Jefferson Graham USA TODAY OSAKA, Japan – It's hard to even go one block down the street without running into a vending machine.  They are literally on every block, at least in major cities like this one, and what they sell is way different from our variety packs of chips, cookies, candy bars and sodas.  On a recent visit to the island nation, we saw mostly liquids: hot coffees and teas, soups, fruit juices, water, cold beer and even some mixed cocktails. We didn't get to the busiest city, Tokyo, where reports of such vending machine oddities as diapers, women's underwear, eggs, puppies and ..read more

Developed by German firm Ex Oriente Lux, the Gold To Go vending machine raises the 24-karat bar. This opulent gizmo, which debuted in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, at the Emirates Palace Hotel, dispenses bullion in one-, five-, and 10-gram increments. The souped-up ATM also sells gold coins from Australia, Canada, and South Africa. A similar machine was also installed at a mall in Florida. There are French fry vending machines in countries from the Netherlands to Australia. French fry lovers, rejoice — around the world, there are vending machines that spit out hot, crisp fries. A Chinese ..read more

About Carvana Founded in 2012 and based in Phoenix, Carvana’s (NYSE: CVNA) mission is to change the way people buy cars. By removing the traditional dealership infrastructure and replacing it with technology and exceptional customer service, Carvana offers consumers an intuitive and convenient online car buying and financing platform. Carvana.com enables consumers to quickly and easily shop more than 15,000 vehicles, finance, trade-in or sell their current vehicle to Carvana, sign contracts, and schedule as-soon-as-next-day delivery or pickup at one of Carvana’s patented, automated Car Vending ..read more

The Vending Machine Business is a lucrative business for beginners who would want to start at low cost, low maintenance, and low requirements. Vending machines have become popular as it has become a good source of convenience at times when wholesale is not possible and at times when instant needs arise. Let’s read on to explore the advantages, disadvantages and the requirements of the business. The Advantages of a Vending Machine Business There are a lot of advantages when going into a vending machine business. You don’t need extensive business experience. It is a very good business for starte ..read more

There are a lot of vending machines for sale, however, how you choose which machine to buy from which company is the million dollar question. Which Vending Machine? There are a lot of types of vending machines out for sale, a lot of vending solutions being offered, and a lot of customizable services out in the market. Below is a list of types of vending machines for sale, which can give you an idea on what type of machine you want to buy with the type of business plan you have. Water Vending Machines Soda Vending Machines Cold Beverage Vending Machines Coffee Vending Machines Hot Beverage Vend ..read more

To me, the question isn’t how do they do it, but “how do they do it so damned fast?” The vending and checkout machines you’re talking about are only dealing with one or a few bills at a time, and have (relatively) all the time in the world to do it. Three to five seconds before you get your receipt or change is no big deal, but did you know that the bill counters at banks (and the like) are actually detecting counterfeits at the same time they are counting not only bills, but distinguishing values all at the same time, and those babies FLY. The run though 20 bills/sec. and many can distinguish ..read more

The amount of untreated waste has increased at an alarming rate creating significant demand for various recycling solutions such as reverse vending machines. The reverse vending machine market can be segmented based on product type, machine use, capacity, end-use, and regions. In terms of product type, the market can be divided into metal recycling, plastic bottle recycling, and multifunction recycling. Based on machine use, the reverse vending machine market can be classified into commercial, industrial, and residential. In terms of capacity, the market can be categorized into less than 200 ..read more

The secret to starting a vending machine business is to find a good location area and fielding enough machines. On average most people in this business are content with the income of ten units working for their money. This seems to be the ticket to financial freedom for lots of people who want to supplement their existing income/job. Despite all the challenges, cold calling to find a location does work and is essentially a numbers game. The more phone calls you make the higher the probability to find a premium location. Also partnering with a commercial real estate person would be beneficial ..read more

There are 20 types of vending machines available in the market worldwide. It is not necessary that all types of vending machines should be available in all countries worldwide. But, 20 is a sum-total. Here goes the list of 20 types of vending machines – Crab vending machines in China and that’s too LIVE. Caviar vending machines – Los Angeles. Live lettuce vending machines in Japan. Pizza vending machine anywhere in Europe. Again Japan with banana vending machine. That’s my favourite, mashed-potato vending machine in Singapore. Australia is always cool with its food culture – French fries vendi ..read more

Most current non-specialized vending machines use a version of a protocol called MDB (multi-drop bus). This is the current standard for vending machines as is supported by the vending industry organization.  The main card (Vending machine controller) is usually built using microcontroller and software written in ‘C’. The additional peripherals like Note Acceptors and Cash Less Controllers again use micro controllers and software in ‘C’ Interfacing between Vending Machine Controller and the peripherals is via Serial Port and the MDB Protocols. It is more important, though, that the use of such ..read more