Commodity rack for automatic vending machines

Claim 2

For use in automatic vending machines, a commodity rack including: first and second side walls; front and rear walls joined to said first and second side walls to form the outer shell of said commodity rack; said front wall having an inlet port in the upper portion thereof and an outlet port in the lower portion thereof; a pair of vertical guide rails each comprising a series of concave rail segments, each rail segment having a pair of edges and being supported by at least one side wall and being vertically displaced with respect to each other within each guide rail and with respect to corresponding but oppositely directed concave rail segments in the other guide rail but having the respective pairs of edges on each of said pair of vertical guide rails spaced, horizontally, from said pairs of edges on said oppositely directed concave rail segments and being positioned on the opposite side of a vertical plane passing centrally through said pair of vertical guide rails, from said pairs of edges on said oppositely directed concave rail segments, thereby defining a vertically disposed, open passageway coupling said inlet port and said outlet port; and, a plurality of auxiliary rail segments each of which is pivotably supported below a respective one of said concave rail segments by way of at least one of said side walls and each of which contains biasing means which cause each auxiliary rail segment, in the unloaded state, to protrude into said passageway with an upwardly inclined attitude; each of said auxiliary rail segments being pivotably supported along its upper edge from at least one of said first and second side walls and being pivotable to a downwardly inclined attitude in response to a weight being applied thereto.

Claim 3

For use in automatic vending machines, a commodity rack including: first and second side walls; front and rear walls joined to said first and second side walls to form the outer shell of said commodity rack; said front wall having an inlet port in the upper portion thereof and an outlet port in the lower portion thereof; a pair of vertical guide rails each comprising a series of concave rail segments, each rail segment having a pair of edges and being supported by at least one side wall and being vertically displaced with respect to each other within each guide rail and with respect to corresponding but oppositely directed concave rail segments in the other guide rail but having the respective pairs of edges on each of said pair of vertical guide rails spaced, horizontally, from said pairs of edges on said oppositely directed concave rail segments and being positioned on the opposite side of a vertical plane passing centrally through said pair of vertical guide rails, from said pairs of edges on said oppositely directed concave rail segments, thereby defining a vertically disposed, open passageway coupling said inlet port and said outlet port; a plurality of auxiliary rail segments each of which is pivotably supported below a respective one of said concave rail segments by way of at least one of said side walls and each of which contains biasing means which cause each auxiliary rail segment, in the unloaded state, to protrude into said passageway with an upwardly inclined attitude; each of said auxiliary rail segments being pivotably supported along its upper edge from at least one of said first and second side walls and being pivotable to a downwardly inclined attitude in response to a weight being applied thereto; and, a damping flap movably positioned in each of said concave rail segments.

Claim 4

For use in automatic vending machines, a commodity rack including: first and second side walls; front and rear walls joined to said first and second side walls to form the outer shell of said commodity rack; said front wall having an inlet port in the upper portion thereof and an outlet port in the lower portion thereof; a pair of vertical guide rails each comprising a series of concave rail segments, each rail segment having a pair of edges and being supported by at least one side wall and being vertically displaced with respect to each other within each guide rail and with respect to corresponding but oppositely directed concave rail segments in the other guide rail but having the respective pairs of edges on each of said pair of vertical guide rails spaced, horizontally, from said pairs of edges on said oppositely directed concave rail segments and being positioned on the opposite side of a vertical plane passing centrally through said pair of vertical guide rails, from said pairs of edges on said oppositely directed concave rail segments, thereby defining a vertically disposed, open passageway coupling said inlet port and said outlet port; a plurality of auxiliary rail segments each of which is pivotably supported below a respective one of said concave rail segments by way of at least one of said side walls and each of which contains biasing means which cause each auxiliary rail segment, in the unloaded state, to protrude into said passageway with an upwardly inclined attitude; each of said auxiliary rail segments being pivotably supported along its upper edge from at least one of said first and second side walls and being pivotable to a downwardly inclined attitude in response to a weight being applied thereto; and, a damping flap movably positioned in each of said concave rail segments.