Patents by Inventor Richard W. Schoenkopf

Richard W. Schoenkopf has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 4355733
    Abstract: A computer-controlled system is disclosed for dispensing selected packages from a vending machine. The system includes an ejector mechanism adapted to travel rectilinearly intermediate a pair of oppositely-mounted storage banks, each bank consisting of a plurality of vertically-oriented adjacent compartments in which distinct packages are stacked. The ejector mechanism includes a carriage mounted on a helical screw rotatably driven by a travel motor. An ejector lever pivotally connected to the carriage is mounted upon an actuator bar rotatably driven by a pivot motor for independently actuating one of a pair of overlapping ejector arms according to the directional rotation of the pivot motor. Each ejection arm is pivotally connected to the carriage and configured to discharge a single package from beneath a stack when actuated. A microprocessor controls the rotational drive of the motors and is provided feedback signals indicative of carriage location package availability by sensors attached to the carriage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 1980
    Date of Patent: October 26, 1982
    Inventors: Richard W. Schoenkopf, Donald H. Ross