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US 4,060,111 AGranted
Vending and dispensing bin
AssigneePerino B. Wingfield
InventorHoward L. Burks
Life of this patent
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AssigneePerino B. Wingfield
InventorHoward L. Burks
Estimating the term…
This invention provides vending and dispensing apparatus comprising a housing having a bin section and a dispensing section separated by a belt type conveyor. The conveyor embodies means which in the movement thereof serve not only to influence elements of a conglomerate mass of material stored in the bin section to separate one from the other but to carry elements of the separated material to the dispensing section for their discharge in a relatively individualized form. The invention also features a mobile dispensing unit which may be be backed up to receive the discharge from the dispensing section of the above described housing and moved to deliver measured amounts of the material to a plurality of remote stations. The mobile unit embodies a storage type receiving chamber having a movable bottom wall structure including a pocket which accommodates a measured amount of the material delivered to the storage chamber. Below the bottom wall structure of said chamber is a chute means which, on an appropriate movement of the bottom wall structure, is adapted to receive the charge contained in said pocket and to direct the same to a removable receptacle placed in a bottom chamber of the mobile unit.
Vending and dispensing apparatus comprising a housing including a bin portion and a dispensing portion, said bin portion accommodating material to be dispensed as separated individual elements and existing in said bin in a manner form in which individual elements tend to adhere to one another, material delivery means in association with said bin portion operable to deliver said material from said bin portion to said dispensing portion and embodying means for applying twisting forces within said bin portion to influence elements of said mass of material therein to separate one from the other within said bin portion and to move said material including said separated elements to said dispensing portion for discharge from said housing.
A system for the sanitary dispensing of ice cubes or like fragments in a hospital or like environment, including a central source station providing a housing enclosing a bin section and a discharge section in a side by side relation, said discharge section including a chute discharging to the exterior of the housing through an opening therein, selectively energizable means for carrying ice fragments from a supply in said bin section to said discharge section for discharge from said source station by way of said chute, a dispensing unit providing an enclosed storage chamber for ice fragments and selectively operable means for discharging quantities of ice fragments from said chamber, said dispensing unit being a mobile carrier readily movable from place to place where the use of ice fragments may be required, and said dispensing unit being structured to achieve in a position adjacent to said central source station a direct communication of said storage chamber therein with said discharge chute for filling and refilling said storage chamber, a wall portion of said dispensing unit defining said storage chamber providing an opening placed in communication with the housing opening by an appropriate positioning of said dispensing unit relative to said central source housing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.