Automated store system

Claim 1

An automatic store system comprising a computer; means for supplying coded purchase orders to the input of said computer, said computer including means for storing coded purchase orders supplied thereto; a conveyor; a plurality of item dispensing stations located along said conveyor, each said station including at least one item release mechanism and the conveyor, in operation, carrying a plurality of containers sequentially past each one of said dispensing stations; and said computer including means for correlating specific ones of said containers with specific ones of said coded purchase orders; identification means at each dispensing station for identifying each said container as the container arrives at that dispensing station and for transmitting an identification signal corresponding to that container to the computer, and item release mechanisms located at each of the dispensing stations for controlling release of items stored at said stations, said computer further including means for receiving said identification signals and for producing, in response to receipt of a said identifIcation signal from a said station, a signal for causing actuation of at least one said item release mechanism at said dispensing station as said container passes thereby in accordance with whether the stored coded purchase order stored in said computer and associated with that container contains an item or items stored at that dispensing station.