US 10,874,268 B2 · Systems, methods and apparatus for dispensing sheets of material

Abstract

A sheet dispensing apparatus for dispensing sheets from a sheet material card having a plurality of sheets. The sheet dispensing apparatus includes a sensor, a motor including a motor shaft, a supply roller operatively connected to the motor, an indicator, and a controller operatively connected to the proximity sensor and to the indicator. The controller includes a processor and a memory configured to store program instructions. The processor is configured to execute the stored program instructions to: detect a first presence of an object with the sensor; move the supply roller into contact with one sheet of the plurality of sheets in response to the detecting the first presence of the object; rotate the motor shaft a first time to move the supply roller a predetermined angle of rotation to dispense the one sheet; and stop the motor shaft when the predetermined angle of rotation has been completed.

Claims17

Dependent claims

A method for dispensing with a sheet dispenser a sheet from a plurality of sheets, the method comprising:

detecting a plurality of object sensing events with an object sensor;
for each object sensing event, moving a supply roller into contact with a sheet of the plurality of sheets and rotating a motor shaft to dispense the sheet with the supply roller;
for each rotation of the motor shaft, updating a value stored in a counter to indicate the number of sheets being dispensed from the plurality of sheets;
comparing the stored value to a predetermined value;
and
illuminating a light to emit a first pattern when the stored number reaches the predetermined value, wherein the light illumination provides an indication that the sheet dispenser requires additional sheets for dispensing;
wherein for each object sensing event, not rotating the motor shaft in response to a second object sensing event when a first object sensing event is followed by the second object sensing event within a predetermined amount of time.

4 more elements

A sheet dispensing apparatus including a wall configured to support a sheet material card having a plurality sheets, the apparatus comprising:

a sensor;
a motor including a motor shaft;
a supply roller operatively connected to the motor;
an indicator;
and
a controller operatively connected to the sensor and to the indicator, the controller including a processor and a memory configured to store program instructions and the processor is configured to execute the stored program instructions to:
detect a first presence of an object with the sensor;
move the supply roller into contact with one sheet of the plurality of sheets in response to the detecting the first presence of the object;
rotate the motor shaft a first time to move the supply roller a predetermined angle of rotation to dispense the one sheet;
and
stop the motor shaft when the predetermined angle of rotation has been completed;
wherein the processor is further configured to execute the stored program instruction to:
detect a second presence of an object with the sensor;
and
not rotate the motor shaft a second time if the detect the second presence occurs within a predetermined period of time of the detect the first presence of an object;
and
further comprising a switch operatively connected to the processor and wherein the processor is further configured to execute the stored program instruction to:
stop the motor shaft in response to contact with the switch during rotation of the motor shaft.

15 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Systems, methods and apparatus for dispensing sheets of material

Life of this patent

Systems, methods and apparatus for dispensing sheets of material

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims17