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US 7,364,050 B2Granted
Mobile vending
AssigneeGravity, Incorporated
InventorTony M. Guard
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The mobile vending apparatus can be transported to a desired venue such as a festival grounds, sports park, or the like, and is quickly and easily rendered operational for use by persons standing at ground level. The apparatus can include individual automatic vending units having lowered controls so as to be reachable from ground level, or the apparatus can include devices for lowering conventional vending machines to the ground or another surface.
Claims23
A mobile vending apparatus, comprising:
- a plurality of automatic product vending units, each of the automatic product vending units including a front surface having a user interface region including an array of user operable controls including at least one manually operable product selector control, a payment receiving control, and a product dispenser outlet through which a product is automatically dispensed when a predetermined payment is received and a product is selected, the user interface region being located within about a lower one-half of a vertical extent of the front surface of the unit;
- and
- a mobile support structure supporting the plurality of automatic product vending units disposed in rows on opposite sides of the mobile support structure with the front surfaces of the vending units in at least a generally upstanding orientation and wherein the rows of the vending units form sides of a refrigerated enclosure, the mobile support structure being supported by at least two wheels for movement over ground and paved surfaces with the vending units spaced thereabove, at least one of the wheels being located adjacent to the vending units and including a lowermost peripheral portion, the user interface region of the vending units being contained in an area extending from at least about 10 inches above the lowermost peripheral portion to about 80 inches thereabove.
A mobile vending apparatus, comprising:
- a mobile support structure supporting a refrigerated enclosure having at least one upstanding exterior wall including at least one automatic product vending unit thereon, the product vending unit including user operable controls including at least one manually operable product selector control, a payment receiving control for receiving a payment, and a product dispenser outlet through which a product is automatically dispensed when a predetermined payment is received and a product is selected, the set of user operable controls being located within about a lower one-half of a vertical extent of the exterior wall, and the mobile support structure including at least two wheels of at least 12 inches overall diameter each for movement over ground and paved surfaces such that when the mobile structure is parked with the wheels supported on a ground or paved surface the user operable controls will be contained within an area extending from about 10 inches above a surface on which one of the wheels closest to one of the vending units is located, to about 80 inches thereabove, and wherein the refrigerated enclosure includes a door openable for accessing an interior of the enclosure, and each of the vending units include product holding elements accessible from the interior of the enclosure for stocking the units with products.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.