초록 ▼

A liquid and drink mix vending machine can vend both potable water and as an additional purchase option drink mixes (e.g., flavored drink mixes). The vending machine can include a liquid vending system and a drink mix vending system. The liquid vending system can vend different amounts of water, whi

A liquid and drink mix vending machine can vend both potable water and as an additional purchase option drink mixes (e.g., flavored drink mixes). The vending machine can include a liquid vending system and a drink mix vending system. The liquid vending system can vend different amounts of water, which can be delivered to a container provided by a user. The drink mix vending system can vend a variety of drink mixes, including drink mixes of different concentrations for a given quantity of water.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A water and drink mix vending machine, comprising: a vending machine body with at least one opening configured to receive a container from a user for the delivery of water into the container;a first actuator actuatable to select the dispensing of an amount of water from the vending machine body,

1. A water and drink mix vending machine, comprising: a vending machine body with at least one opening configured to receive a container from a user for the delivery of water into the container;a first actuator actuatable to select the dispensing of an amount of water from the vending machine body, wherein the amount is selected from a plurality of user selectable amounts;a second actuator actuatable by a user to select the dispensing of a user selected drink mix package selected from a plurality of individual sealed drink mix packages of a plurality of user selectable predetermined concentrations from the vending machine body, each of the plurality of user selectable predetermined concentrations corresponding to different amounts of water;a payment interface configured to receive payment for the water and drink mix;a liquid dispensing mechanism comprising a discharge nozzle that is fluidly connectable to a municipal water supply via one or more filters that filter out undesirable particles or impurities from the water, the discharge nozzle being alignable with the container and configured to dispense the water into the container positioned in the opening upon receipt of payment for the water; anda drink mix dispensing mechanism comprisingone or more product trays configured to support the plurality of individually sealed drink mix packages, each of the plurality of individually sealed drink mix packages containing a drink mix in a predetermined amount,a drop chute extending from a proximal end to a distal end, the proximal end of the chute in communication with the product tray and sized to allow the user selected drink mix package to pass therethrough,and a delivery bin that is attached to the distal end of the drop chute, the delivery bin sized to receive the user selected drink mix package and to allow the user to retrieve the user selected drink mix package, the delivery bin being separate from the opening that receives the container,wherein the drink mix dispensing mechanism is configured to dispense the user selected drink mix package separately from the water upon receipt of payment for the user selected drink mix package, wherein the drink mix is dispensed in an unmixed state relative to the water, and wherein the user selected drink mix package has a concentration that corresponds to at least an amount of water equal to the user selected amount of water, the drink mix package being automatically dispensed upon selection by the user. 2. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein the first actuator is actuatable to select the dispensing of a user specified amount of water. 3. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein the first and second actuators comprise push buttons. 4. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein the payment interface receives payment of a designated purchase price for the water and/or drink mix via coin, paper currency, debit card, credit card, and/or prepaid card. 5. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein the payment interface is built into the vending machine body. 6. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein the payment interface is configured to receive payment of a designated purchase price for the water and the drink mix via a single payment transaction. 7. The vending machine of claim 1, wherein the payment interface is configured to receive payment of a designated purchase price for the water via a first payment transaction and to receive payment of a designated purchase price for the drink mix via a second separate payment transaction. 8. A water and drink mix vending machine, comprising: a vending machine body with at least one opening configured to receive a container from a user for delivery of water into the container;a user interface configured to receive instructions from a user to dispense an amount of water selected from a plurality of user selectable amounts of water and a user selected individually sealed drink mix package of a user selected concentration selected from a plurality of individually sealed drink mix packages of a plurality of user selectable predetermined concentrations, wherein the concentrations correspond to different amounts of water;a processor configured to receive a signal corresponding to said instructions from said user and to associate said signal with a corresponding actuation command, the processor further configured to output said actuation command upon receipt of a signal confirming payment of a designated purchase price for the water and drink mix; anda dispenser comprisinga water dispensing mechanism having a discharge nozzle that is fluidly connectable to a municipal water supply via one or more filters that filter out undesirable particles or impurities from the water, the discharge nozzle being alignable with the container and configured to dispense water into the container positioned in the opening upon receipt of payment for the water; anda drink mix dispensing mechanism comprisingone or more product trays configured to support the plurality of individually sealed drink mix packages, each of the packages containing a drink mix in a predetermined amount,a drop chute extending from a proximal end to a distal end, the proximal end of the chute in communication with the one or more product trays and sized to allow the user selected drink mix package to pass therethrough, anda delivery bin that is attached to the distal end of the drop chute, the delivery bin sized to receive the user selected drink mix package and to allow a user to retrieve the user selected drink mix package, the delivery bin being separate from the opening that receives the container,wherein the drink mix dispensing mechanism is configured to dispense the user selected drink mix package separately from the water upon receipt of payment for the drink mix package, and wherein the dispenser is configured to receive said actuation command from the processor and to dispense the user selected amount of water and the user selected drink mix package, wherein the user selected drink mix package is dispensed in an unmixed state relative to the water, and wherein the user selected drink mix package has a concentration that corresponds to at most an amount of water equal to the user selected amount of water, the drink mix package being automatically dispensed upon selection by the user. 9. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein the drink mix dispensing mechanism is built into the vending machine body. 10. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein the drink mix comprises a dry mix, a gel and/or a liquid concentrate. 11. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein the drink mix comprises an isotonic sport mix, a lemonade mix, an iced tea mix, a vitamin enhanced mix and/or a fruit flavored mix. 12. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein the drink mix package is a canister, a bag, a stick, a pouch or a packet. 13. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein the drink mix package is a user resealable container. 14. The vending machine of claim 8, wherein the concentration of the drink mix is configured to match a quantity of water dispensed by the dispenser. 15. The vending machine of claim 8, further comprising a payment interface configured to receive coins, paper currency, debit cards, credit cards, and/or prepaid cards for the payment of the water or drink mix. 16. The vending machine of claim 15, wherein the payment interface is built into the vending machine body. 17. The vending machine of claim 8, further comprising a memory coupled with the processor, the memory configured to store processor instructions and/or purchase price information for the water and the drink mix. 18. A method for dispensing water and a drink mix from a vending machine, comprising: receiving payment of a designated purchase price corresponding to a user selected quantity of water selected from a plurality of user selectable amounts of water and a user selected individually sealed drink mix package of a user selected concentration selected from a plurality of individually sealed drink mix packages of a plurality of user selectable predetermined concentrations, wherein the concentrations correspond to different amounts of water;receiving a request from a user for the vending of said user selected quantity of water and said user selected drink mix package from the vending machine;communicating a liquid dispensing actuation signal to a liquid dispensing system of the vending machine for dispensing said water into a container removably disposed in the vending machine, said liquid dispensing system having a discharge nozzle that is fluidly connectable to a municipal water supply via one or more filters that filter out undesirable particles or impurities from the water, the discharge nozzle being alignable with the container positioned in an opening of the vending machine and configured to dispense water into the container positioned in the opening upon receipt of payment for the water; andcommunicating a drink mix package dispensing actuation signal to a drink mix package dispensing system of the vending machine comprisingone or more product trays configured to support the plurality of individually sealed drink mix packages, each of the individually sealed drink mix packages containing a drink mix in a predetermined amount,a drop chute extending from a proximal end to a distal end, the proximal end of the chute in communication with the one or more product trays and sized to allow the user selected drink mix package to pass therethrough, anda delivery bin that is attached to the distal end of the drop chute, the delivery bin sized to receive the user selected drink mix package and to allow a user to retrieve the user selected drink mix package, the delivery bin being separate from and in communication with the opening that receives the container,wherein the drink mix dispensing mechanism is configured to dispense the user selected drink mix package separately from the dispensed user selected amount of water upon receipt of payment for the user selected drink mix package, wherein the user selected drink mix package is dispensed in an unmixed state relative to the water, and wherein the user selected drink mix package is dispensed separate from the container, and wherein the user selected drink mix package has a concentration that corresponds to at least an amount of water equal to the user selected amount of water, the drink mix package being automatically dispensed upon selection by the user. 19. The method of claim 18, wherein dispensing said water includes dispensing a user specified amount of water. 20. The method of claim 18, wherein the water and the drink mix are dispensed separately for subsequent mixing by the user. 21. The method of claim 18, wherein the designated purchase price of the drink mix varies with a concentration of the drink mix relative to the dispensed quantity of water from the vending machine. 22. The method of claim 18, wherein the designated purchase price of the water is at least partly based on an amount of water requested by the user. 23. The method of claim 18, wherein the dispensed drink mix is selected at least partly based on an amount of water requested by the user. 24. The method of claim 18, wherein receiving payment of the designated purchase price for the water and/or drink mix comprises receiving payment via coin, paper currency, debit card, credit card, and/or prepaid card. 25. The method of claim 18, wherein payment of the designated purchase price for the water and the requested drink mix are received via a single payment transaction. 26. The method of claim 18, wherein payment of the designated purchase price for the water and the requested drink mix are received via separate payment transactions.