escapement is precluded and the escapement mechanism operates simply and dependably when the coin switch 38 is closed.