Conveyor mechanism for article dispensing apparatus

Claim 2

Article dispensing apparatus comprising two parallel endless guide rails, a plurality of sprockets supported adjacent to said rails, said sprockets having a series of concave circular surfaces around their peripheries, an endless flexible conveyor assembly for travel on said rails including a series of conveyor elements hingedly connected edge to edge by interlocking edge portions, each element defining a plate portion which has a divider projecting from one of its surfaces in a direction away from said rails and male and female edge portions projecting from the other surface in a direction toward said rails, each male edge portion of one element extending lengthwise through the female edge portion of the next adjacent element so that said edge portions are interlocked with mating edge portions of next adjacent elements to provide the hinge connections, each female edge portion having an external circular surface, said hinge connections being adapted to travel on said rails and the external circular surfaces of said female portions meshing with said sprockets by fitting into said concave circular surfaces so that turning of one of said sprockets will cause said endless flexible conveyor assembly to travel on said rails, and a housing assembly enclosing the conveyor assembly and having access means for removal of an article located in the space between two dividers that are adjacent to one another.

Claim 3

Article dispensing apparatus that is deFined in claim 1, wherein said rails are selectively extensible and contractable in length, and said elements are releasably connected together so that the number of said elements can be selectively varied to fit the selected length of said rails.

Claim 4

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 1, wherein modified elements lacking said dividers are inserted in place of certain of the first-named elements to vary the spacing between dividers remaining in said conveyor assembly.

Claim 5

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 1, wherein each female edge portion has a segment of a concave cylindrical surface opposed by a groove located at the center of said concave cylindrical surface, each male edge portion has a segment of a convex cylindrical surface of the same radius as said concave cylindrical surface and a tongue having its extremity at the center of said convex cylindrical surface, each male edge portion of one strip extending lengthwise through the female edge portion of a next adjacent strip with the tongue of the male edge portion seated in the groove of the female edge portion and with the concave and convex cylindrical surfaces in sliding engagement for relative pivotal movement about the center of said surfaces, the interlocking male and female edge portions having abuting edge surfaces to limit said relative pivotal movement in one direction, said edge portions also having abutment means to limit said relative pivotal movement in the other direction to provide when so pivoted a preselected angular position of one element relative to the next adjacent element.

Claim 6

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 1, wherein said access means includes a closure door on said housing assembly, said conveyor assembly being movable on said rails to a position wherein the space between said two dividers is in alignment with said closure door.

Claim 7

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 5, wherein a drive mechanism is operatively connected to one of said sprockets for positioning said conveyor assembly so that the space between any selected pair of dividers is in alignment with said closure door.

Claim 8

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 6, wherein said drive mechanism includes a manually rotatable control knob supported on a shaft projecting from said housing and a gear train between said shaft and said one sprocket.

Claim 9

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 6, wherein said drive mechanism includes a remotely controlled motor means coupled to said one sprocket for rotating the same.

Claim 10

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 5, wherein an ejector mechanism is mounted adjacent to said conveyor assembly for ejecting an article from the space between said two dividers.

Claim 11

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 9, wherein said ejector mechanism includes a gear rack on one end of which an ejector shoe is mounted for movement through said space, a manually actuatable control knob, and a gear train between said rack and said knob for advancing and retracting said rack in response to movement of said knob.

Claim 12

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 9, wherein said ejector mechanism includes a gear rack on one end of which an ejector shoe is mounted for movement through said space, and a remotely controlled motor means is coupled to said rack for moving the same.

Claim 13

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 5, wherein a drive mechanism is operatively connected to one of said sprockets for positioning said conveyor assembly so that the space between any selected pair of dividers is in alignment with said closure door, and an ejector mechanism is mounted adjacent to said conveyor assembly for ejecting an article from the space between said two dividers.

Claim 14

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 12, wherein said drive mechanism includes a manually rotatable control knob supported on a shaft mounted for rotatable aNd axial movement and projecting from said housing, and a gear train mounted between said shaft and said one sprocket so that said sprocket will rotate in response to turning of said control knob, and said ejector mechanism includes said control knob and its associated shaft, a gear rack on which an ejector shoe is operatively mounted for movement through said space, and a gear train between said rack and said shaft for advancing and retracting said rack in response to axial movement of said knob and its shaft.

Claim 15

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 13, wherein the ejector shoe of said ejector mechanism is mounted on the one end of said rack for movement parallel with said rack through said space.

Claim 16

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 14, wherein the access means of said housing assembly includes a closure door that is located on one side wall of the housing assembly laterally of said dividers.

Claim 17

Article dispensing apparatus comprising two parallel endless guide rails, a plurality of sprockets supported adjacent to said rails, an endless flexible conveyor assembly for travel on said rails including a series of conveyor elements hingedly connected edge to edge by interlocking edge portions, each element defining a plate portion which has a divider projecting from one of its surfaces in a direction away from said rails and male and female edge portions projecting from the other surface in a direction toward said rails, said edge portions being interlocked with mating edge portions of next adjacent elements to provide the hinge connections, said hinge connections being adapted to travel on said rails and to mesh with said sprockets so that turning of one of said sprockets will cause said endless flexible conveyor assembly to travel on said rails, and a housing assembly enclosing the conveyor assembly and having access means for removal of an article located in the space between two dividers that are adjacent to one another, said access means including a closure door on said housing assembly, said conveyor assembly being movable on said rails to a position wherein the space between said two dividers is in alignment with said closure door, a drive mechanism operatively connected to one of said sprockets for positioning said conveyor assembly so that the space between any selected pair of dividers is in alignment with said closure door, and an ejector mechanism mounted adjacent to said conveyor assembly for ejecting an article from the space between said two dividers, said drive mechanism including a manually rotatable control knob supported on a shaft mounted for rotatable and axial movement and projecting from said housing, and a gear train mounted between said shaft and said one sprocket so that said sprocket will rotate in response to turning of said control knob, said ejector mechanism including said control knob and its associated shaft, a gear rack on which an ejector shoe is operatively mounted for movement through said space, and a gear train between said rack and said shaft for advancing and retracting said rack in response to axial movement of said knob and its shaft, the ejector of said ejector mechanism being mounted on a linkage which is connected to one end of said rack, and each of said plate portions has a slot through which said ejector shoe can travel when aligned therewith perpendicular to the path of movement of said rack.

Claim 18

Article dispensing apparatus comprising two parallel endless guide rails, a plurality of sprockets supported adjacent to said rails, an endless flexible conveyor assembly for travel on said rails including a series of conveyor elements hingedly connected edge to edge by interlocking edge portions, each element defining a plate portion which has a divider projecting from one of its surfaces in a direction away from said rails and male and female edge portions projecting from the other surface in a direction toward said rails, said edge portions being interlocked with mating edge portions of next adjacent elements to provide the hinge connections, said hinge connections being adapted to travel on said rails and to mesh with said sprockets so that turning of one of said sprockets will cause said endless flexible conveyor assembly to travel on said rails, and a housing assembly enclosing the conveyor assembly and having access means for removal of an article located in the space between two dividers that are adjacent to one another, said access means including a closure door on said housing assembly, said conveyor assembly being movable on said rails to a position wherein the space between said two dividers is in alignment with said closure door, a drive mechanism operatively connected to one of said sprockets for positioning said conveyor assembly so that the space between any selected pair of dividers is in alignment with said closure door, and an ejector mechanism mounted adjacent to said conveyor assembly for ejecting an article from the space between said two dividers, said drive mechanism including a manually rotatable control knob supported on a shaft mounted for rotatable and axial movement and projecting from said housing, and a gear train mounted between said shaft and said one sprocket so that said sprocket will rotate in response to turning of said control knob, said ejector mechanism including said control knob and its associated shaft, a gear rack on which an ejector shoe is operatively mounted for movement through said space, and a gear train between said rack and said shaft for advancing and retracting said rack in response to axial movement of said knob and its shaft, the ejector of said ejector mechanism being mounted on a linkage which is connected to one end of said rack, and each of said plate portions has a slot through which said ejector shoe can travel when aligned therewith perpendicular to the path of movement of said rack.

Claim 19

Article dispensing apparatus that is defined in claim 16, wherein the access means of said housing assembly includes a closure door that is located on the front wall of the housing assembly forward of said dividers.

Claim 20

Article dispensing apparatus comprising two parallel endless guide rails, a plurality of sprockets supported adjacent to said rails, an endless flexible conveyor assembly for travel on said rails including a series of conveyor elements hingedly connected edge to edge by interlocking edge portions, each element defining a plate portion which has a divider projecting from one of its surfaces in a direction away from said rails and male and female edge portions projecting from the other surface in a direction toward said rails, said edge portions being interlocked with mating edge portions of next adjacent elements to provide the hinge connections, said hinge connections being adapted to travel on said rails and to mesh with said sprockets so that turning of one of said sprockets will cause said endless flexible conveyor assembly to travel on said rails, and a housing assembly enclosing the conveyor assembly and having access means for removal of an article located in the space between two dividers that are adjacent to one another, said conveyor assembly being movable on said rails to a position wherein the space between said two dividers is in alignment with said closure door, said rails having an elongated straight portion interrupted between its ends by an outwardly projecting portion over which said conveyor assembly is arranged to travel so that each pair of dividers adjacent to one another will spread apart while traveling over said projecting portion, and said access means being a closure door located in the wall of the housing assembly adjacent to said projecting portion.

Claim 21

Article dispensing apparatus comprising two parallel endless guide rails, a plurality of sprockets supported adjacent to said rails, an endless flexible conveyor assembly for travel on said rails including a series of conveyor elements hingedly connected edge to edge by interlocking edge portions, each element defining a plate portion which has a divider projecting from one of its surfaces in a direction away from said rails and male and female edge portions projecting from the other surface in a direction toward said rails, said edge portions being interlocked with mating edge portions of next adjacent elements to provide the hinge connections, said hinge connections being adapted to travel on said rails and to mesh with said sprockets so that turning of one of said sprockets will cause said endless flexible conveyor assembly to travel on said rails, and a housing assembly enclosing the conveyor assembly and having access means for removal of an article located in the space between two dividers that are adjacent to one another, said conveyor assembly being movable on said rails to a position wherein the space between said two dividers is in alignment with said closure door, said rails having an elongated straight portion interrupted between its ends by an outwardly projecting portion over which said conveyor assembly is arranged to travel so that each pair of dividers adjacent to one another will spread apart while traveling over said projecting portion, and said access means being a closure door located in the wall of the housing assembly adjacent to said projecting portion.