US 4,929,818 A · Method and apparatus for vending a containerized product on multiple occasions following at least one refill of the container with the product

Abstract

A method of vending a containerized product using multiple fillings of the same container. The method includes the steps of placing machine-readable indicia on the container indicative of the price charged for both the container and the product contained therein, and at the time of placement of said indicia, or subsequently to such placement, including at a location adjacent said indicia, a stimulus-responsive machine-readable indicator capable of responding to a stimulus to undergo a change of state which is readable, conjunctively with said indicia, by a machine, to indicate a price to be charged solely for the product in the refilled container. After initial vending of the container and the product, the container is refilled with product at least once, while concurrently, during each such refilling, stimulating said indicator to cause it to undergo said change, whereby the customer buying a refill of product is charged, on the basis of the subsequent machine reading, only for such product as is placed in the container during the refilling thereof.

Claims16

Dependent claims

The method of vending a containerized product by selling multiple fillings of the same product in the same container, the container having machine-readable indicia thereon indicative of at least the price of the product, the method comprising:

placing adjacent the indicia at the time of, or subsequently to, placement of said indicia, a stimulus-responsive machine-readable indicator capable of responding to a stimulus to undergo a change of state readable by the machine capable of reading the indicia, and readable conjunctively with said indicia to indicate a price to be charged for the product alone in the refilled container;
then, after initial vending of the container and product, refilling the container with the product at least once while concurrently, during at least the initial refill, stimulating said indicator to cause it to respond to the stimulus by undergoing said change of state, whereby the customer buying a refill of product is charged, on the basis of the subsequent machine reading, only for the product, and not for the container which is refilled.

A method of vending a containerized product by selling multiple fillings of the same product in the same container, such container having a product bar code thereon indicative of the total price to be paid by the purchaser for the product and for such container, said method comprising:

placing on the container at least one machine-readable stimulus responsive bar capable of undergoing a stimulus induced change of state detectable and readable by a bar code reading machine, said changed state of said stimulus responsive bar being machine-readable to indicate, with the bar code, the price alone of the product filling the container;
providing a container filling station having a stimulus source thereon for developing a stimulus capable of inducing said change of state of said bar at a selected time when said container is being filled with product by said container filling system;
providing at said container filling station, means for preventing said stimulus source from developing said change inducing stimulus at any time when said container is being filled for the first time with product by said filling system;
allowing purchasers to fill product into said container at said filling station;
then
machine-reading the bar code on a container filled with product to determine the price which is to be paid as a result of the sale at that time of either the product alone or the product and the container as determined by the bar code reading.

3 more elements

A system for vending a product comprising:

a re-usable container for the product;
a label on said container having a machine-readable, radiant energy-changeable bar code thereon;
a filling station for dispensing the product into the container to fill the container, said filling station including:
housing means for receiving and holding the container in a predetermined position during the filling thereof, said filling station comprising, in addition to said housing means;
a source of radiant energy positioned to irradiate said bar code when said container is received by said housing means and held in said predetermined position for filling;
and
control means for controlling said source of radiant energy to energize said source of radiant energy when said container is being refilled to replace the product originally and first present in the container, and to prevent energization of said energy source when said container is being filled with the product for the first time;
and
a bar code reading machine which can distinguish between said bar code before it has been subjected to radiant energy from said radiant energy source, and said bar code after it has been subjected to impingement thereupon of radiant energy originating from said energy source, whereby said bar code reading machine facilitates an identification of the price of the product where the product is refilled into said container, and the price of the container and product together where the product is the original and first product contained in said container, thereby facilitating a differentiation in price charged to the purchaser on two different occasions of purchase.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Method and apparatus for vending a containerized product on multiple occasions following at least one refill of the container with the product

Life of this patent

Method and apparatus for vending a containerized product on multiple occasions following at least one refill of the container with the product

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims16