Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to apparatus for dispensing a metered quantity of a material into receptacles on a repetitive basis, particularly though not exclusively powdered beverage ingredients into vending machine cups. Background of the Invention

Existing dispensing apparatus is bulky, having linear cup movement lines. It is therefore of restricted interest to organisations wishing to process relatively small numbers of cups. The Invention

The object of the present invention is to provide a compact dispensing apparatus.

Dispensing apparatus according to the invention comprises:- a turntable horizontally mounted in the apparatus for stepwise rotation about a substantially vertical axis, the turntable being adapted to receive receptacles at a purality of reception positions on the turntable and transport the receptacles around a rotary path; a receptacle reception station on the rotary path at which receptacles are delivered onto the turntable; at least one dispensing station on the rotary path downstream of the receptacle reception station at which, or each of which, a respective material is dispensed into one ^"" of the receptacles ^" transported from the receptacle reception station by the turntable; and a receptacle ejection station on the rotary path downstream of the dispensing station(s) at which receptacles, having dispensed material and transported from the dispensing station(s) by the turntable, are removed therefrom. Preferably, the dispensing apparatus includes a further

station at which a lid is periodically applied to a receptacle transported thereto. Whilst it is envisaged that each receptacle may have a lid applied, in the preferred embodiment every twenty-fourth or twenty-fifth receptacle has a lid applied.

The receptacle reception station preferably includes a separator for separating a bottom receptacle from a stack of empty receptacles and allowing successive bottom receptacles to fall onto the turntable at each rotational step of-- the turntable and a chute for guiding the stack of empty receptacles to be separated. Conveniently, the receptacle reception station also includes a plurality of the chutes for guiding empty receptacles, means for indexing the chutes successively into register with the separator, means for detecting absense of any receptacle in the chute presently in register with the separator for actuation of the indexing means. Preferably, the plurality of the chutes are equally radially mounted about a substantially vertical axis on an index plate for rotational indexing about the vertical axis. in the preferred embodiment, the separator includes a toothed annular drive ring and a plurality of equally radially arranged separator rotary elements, each having a bottom ledge, a separator wedge, a top surface and an integral drive pinion in mesh with the drive ring, the drive ring being stepwise rotatable for rotation of the elements from a holding position in which the bottom ledge extends into the fall path of the receptacles, to a separating position in which the wedge engages between the bottom receptacle held on the bottom ledge and the next re eptacle to separate them and allow the former to drop past the bottom ledge which is absent beneath an active portion of the wedge, to lift position in which the latter receptacle is lifted onto the top surface, to the holding position at which the top surface has terminated to allow the receptacle to drop onto the bottom ledge.

Normally the material to be dispensed will be a particulate, generally a powder. The or each dispensing station preferably comprises an Archimaedes screw powder dispenser for dispensing a predetermined quantity of the material to be dispensed at the station. Conveniently, a funnel is provided at each dispensing station to direct the material from the dispenser to the receptacle carried by the turntable to the station. Some of the material may drift as _, a dust ^' away from the receptacle or arrive after the turntable has moved on. In either case the material may be wasted. To avoid this, the receptacles are preferably held by the turntable with their top edges beneath the top surface of the turntable, and a cover or scraper plate is provided to overlie and mate with the top surface, the funnel terminating at its lower end below the top of the cover plate.

The dispensing apparatus is preferably actuated by a single motor via clutches to each of the following (where provided) :- turntable, reception station separator, reception station index plate, dispenser(s) , lid station separator, and lift member.

Conveniently the clutches - and associated brakes where required to avoid over-run - are under the control of a computer. The processing unit can be programmed so as to enable selection of the quantity of material to be dispensed. Preferably the processing unit is programmed to operate the or each dispenser only when a receptacle is expected at the respective dispensing station, as opposed to on each rotational step of the turntable. The Drawings To help understanding of the invention a specific

embodiment thereof will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Figure 1 is a perspective view of dispensing apparatus according to the invention; Figure 2 is a front view of the apparatus of Figure 1, partly broken away;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the apparatus;

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional plan view on the line IV-IV in Figure 2; Figure 5 is a diagrammatic underneath plan view of the apparatus;

Figure 6 is a scrap cross-sectional view of a supported cup;

Figure 7 is a broken away perspective view of a cup separator of the apparatus; and

Figure 8 is.a scrap side view of a clutch of a variant of the apparatus of Figure 1. The Preferred Embodiment —

The apparatus shown in the drawings is of square plan, having a steel frame with legs 1. The frame supports a lower deck 2 beneath which a drive motor 3 and drive arrangements described below are provided. Spaced above the lower deck 2 is an upper deck 4. A transparent cover 5 is provided over the upper deck 4. Central to the apparatus is a turntable or index plate 6. The apparatus shown in the drawings is for dispensing powdered beverage ingredients - for instance coffee, "creamer", sugar - into plastic cups. The index plate 6 has eight three-quarters circular cut-outs 7 spaced evenly around its periphery. Each cut-out is stepped 8 to hold the cups by their rim beads 9, whereby the top of the r±m bead of each supported cup is just beneath the top surface 10 of the index plate 6. This enables the top surface 10 to be in sliding contact with a scraper plate 11 - described in more detail below. The index plate is fixed horizontally on a

vertically extending index shaft 12 jσurnalled on the lower deck 2. The scraper plate 11 is supported on studs 13 extending down from the upper deck 4. It should be noted that the scraper plate 11 is fixed and extends at three dispensing stations 14,15,16 only.

Mounted on the upper deck 4 are three powder dispensers .17,18,19, supplied by Sankey Vending Ltd of Bilston, West Midlands, UK. These are conventional items and they will ,not be described in detail. They each comprise an upright container across the bottom of which extends an Archimaedes screw for dispensing from an outlet 20,21,22. The screw is driven from an angle drive 23,24,25 via a disconnectable coupling. The dispensers are interchangeable. Their outlets 20,21,22 are arranged at 45° spacings around the index shaft 12 which does not in fact extend as far up as the upper deck 4. From the outlets respective funnels 26,27,28 extend via openings, through the upper deck, and mate with further openings in the scraper plate 11. The funnels terminate above the index plate and do not touch it. T e angle drives 23,24,25 for the three dispensers are driven via shafts 29,30,31 extending up through both the lower and upper decks 2,4.

Also mounted on the upper deck 4, respectively at 45° up- and down-stream of the anti-clockwise direction of stepwise rotation of the index plate are separator units 32,33 for cups C and lids L. Each unit comprises five circularly arranged, vertically journalled, separator elements 101, on the top surface of which a cup or lid rim is normally supported. The elements are arranged with an integral drive pinion 102 in mesh with an annular gear 103 so that gaps 104 in top surfaces 105 are brought beneath the rim synchronously around the rim allowing the stack of cups or lids to drop down onto a lower ledge 106 of limited circumferential extent. Circumferentially extending around the element is a wedge 107 which - on further rotation of

the element - is moved between the rim of the bottom cup or lid and the next one up in the stack. The wedge 107 is advanced to a position in which it forces the lower cup's rim down from the now terminated lower ledge 106 and lifts the next cup's rim onto the top surface 105. The annular gear is driven by a pinion (not shown) at the top of the shaft 34. Rotation of the annular gear 103 sufficient, to cause one complete rotation of the separator elements 101 and will drop one cup onto the index plate at the cup- reception station incorporating the separator 32 or one lid onto a cup held by the index plate at the lid reception station incorporating the separator 33. The separators 32,33 are driven by shafts 34,35 extending up through the decks 2,4. The lids L are manually stacked in a chute 36 depending from the cover 5, whereby lids L placed in the chute form a stack above the separator 33.

A carousel 37 is provided for the cups C. This comprises six chutes 38 extending up through the cover 5 from a small disc 39 having openings in register with the chutes. Cups C stacked in the chutes fall through and rest on a ledge 40 held above the upper deck 4. The ledge does not extend above the separator 32. The disc 39 is driven via a gear box having an output shaft 41 to which the disc is fixed. An input shaft 42 extends up through the decks 2,4. Rotation of the disc brings each chute 38 successively in register with the separator 32 for delivery of its stack of cups C to the separator 32.

90° down-stream of the separator 33 is a cup lift station at which a cup lift rod 43 and cap 44 extending up from the lower deck 2 is liftable for lifting a cup from the index plate. A lift opening 45 is provided in the tipper index plate and has three resilient fingers 46 arranged around its periphery. A lifted cup is pushed past the fingers which spring back under its rim to hold it when the lift rod is withdrawn. A guide tube 46', similar to the

chute 36, extends down from the cover 5 to receive the cups as they form a stack up from the fingers 46. Beneath the lower deck is a crank 47 linked to the rod 43 and oscillated by a rotationally moved pin 48 engaging in a slot 49 in the crank. The pin 48 is provided eccentrically of an output shaft 50 of an angle drive 51 mounted beneath the lower deck 2 .

The drive motor 3 is connected via a double-sided, toothed drive belt 52 to electro-mechanical clutches 53,54,55,56,57,58,59,60 provided at the lower ends of the shafts 12,29,30,31,34,35,42,61 and on an input shaft 61 to the angle drive 51. The clutches are arranged beneath the lower deck 2, with optical sensors mounted close to at least some of them to detect rotation of their shafts. Figure 5 show the run of the belt 52. The clutches 53,59 for the index plate 6 and the lift rod 43 incorporate brakes to prevent overrun. The clutches and brakes are under control of a computer 62.

In use the apparatus operates as follows:- on switching on of the apparatus, the cup drop clutch 57 is operated by the computer 62 and switched off when an optical sensor 63 detects that shaft 34, at a 1:1 ratio with the separator elements 101, has made one rotation. Thus one cup C is dropped at the cup reception station onto the index plate 6. A further optical sensor 64 detects correct dropping of the cup and if so the clutch 53 is engaged for rotation of the index plate. The clutch is released and the corresponding brake applied when another optical sensor 65 in conjunction with a slotted index disc 66 detects 45 rotation of the index plate. Should the desired rotation not occur within a specified time, the clutch and brake are released until reset to enable clearance of any possible jam.

The first cup arrives at the first dispensing station and the clutch 54 is operated for the desired length of time

to dispense the desired amount of the first powder.

The next cup is dropped and the plate 6 indexed again. The second material is dispensed as required into the first cup by operation of clutch 55 and the first material into the second cup.

The third cup is dropped and the plate is indexed again. Now the clutch 56 is operated for the first time dispensing the third material into the first cup. The second and first materials are dispensed into the second and third cups. The fourth cup is dropped and the first cup reaches the lid station. Clutch 58 is operated to drop a lid onto the first cup in similar manner to that of cup dropping with an optical sensor 67 detecting one rotation of the shaft 35.

The fifth and sixth cups are dropped and the first cup arrives at the cup ejection station. The clutch 59 is operated until one entire rotation of the output shaft 50 for the lift rod 43 is detected by optical sensor 68. Then the associated brake is applied. Should the detection be delayed, both clutch and brake are released to allow manual clearance until resetting.

The sequence is now repeated with a cup drop every second i.e. the cycle time is one second within which each of the mentioned operations occurs. Lid dropping will normally occur only every 24 or 25 cycles, to provide stacks of 24 or 25 cups with a lid on the top cup.

Should a cup not be retained by the fingers 46 and drop back to be carried on to the index plate, optical sensor 64 detects it prior to cup drop from separator 32 i.e. before clutch 57 is operated. This is detected as a fault and displayed on a display panel 69, along with other faults should they occur.

An optical sensor 70 is provided above the cup separator 32. If no cup is detected, the clutch 60 is operated to rotate the carousel 37 and allow more cups to drop from the next chute 38 to be brought into register above the

separator. If no fresh cups are detected within a specified time an error signal is generated and a "carousel empty" signal is displayed.

The display enables various detected faults to be displayed by the computer. Also the count of cups having dispensed ingredients can be displayed. On the end of a run . being reached - for instance because all the cups have been used from the carousel - the first and second dispensers are _s successively not operated after the last cup has passed them.

The quantity of material to be dispensed can be set with touch switches incorporated in the display 69. The setting varies the length of time for which clutches 54,55,56 are operated. mains switch 71 and an emergency "off" switch 72 are provided adjacent the display 69.

Operation of the scraper plate 11 should be noted. Not all the material may have finished falling in the respective funnels 26,27,28 when the index plate moves on. Should material fall on the extent of the index plate between cutouts 7, this will be scraped into the next following cup at the dispensing station in question.

Ingredients can be fed to the dispensers 17,18,19 via apertures in the cover 5 from non-shown hoppers. Variant

Referring now to Figure 8, there is shown an alternative clutch arrangement, in which the cup drop clutch 57 and sensor 63 are replaced by a single rotation clutch 157, of the type sold by Warner Electric Corporation of Ohio and having a solenoid-actuated, wrap spring. When the clutch's solenoid 201 is energised, the spring (not shown) is released and rotates with the input drive until being automatically retensioned after one rotation. With such clutches, the cup drop separator, the lid drop separator, the cup lift crank, the index plate, and the carousel can be

rotated by the desired amount without need for detection of the rotation. In the case of the index plate and the carousel (not shown), reduction drives can be arranged to provide 1/8 and 1/6 rotation respectively, or the respective clutches can be adapted to provide the required rotation. The belt 152 continuously drives a pulley 202 mounted on a shaft 134 of the separator. The clutch is mounted beneath the lower deck 102 and its stationary parts are held by a peg 203. The bottom end 204 of the shaft 134 is jourhalled in a bearing 205 fixed with respect to the lower deck.

The invention is not intended to be restricted to the details of the above described embodiment. Receptacles other than cups may be filled. The filled receptacles may not be stacked where another removal mechanism is provided above the ejection station. Each receptacle can be lidded. For .this a lid carousel may be provided. Alternatively lids may not be provided at all if not required. More or less dispensers may be provided. The index plate may have outer and inner rings of receptacle cutouts if the other means are duplicated on the outer and inner receptacle tracks thus provided.