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The present invention relates to vending and, more particularly to a
drive-in, single-stop shopping facility and method for simultaneously
vending numerous retail products and fuel to a customer positioned at a
fixed purchase station such as in an automobile.
A drive-in facility for vending fuel to automobiles is well known in the
art. Such a facility is typically referred to as a "gas station" or
"service station". Typically, the facility is comprised of a lot, a
building, and fuel pumps located apart from the building. To use this
facility, a customer drives an automobile to a position adjacent to a fuel
pump and gives a fuel order to an attendant who delivers the fuel to the
tank inlet of the automobile. In recent years, some gas station operators
have provided customer self-service fuel purchasing, usually at lower
prices and employing an attendant only to collect money or to function as
a cashier. On occasion, gas stations also sell retail items to the gas
customers. For example, many gas station facilities may have candy or soft
drink vending machines in or near the station building where the customer
can on occasion get out of his car and purchase these items while waiting
for the fueling of the automobile. In recent years, some facilities sell
numerous retail products to customers who walk into the building during or
following the purchase of fuel where they pay for both fuel and other
products. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 3,095,020, shows that it is known to provide
an automatic dispensing device for fuel only and a pneumatic conveyor
means for payment between the customer and an attendant in the building.
While typical gas stations survive and still remain economic in certain
circumstances, they are at a competitive disadvantage with present-day
self-service stations, and neither of them are designed to simultaneously
vend both retail products and fuel to a customer seated in an automobile.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a single-stop
shopping facility and method for vending retail products and fuel
simultaneously to a customer on a means of conveyance such as an
automobile.
Other objects of the present invention are to provide the customer a time
saving, convenient and economical way to purchase retail products and fuel
by: reducing customer waiting time; allowing the customer to make such
purchases (including payment and receipt of products) from the privacy and
safety of a stationary vehicle, thus allowing the customer to initiate the
purchase decisions; reducing to one the total number of separate store
visits or stops within a store to purchase the same selection of products;
and reducing the unit selling cost of an equivalent selection of products.
Further objects of the present invention are to provide the operator of the
facility with a more economical and convenient way to vend retail products
and fuel by: allowing more intensive use of land and building space
resulting in greater sales volume and profit; increasing the operator's
capability of attracting and serving more customers per unit of time;
lowering the labor costs per customer; increasing the total sales per
customer visit; increasing the economic viability of a typical gas station
operator's business by limiting his dependence on an unstable product such
as fuel; and improving the security of the facility from embezzlement,
vandalism and robbery.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a kit of various
means for converting a gas station into a drive-in, single-stop shopping
facility for vending retail products and fuel to a customer positioned at
a fixed purchase station such as in an automobile.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to
those skilled in the art by description of the preferred embodiments of
the invention which follows.
According to one aspect of the present invention I provide a drive-in,
single-stop shopping facility having means for warehousing a multiplicity
of retail products and the various personnel involved in the vending of
the retail products to the drive-in customer. Further, the facility
includes dispensing means operable by an attendant for delivering fuel to
the vehicles that are driven into the facility. The facility still further
includes purchase selection means operable by a customer positioned on his
means of conveyance and payment means operable by such customer, which
purchase selection and payment means enable the customer to select from a
variety of fuel and retail products, to order and pay for the same, all at
one time and without requiring the customer to leave the comfort and
safety of the means of conveyance. The drive-in facility is provided with
means for directing traffic through the facility so that each customer
arrives adjacent to the dispensing means and the purchase selection means.
Furthermore, the facility includes means for passing a customer's retail
product order from the interior of the warehousing means to the outside
for delivery to the customer. All of the elements of the drive-in facility
are operatively associated and arranged so that the customer's fuel and
retail product purchases are accomplished simultaneously.
According to another aspect of the present invention, I provide a method
for vending retail products and fuel at a fixed purchase station to a
customer seated in a stationary vehicle. The method of vending includes
the steps of directing the customer to a fixed position adjacent the
dispensing means for delivering fuel to the customer, informing the
customer of a fuel and retail product selection, communicating the
customer's fuel purchase selections to an attendant who operates the fuel
dispensing means, delivering the fuel purchase selection to the customer,
communicating the customer's retail product purchase selection to a
cashier and order clerk located within means for warehousing the retail
products, communicating the total cost of the customer's fuel and retail
product order to the customer, conveying payment from the customer to the
cashier, conveying change and a receipt to the customer, passing the
customer's retail product order from within the warehousing means to the
outside thereof for delivery to the customer, and delivering the retail
product order to the customer, all of the method steps being carried out
in coordination so that the customer's fuel and retail product purchases
are accomplished simultaneously.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, I provide a kit to
convert an existing and/or obsolete gas station to a drive-in, single-stop
shopping facility for simultaneously vending retail products and fuel. The
kit comprises a purchase selection means, a payment means, and means for
passing the customer's retail product order from the inside of the station
building to the outside thereof for delivery to the customer's vehicle.
Also, the kit may optionally include means to convey the customer's retail
product order from said building to the customer's vehicle.
Reference is now made to the accompanying drawing wherein like reference
numerals and characters designate like parts and wherein:
FIG. 1 is a cut-away perspectibve view of a drive-in, single-stop facility
for vending retail products and fuel to a customer seated in a vehicle.
FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of a portion of FIG. 1. FIG. 2
depicts the operative arrengement of the fuel pump, purchase selection
means and payment means utilized according to one embodiment of the
present invention.
FIGS. 3 and 3A are front and side views, respectively, of a customer
console unit according to one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of the panel of the control console
according to one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a schematic front view of the panel of the order clerk's console
according to one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a generalized flow diagram depicting an embodiment of the method
of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view of a retail product turnstyle which is
mounted on the warehouse according to one embodiment of the present
invention.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a drive-in, single-stop shopping facility
according to a further embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a schematic plan view of a drive-in, single-stop shopping
facility according to a further embodiment of the present invention.
With particular reference to FIG. 1, 1 designates a drive-in, single-stop
shopping facility for simultaneously vending retail products and fuel to a
customer seated in an automobile according to one embodiment of the
present invention. The facility includes a building 2 for warehousing the
various retail products for sale at the facility and, as depicted by a
cut-away view, for providing working space for the various personnel who
operate the facility. Spaced at an appropriate distance from the warehouse
building are fuel pumps 3 for delivering fuel to the automobiles of
customers who drive into the facility. Adjacent each fuel pump are
customer console units 4 containing purchase selection means and payment
means operable by a customer seated in a stationary automobile. The
customer console units 4 and the fuel pumps 3 are mounted on a traffic
island 5 which is arranged so that the driver's side of the automobile is
adjacent a customer console unit 4 at the same time that it is adjacent to
the fuel pump 3. To insure automobile traffic flow in the desired
direction, island 5 may be shaped to form a curbing (not illustrated).
Also, the desired traffic flow may be facilitated by an indicator 6 in or
on the driveway for visually directing the customers into the proper
position for reaching the customer console units.
Housed within the building 2 are several functional areas to facilitate the
retail product vending function. Thus, there is an area designated as a
control area 7 wherein personnel may operate at a control console 8 to
receive payment from the customer and to provide change and receipts to
the customer for the total order of retail products and fuel. In addition,
the building has a warehouse area 9 wherein order clerk personnel may
operate at an order clerk console 10 to receive the desired retail product
order from the customer, collect the order from the supply of products P,
and bag the same. The personnel then may pass the order in a bag to the
outside of the building through a product turnstyle device 11, a portion
of which is shown in FIG. 7. Areas 7 and 9 may be arranged in relation to
the turnstyle 11, so that the various areas are operated at the highest
efficiency from a time and motion standpoint.
The drive-in, single-stop shopping facility depicted in FIG. 1 is smaller
in some respects to the typical gas or service station found around the
United States. Many are obsolete or abandoned. However, as described
herein, there are numerous novel changes and adaptations of such stations
that must be made before the station can function as a facility for
simultaneously vending retail products and fuel to the customer seated in
a stationary automobile. To facilitate conversion of existing obsolete or
abandoned gas stations, one aspect of the present invention involves a
novel conversion kit. This kit may comprise a customer console unit 4, a
control console 8, an order clerk console 10, and associated elements for
their installation as more particularly described hereinafter.
FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view along line 2--2 of FIG. 1. FIG. 2
depicts the operative association of the fuel pump 3, the customer console
unit 4 (both located on the traffic island 5), the control console 8
located in the control area of the building and a means 12 for conveying
payment between the customer console unit 4 and the control console 8. The
payment conveying means depicted in FIG. 2 is a pneumatic system which
carries the customer's money or credit card from the customer console unit
4 to the control console 8 where the cashier receives it and makes
appropriate operations to return receipt and change to the customer. The
change and receipt are transferred to the customer from control console 8
in a reverse manner by the pneumatic system. It should be understood that
there are many ways that the payment can be automatically conveyed between
the costomer and the cashier in addition to the conveying means 12
depicted. Likewise, there are many other alternative means by which the
receipt and change may be returned from the cashier to the customer seated
in the automobile. Thus, the pneumatic system shown is an illustrative
embodiment of one conveyer according to the present invention. In the case
of purchases of small retail products, the means for conveying payment,
etc. may also be used to convey a retail product from the warehouse to the
customer. Other conveyors may be used in the case of larger products.
FIG. 3 illustrates the details of the customer console unit 4 according to
one embodiment of the present invention. Console 4 consists of a display
means 13 for showing the customer a selection of retail products and fuel
for sale at the shopping facility. For example, display 13 may show the
various types of gasoline that may be ordered and the unit price of the
fuel. Furthermore, the display means 13 may list the various retail
products that are available at the facility and the unit prices of those
products. The product and fuel selection may also be presented orally to
the customer. It should be understood that the display 13 is immediately
adjacent the customer seated in the automobile and is basically at
eye-level to facilitate the customer's easy and convenient review of the
fuel and retail products available for sale. FIG. 2 shows the close
arrangement of a customer console 4 and the window of an autombile shown
in phantom lines. Located beneath the display 13 on the customer console 4
are means to facilitate the customer's communication of his order for
retail products and fuel to the personnel at the facility. Thus, there is
a fuel selector 14 and a product selector 15 which may take various
equivalent forms, either electrical or mechanical. In the embodiment
shown, fuel selector 14 involves buttons B.sub.1. . . B.sub.6 which are
appropriately labeled to allow the customer to select the type of fuel and
the quantity thereof either in gallons or in dollar amounts. Many other
means could be utilized to perform the same function, as for example a
series of dials could be operated manually by the customer or other types
of switches or electronics. The product selector 15 depicted in FIG. 3
also utilizes a series of push buttons C.sub.1 . . . C.sub.6 by which the
customer may designate the various retail products and the brand and
quantity thereof desired to be delivered to the automobile. Just as in the
case of the fuel selector 14, the product selector 15 may take various
forms including mechanical dial means or equivalent electronic selecting
means. Associated with the fuel and product selectors on the customer
console unit 4 is a microphone and speaker 16 by which the customer can
communicate with personnel located inside of the building. This allows the
customer to verbally communicate requests to the personnel located in the
building further enabling the customer to remain in the seat of the
stationary automobile during the entire purchase and payment for fuel and
retail products.
Also located on customer console unit 4 is a payment means 17 which is
operable by the customer to convey the payment to a cashier located in the
building in control area 7. A door on payment means 17 leads to the
pneumatic system described in connection with FIG. 2. The door is the
focal point for payment, change, and receipt to the customer located in
his stationary automobile. FIG. 3A illustrates a side view of the customer
console unit 4 and shows one embodiment whereby the fuel selection of the
customer is communicated to a ramp attendant whose job it is to fill the
fuel tank of the customer's automobile. Thus, in FIG. 3A, the customer
console unit 4 also has a ramp attendant light display means 18 that
indicates to the ramp attendant the type and amount of fuel selected by
the customer. Other types of equivalent display means may be used. One
advantage of the ramp attendant display means 18 is that the ramp
attendant may visually determine the exact fuel order of the customer
without approaching the customer and without obtaining oral instructions
as to the order. Thus, the ramp attendant need only approach the rear end
of the customer's car with the fuel nozzle and can deliver the customer's
order without any face-to-face involvement with the customer. An advantage
of this is that the customer may at a timing of his own choosing devote
his full attention to ordering his retail products after designating his
fuel selection on the customer console unit 4. This enables the process of
fueling and purchasing or retail products to proceed simultaneously by the
customer seated in one location. The ramp attendant display means 18also
may provide the attendant with information related to other automotivel
requirements so that he doesn't have to engage in conversion with the
customer.
FIG. 4 depicts the details of a control console 8 utilized in the control
center area 7 of the facility. In the embodiment shown, the control
console 8 has display means 19 for showing the cashier the total dollar
amount of the retail product and fuel order requested by the customer
seated in his automobile. The control console 8 for the cashier is similar
to the customer console unit 4 in that there is provided a
payment-receiving and transmitting means 20 and a microphone/speaker 21
which are operatively associated with the payment conveyor 12l and the
customer's microphone/speaker 16. It should be understood that, when the
facility has a multiplicity of fuel pumps and customer console units,
thereby being capable of serving a multiplicity of automobiles
simultaneously, a similar multiplicity of control consoles 8 are provided
for the cashier to operate in the control center area of the building. The
control console may also have means to inform the cashier that there is a
customer at a specific customer console unit. Also, there may be an
indicator for the stages of a particular customer transaction.
FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a console 10 provided for the order clerk
located in the warehouse area 9 of the building. The order clerk console
10 has light display means 21 for communicating the product, brand, and
quantity of a variety of retail products that the customer has ordered.
Thus, similar to the situation described above in connection with a
multiplicity of control consoles, there is a one-to-one relationship of
order clerk consoles 10 to the number of control consoles 8 and customer
console unities 4.
FIG. 6 is a generalized flow diagram for illustrating one embodiment of the
method according to the present inventin for simultaneously vending retail
products and fuel to a customer seated in an automobile. The initial step
in carrying out the method is directing of the customer to a position
adjacent the dispensing means for delivering fuel into the automobile. At
this position, the next stepl of the method is informing the customer of
the selection of retail products and fuel for sale at the facility. After
the customer has made a selection of fuel and/or retail products, the next
step of the method is the communicating of the fuel purchase selection to
an attendant who performs the subsequentl step of delivering the desired
fuel purchase to the customer's automobile. At approximately the same
time, the additional step of communicating the customer's retail product
purchase to a cashier and order clerk is performed. The cashier, who is
located in the building for warehousing retail products, may perform the
step of communicating the total cost of the customer's fuel and retail
product order to the customer preparatory to the payment phase of the
method. Upon being advised of the total payment required, the next stop of
the method is the conveying of a payment from the customer to the cashier,
followed by the step of conveying change and a receipt to the customer.
During the time period when the attendant is delivering fuel products to
the customer's automobile and the cashier is consummating the payment
steps with the customer, an order clerk is engaged in processing the
retail order purchases for the customer. Upon assembly and bagging of the
order, the clerk performs the step of passing the retail order from within
the warehouse building to the outside for delivery to the customer's
automobile. Depending uponthe personnel needs and volume of business being
satisfied by the method, either the attendant or other personnel deliver
the retail product order to the customer. In the above method it should be
apparent that various functions are being performed simultaneously to
enable the customer to make retail product and fuel purchases in the
minimal amount of time.
FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate an operative association of means according to an
alternative embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8, the fuel
dispensing means 3' is associated with the building 2' which provides a
warehouse for the facility. Also, the purchase console unit 4' is moved to
adjoin the building. Furthermore, the means 11' for passing the customer's
retail product order from within the building to the customer's automobile
is constructed and arranged so that the retail product order can be passed
directly to the customer in a stationary automobile. In the embodiment of
FIGS. 8 and 9, four separate segments of the drive-in, single-stop
shopping facility are arranged around the periphery of the building 2',
thus enabling four automobiles to be handled simultaneously. In this
alternative embodiment, four separate driveways are provided so that each
side of the facility can serve one line of cars without there being undue
congestion. To aid in this, a curbing 22 may be used to direct automobiles
in the proper approach to the drive-in, single-stop shopping facility. It
should be apparent that the number of purchase stations may be greatly
expanded depending upon the size and shape of the building.
The term "automobile", as used in the present application, is meant to
define any means of conveyance in a generic sense. Furthermore, the term
"retail products" as used in the present application is meant to define
any retail product or service since it should be apparent that services
such as dry cleaning, film processing, and banking services could also be
simultaneously provided to a customer seated in an automobile. Also, the
terms "attendant", "cashier" and "order clerk" are not meant to rule out
the possibility that one person might perform more than one function such
as, for example, when the cashier and order clerk are the same person.
The various aspects of the present invention has been described in detail
with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof, but it will be
understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the
spirit and scope of the invention as described here and above and as
defined in the appended claims.
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