APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING HEATED COMESTIBLES

DISTRIBUTEUR DE PRODUITS ALIMENTAIRES RECHAUFFES

English Abstract

Apparatus for automatic heating of comestibles such as popcorn comprises a
magazine with compartments for housing the comestibles, for example in
packets, means to rotate the magazine for presentation of a chosen compartment
to the rear of the microwave oven, means to urge the lowermost packet or
comestible through a flap of the oven, automatic heating of the oven for a
predetermined time and temperature, after which the bottom of the oven is
hinged open for the comestible or packet to fall out.

French Abstract

L'invention concerne un appareil conçu pour réchauffer automatiquement des produits alimentaires, tels que du maïs à éclater, comprenant un chargeur pourvu de compartiments destiné au stockage des produits alimentaires, par exemple, en paquets; un moyen permettant de faire tourner le chargeur de manière à exposer un compartiment choisi à l'arrière d'un four à micro-ondes; un moyen conçu pour pousser le paquet ou le produit alimentaire placé le plus bas, à travers un volet du four, et commander le réchauffage automatique du four pendant une durée prédéterminée et à une température prédéterminée, après quoi, le fond du four est ouvert au moyen de charnières, afin que le paquet ou le produit alimentaire puisse tomber.

Claims

4
CLAIMS:
1. Apparatus for dispensing heated comestibles characterised in that it
includes a
magazine adapted to be moved into any of a number of positions in relation to
a heating
station, the magazine being adapted to store comestibles and to present them
to the heating
station, means to urge the comestibles into the heating station, means to heat
the transferred
comestibles at a predetermined temperature and time, and means to recover the
heated
comestible.
2. The apparatus according to claim 1 characterised in that it includes a coin-
operated
arrangement for at least one of the succession of actions.
3. The apparatus according to either of the above claims characterised in that
the heating
station is a microwave oven with access for the comestibles from the magazine.
4. The apparatus according to any of the above claims characterised in that
the magazine
is vertical and rotatable about the vertical.
5. The apparatus according to any of the above claims characterised in that
the magazine
contains a plurality of compartments for packets of comestible/s.
6. The apparatus according to any of the above claims characterised in that
the transfer
of a packet from the magazine to the oven is achieved by means of a plunger
which is
operated by mechanical means or by a pneumatic slave cylinder, the plunger
urging the
bottom most packet from the chosen compartment to enter the oven.

5
7. The apparatus according to claim 6 characterised in that a flap is provided
at the rear
of the oven to open to receive the packet and then close.
8. The apparatus according to claim 7 characterised in that the oven is then
activated to
heat the packet at a predetermined temperature and the floor of the oven is
hinged from the
packet, when heated to fall on to a platform or the like.
9. The apparatus according to claim 8 characterised in that the floor of the
oven opens
and closes by means of a pneumatic slave cylinder.

Description

CA 02427855 2003-05-02
WO 02/13628 PCT/ZA01/00118
1
APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING HEATED COMESTIBLES
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to apparatus for dispensing comestibles such as pop
corn, pies,
sausage rolls, pizzas and many others.
BACKGROUND ART
Popcorn is conventionally made in a heated container which is usually
transparent so
that the operator can observe the heating or popping process. Pop corn is
removed from the
container by a scoop into a packet. If a variety of flavours are required, it
will be necessary to
provide a corresponding number of containers.
It is necessary for the operator or operators to be reasonably skilled.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a self service apparatus
and thereby
avoid the necessity for a skilled operator. A further object of the invention
is to provide a
number of different flavours or other attributes of a comestibles so that the
purchaser may
make a choice.
A yet further object of the invention is the provision of an unattended
apparatus.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent
as this
specification proceeds.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention apparatus for dispensing heated comestibles
includes a
magazine adapted to be moved into any of a number of positions in relation to
a heating
station, the magazine being adapted to store comestibles and to present them
to the heating
station, means to urge the comestibles into the heating station, means to heat
the transferred

CA 02427855 2003-05-02
WO 02/13628 PCT/ZA01/00118
2
comestibles at a predetermined temperature and time, and means to recover the
heated
comestible.
In a preferred form of the invention the apparatus also includes a coin-
operated
arrangement for at least one of the succession of actions.
The heating station is preferably a microwave oven with access for the
comestibles
from the magazine. The customer should not have access to the magazine.
The magazine is preferably vertical and rotatable about the vertical. It may
contain a
plurality of compartments for packets of the comestibles , preferably more
than four arranged
radially n the magazine.
The transfer of a packet from the magazine to the oven is preferably achieved
by
means of a plunger which is operated by mechanical means or by a pneumatic
slave cylinder,
the plunger urging the bottom most packet from the chosen compartment to enter
the oven.
A flap may be provided at the rear of the oven to open to receive the packet
and then close.
The oven is then activated to heat the packet at a predetermined temperature
and the
floor of the oven may be hinged and the packet, when heated, may fall on to a
platform or the
like by virtue of the tipped bottom. This tipping action may also be achieved
mechanically or
by the same pneumatic slave cylinder.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
An embodiment of the invention is described below with reference to the
accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of apparatus according to the invention with
certain
walls omitted for illustrative purposes;
Figure 2 is a similar view showing the compartments filled with packets of
comestibles, such as corn;

CA 02427855 2003-05-02
WO 02/13628 PCT/ZA01/00118
3
Figure 3 is a detailed view of the top zone of the apparatus illustrating the
rotation of
the magazine;
Figure 4 is a isometric detailed view of the mechanisms for the plunger and
oven
floor opening;
Figure 5 is an similar view to Figure 4 but from a slightly different angle;
Figure 6 is a side view of the lower zone of the apparatus in its first
position;
Figure 7 is a similar view with the apparatus in its second position;
and
Figure 8 is a similar view with the apparatus in its third position.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
In the drawings, a magazine 10 is mounted for rotation about a vertical centre
by
means of a motor 12. The magazine has four compartments 14 which accommodate
packets
of comestibles.
The magazine is rotated until the chosen compartment is located at the rear of
a
microwave oven 16. This corresponds with the first position of the apparatus.
The oven has a
rear flap 18 which opens when a plunger 20 urges the bottom packet 22 of the
compartment
therethrough whence it falls on to the hinged floor 26 of the oven. This
corresponds with the
second position of the apparatus The plunger is actuated by pneumatic slave
cylinder 30
through a chain 32. A second slave cylinder 34 controls the opening and
closing of the
hinged floor 36 of the oven
Once a packet is in position, the rear flap closes and the oven circuit
switches on for a
predetermined time at a predetermined temperature. The floor 26 then opens,
corresponding
with the third position of the apparatus and dropping the heated packet for
retrieval by the
customer.
A coin operated mechanism 38 is provided to control the operation of the
sequence of
events and this conveniently begins after the choice of compartment by the
customer. The
latter then inserts a coin and presses a button which starts the sequence.

Representative Drawing