BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an access panel, and the formation thereof, for a vending machine. The access panel is movable between open and closed positions and can provide access areas of vending machines including dispensed items and also security from theft of items stored in certain vending machines. The access panel includes an outer panel portion and an inner panel portion with advertising indicia between the panels and viewable by a consumer thru the outer panel.

Vending machines are well known and are available in several styles. Drink dispensers can dispense drinks in cups or prefilled containers, e.g., canned soda. Many drink dispensers are specific to the products of one company and the entire front panel is oftentimes devoted to advertising the products of that company. Vending machines may also dispense prepackaged ingestible products, such as candy bars, chips, chewing gum, cookies, crackers, etc. Such vending machine typically have a front door with a large window for viewing of the products available inside for dispensing. A product selector is also provided to select the desired product by matching the product and a product selection button. The selected product is then fed from a magazine storing the product to a product retrieval area located at the bottom of the vending machine. The product mix is generally large and is frequently changed in such machines depending on product sales, availability, profit margin, etc. Such machines have little if any room for effectively advertising products because of the need for the large product viewing window. Because of the changing nature of the products in the machine, dedicated advertising cannot be provided without changing major components of the vending machine. Typically, it is desirable to have as much of the machine as possible with advertising indicia to attract consumer attention or to provide advertising at eye level to also attract consumer attention to the advertising to encourage the sale of one brand over another brand. With vending machines having large product viewing windows and many different products inside, effective space for changeable advertising has not been considered as being available.

Decals or the like could be applied to such vending machines. Although decals can be changed from time to time to change advertiser, they are easily damaged and can be removed or changed without authorization. Advertising could be applied, for example by printing or painting, to the exterior of the vending machine. It too can be easily damaged and it would be difficult and expensive to change. The size and location of such advertising indicia though is limited without obscuring the view of the products for sale in window type vending machines.

There is thus a need for vending machines that can advertise products in a way that will attract consumer attention to the product yet have advertising that is not easily damaged or removed without authorization and can be changed without major expense or modification of the vending machine.

The present invention provides advertising indicia that will be seen by a large number of machine users to encourage buying a particular brand or product. The indicia can be easily changed without major expense, is resistant to damage and cannot be easily removed or changed without authority.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Among the several objects and features of the present invention may be noted the provision of a vending machine that can be used to display changeable advertising; the provision of such a vending machine that includes advertising that can be easily and inexpensively changed; the provision of such a vending machine that includes advertising that is damage resistant; the provision of such a vending machine that includes advertising at a location that is easily seen by consumers but does not obscure viewing of the products in the vending machine; the provision of a vending machine that has the advertising indicia as part of the product access door (access panel); and the provision of such a door that has the advertising behind the outer surface to protect the advertising from wear, abuse and unauthorized access; and the provision of such a door that can be easily made and changed.

An aspect of the present invention is the provision of a vending machine for the dispensing of packaged products such as drinks, confections and food. The vending machine has a movable access panel providing access to an internal area of the machine by a person, the access panel being located such that a machine user is likely to view the access panel during operation of the machine. The vending machine includes an enclosure securely enclosing product to be selectively purchased by a consumer. A plurality of feed mechanisms are each operable to selectively dispense product to a product access area where the consumer can access the dispensed product for subsequent use. A product selection device is associated with the feed mechanism and usable by the consumer to select the product desired for dispensing. An access panel is movable between closed and open positions adjacent to the product access area, the panel having a portion visible in the closed position to a consumer. The panel has advertising indicia behind an outer disposed surface of the visible portion of the panel and viewable therethrough by a consumer when the panel is in its closed position.

Another aspect of the invention is the provisions of a method of forming an access panel for a vending machine. The method includes forming an outer panel of material that allows viewing therethrough, said outer panel having an outer surface and an inner surface and a contour. Applying advertising indicia to at least a portion of the inner surface. Forming an inner panel and securing it in overlying relation to the advertising indicia thereby to have said advertising indicia between the inner and outer panels.

Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1

is a perspective of a vending machine as viewed from the front of the vending machine;

FIG. 2

is an enlarged perspective of a movable panel that provides access to dispensed product and helps provide security from product theft;

FIG. 3

is a section of the access panel of

FIG. 2

taken along the line

3

—

3

of

FIG. 2

; and

FIG. 4

is a perspective of an alternate embodiment of the invention showing a different form of vending machine and access panel with the access panel shown in a partially open position and with a portion broken away to show details thereof.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The reference numeral

11

designates generally a vending machine, FIG.

1

. The machine includes an enclosure

13

comprising two side walls

15

,

17

, back wall

19

, bottom wall

21

, door (front wall)

23

and top wall

25

. The door

23

is hinged at

27

for selective movement between open and closed positions to provide access to the interior for replenishing or changing the products inside. The door

23

of the illustrated embodiment of vending machine

11

comprises a front face of the machine. The door

23

can be locked in the closed position by a lock

31

. The enclosure

13

can be supported by a plurality of legs

33

which may be adjustable for leveling of the machine.

A plurality of product feeders

37

are mounted inside the enclosure

13

and are operable to selectively store and feed packaged product

41

. Many types of product feeders

37

are known and a rotatable helical screw type is shown as illustrative. Rotation of a feeder

37

will advance a packaged product

41

forward to a position where it will fall from the feeder down to a product access or retrieval area

43

behind an access panel (door)

47

.

The vending machine

11

is provided with a product selector

51

on the door

23

. The selector

51

can be in the form of a keypad with pushbuttons

53

operably connected to an electronic controller (not shown) as are known in the art. Generally, each feeder

37

has a product code such as alpha and/or numeric characters positioned thereby. By pressing the button(s)

53

with the appropriate coding, the respective feeder

37

will be actuated for dispensing the product therefrom. The vending machine

11

is also provided with a money deposit

57

. Prior to selecting the desired product

41

, money is deposited and change is provided in coin return

59

if necessary after the product selection is made.

The door

23

is provided with a window

61

that allows for viewing of the products

41

in the enclosure

13

as well as the product selection indicia. The window is positioned adjacent the upper portion of the door

23

extending downwardly therefrom providing consumer convenience for viewing the available products. The window

61

includes a transparent window pane

63

to permit product viewing and to secure the contents in the enclosure

13

from theft, tampering, etc. Such window panes can be made of tempered glass or break resistant polymeric material such as polycarbonate. Windows for the above described vending machines are typically large and occupy a substantial portion of the surface area of the door

23

leaving little space and/or good location for product advertising.

Vending machines of the above described type are well known as exemplified by Model 167 from Crane National Vendors of Bridgeton, Mo.

The above described vending machine

11

is adapted for dispensing shelf stable packaged ingestible food items such as chips, candy bars, chewing gum, crackers, etc. Alternately, the vending machine could also contain and dispense personal products such as pharmaceuticals, e.g., aspirin, personal hygiene products, novelties, etc. The vending machine may also be constructed to dispense refrigerated products such as beverages like soda, milk and other products such as sandwiches, fruit, etc. The vending machine of the present invention has particular applicability to vending branded products and particularly competing brands of products.

The vending machine

11

is provided with the access panel

47

movable by a consumer between open and closed positions and is shown closed in the Figures. In the past, the principal function of the access panel

47

was security, i.e., to prevent unauthorized access to the interior of the enclosure

13

and theft of product. In hot beverage dispensers, an access panel can also prevent splatter of hot liquid. The access panel

47

is pivotally mounted to the door

23

for movement between the open and closed positions and is biased to the closed position, e.g. by its own weight and the weight of additional security doors inside (not shown). The pivotal mount can be by pivot pins

77

secured to the access panel via screws

78

thru a plate

80

to which the pivot pins are attached. A shoulder

79

can also be provided to limit pivoting movement to the closed position by engaging an inner surface of the door

23

.

The access panel

47

, as best seen in

FIG. 3

, includes a front panel portion

81

which permits viewing of advertising indicia

85

therethrough and can be either transparent or translucent so long as the indicia is discernible therethrough. The front panel

81

provides a viewing area

84

for the advertising indicia

85

which in a preferred embodiment is permanently applied to a back side (inside)

87

of the front panel. The viewing area

84

is a major portion of the exposed portion of the access panel

47

. The layer of advertising indicia

85

is best seen in

FIG. 3

where its thickness is enlarged and out of proportion, for clarity. The indicia

85

is applied in any suitable manner such as by pad printing or silk screen printing. Printing is preferably done on a relatively flat surface but can be done on a curved surface. A back panel

89

is secured to the front panel

81

encapsulating the indicia between the front and back panels. During formation of the access panel

47

, the indicia

85

may fuse with or otherwise become part of the front and/or back panel and may no longer be a distinct layer as is illustrated. The back panel

89

may be opaque, translucent or transparent and can be provided with one or more strengthening ribs

90

. A light

91

(

FIG. 3

) may be mounted in the enclosure

13

behind the access panel

47

for illumination of the access panel and the advertising indicia

85

. A low heat output light would be preferred so as to not unduly heat the interior of the vending machine and the products therein. A back cover

92

may be secured as with fasteners

94

to the access panel

47

. If the access panel is to be illuminated, the cover

92

would need to be translucent or transparent.

The front panel

81

may be formed to final shape before or after the application of the advertising indicia

85

. If the front panel

81

is formed to shape after application of the indicia, the shapes of the indicia elements such as lettering or the like may be adjusted to compensate for the reshaping thereof during the forming to final shape of the front panel

81

. The front panel

81

may start as a relatively flat panel and pressure formed, e.g., by vacuum forming, thermoforming or the like. When the advertising indicia

85

is applied to the back surface

87

of the viewing area

84

before forming the front panel to final shape, the majority of material of the front panel

81

is preferably kept above its melting temperature after application of the indicia. Some melting may occur on the back surface

87

when the molten material of the back panel

89

comes into contact therewith in one method of manufacture described below. A preferred material for the front panel is Lexan® polycarbonate. The front panel has thickness in the range of about 0.020 thru about 0.040 inches and preferably about 0.030 inches. The thickness may vary some across the access panel

47

if thermoformed because of material stretching. It is desirable to have the front panel

81

thin so as to not adversely affect the color or clarity of the advertising indicia

85

. It is also desirable to have the access panel thick enough to be structurally sound against wear and tear that such panels encounter from use. The back panel

89

also protects the advertising indicia from damage during handling of the access panel

47

during such activities as machine assembly and maintenance. The use of the multiple layers will provide these attributes.

The back panel

89

has an interior surface

93

(relative to the access panel

47

) that is generally the same contour as the back surface

87

(also an inside surface). The back panel

89

is secured to the front panel

81

with the advertising positioned therebetween. In a preferred embodiment, the back panel

89

is bonded to the front panel, e.g., by fusion. The formed front panel

81

may be inserted into the female side of a mold and a male side of the mold would be closed on the female side. Polymeric material, at temperature above its melting temperature, e.g., a polycarbonate, may then be injected into the mold cavity to fill the void on the back side

87

of the front panel

81

to thereby form the back panel

89

providing a monolithic structure. The injected molten material (viscous liquid) will fuse or bond to the back surface

87

even with the ink used to print the advertising indicia

85

already applied as an intervening layer. The back panel

89

has thickness in the range of about 0.080 thru about 0.120 inches and preferably about 0.100 inches. The front and back panels are an integral structure after bonding and encapsulate the advertising indicia therebetween making the indicia a permanent part or the access panel.

When the access panel

47

is mounted to the door

23

the outer surface of the viewing area

84

is at an angle A, when closed, in the range of about 0° thru about 45° and preferably in the range of about 0° thru about 15° relative to vertical (0° being vertical). If the outer surface is frosted or does not have a highly reflective surface, angle A may be within and/or outside this range. The access panel

47

is a relatively small portion of the door (front)

23

of the vending machine, i.e., less than about 25% and preferably less than about 10% of area of the door

23

.

The access panel

47

can be made in the following manner. The front panel

81

can be made from a relatively flat sheet and formed to its final shape such as by thermoforming. Alternately, the outer panel

81

may be molded directly in its final form such as by injection molding. The advertising indicia

85

may be applied to the precursor flat sheet and the front panel

81

formed to its final shape thereafter. Alternately, the advertising may be applied to the front panel

81

after it is in its final shape. Application of the advertising indicia may be by any suitable printing method as described above. A suitable ink for the advertising indicia is UV stabilized high melting point thermoplastic resin based ink. The back panel

89

is then secured to the front panel

81

. One method is as described above where the back panel is molded in place and is bonded to the front panel

81

. Alternately, the back panel

89

may be formed to final shape and then secured to the front panel

81

. Any suitable securement may be used, such as gluing or mechanical locking arrangements. The hinge pins

77

may then be secured to the access panel such as with mechanical fasteners as described above. The completed access panel is then mounted on the vending machine for movement between open and closed positions.

FIG. 4

shows an alternate embodiment of the access panel and is adapted for use with a vending machine

105

that uses a drawer type access panel

107

. Such access panels can be used, e.g., with a coffee machine to provide access to clean the machine and, like the access panel

47

, is located in proximity to a product retrieval area

109

for improving consumer attention to the advertising indicia. The access panel

107

is movably mounted to the vending machine

105

and can move linearly in and out in a generally horizontal plane or could be hinged for pivotal movement. The access panel

107

has advertising indicia

111

behind an outer surface

113

of a front panel

117

for viewing by a consumer during operation of the vending machine

105

. Like the access panel

47

, the access panel

107

has a back panel

121

secured to the front panel

117

encapsulating the advertising indicia in between (the thickness of the panels being exaggerated for clarity.

The access panels

47

,

107

provide a means to advertise products on a vending machine without obscuring viewing of products for sale. The advertising is also tamper and wear resistant. The access panels

47

,

107

can also be constructed to allow for easy changing of the advertising but only by authorized personnel. Even though the advertising indicia occupies a relatively minor portion of the front face of the vending machine it is located in a position where a consumer will readily view it while not being in the way of their viewing product for sale.

When introducing elements of the present invention or the preferred embodiment(s) thereof, the articles “a”, “an”, “the” and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising”, “including” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous results attained.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.