초록 ▼

An automated system for preparing and delivering postmix beverages in response to one or more drink orders being entered from a remote point of sale unit or a local keypad and including: a postmix beverage preparation assembly for dispensing ice and a selected postmix beverage into a cup; an oblong

An automated system for preparing and delivering postmix beverages in response to one or more drink orders being entered from a remote point of sale unit or a local keypad and including: a postmix beverage preparation assembly for dispensing ice and a selected postmix beverage into a cup; an oblong carousel type conveyor assembly including a plurality of upwardly open cup holders which are driven by a motor driven belt so as to pass beneath a cup dispensing station, an ice dispensing station, a beverage dispensing station, and a plurality of pick-up stations; a cup storage and dispenser assembly including a bi-directionally rotatable turret upon which is mounted a plurality of different sized cup supply tubes for holding a respective stack of beverage cups; and a pneumatic vertically driven cup gripper/extractor mechanism having a pair of pneumatically operated gripper arms which operate to remove a cup from a selected supply tube on the turret and placing the extracted cup into an empty cup holder which is then transported past the dispensing stations and then to a pick-up station on the conveyor for manual removal by an attendant.

대표청구항 ▼

[ What is claimed is:] [13.] A cup storage and dispensing assembly for an automated beverage dispensing system, comprising:a rotatable turret having a plurality of cup supply tubes of a predetermined size mounted thereon for providing a mix of different sized cups at a cup extration station,a drive

[ What is claimed is:] [13.] A cup storage and dispensing assembly for an automated beverage dispensing system, comprising:a rotatable turret having a plurality of cup supply tubes of a predetermined size mounted thereon for providing a mix of different sized cups at a cup extration station,a drive motor for rotating the turret,and control means for controlling the drive motor so as to rotate the turret in either a clockwise or counter clockwise direction for minimizing the time for a cup supply tube containing a desired sized cup to be positioned at the cup extraction station, the improvement comprising: the rotatable turret including a central mounting plate including an arrangement of supply tube size attachment elements having a specific pattern for each size of supply tube to be mounted thereon and wherein each size of supply tube includes complementary attachment elements for attachment to said control mounting plate at a predefined location around the mounting plate.