JPS6441097A - Vending machine for card goods - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To improve the reliability of the sales operation and to improve the operating rate by detecting the thickness of an commodity, recovering the commodity to a reject box when the result of thickness judgement indicates improper thickness and conducting the sales operation again. CONSTITUTION: A commodity thickness detector 7 nip a commodity carried to a prescribed detection position via a bent mechanism 6 by rocking type detection levers, for example, and the tilt angle of the lever corresponding to the thickness of the commodity is sensed photoelectrically to judge the propriety of the commodity thickness. Based on a judgement signal of the thickness detector 7, the bent mechanism 6 delivers the commodity to a commodity extract port 3 or to a reject box 8 in which the commodity is recovered depending on a command of a sales control section 10. When the commodity is judged to be a defective commodity based on the result of judgement of the thickness detection, a commodity extract command is given again to the bent mechanism 6 and the sales operation is conducted. Thus, in the process of the sales operation, the detective commodity is rejected and a non-defective commodity is on sale without stopping the sales and then the operation rate of the automatic vending machine is improved.