What is Vending Machines?

A** "Vending Machine**" is an automated machine that dispenses items such as snacks, beverages, and tickets to consumers after cash, a credit card, or other forms of payment are inserted into the machine or payment is otherwise made. The first modern vending machines were developed in England in the early 1880s and dispensed postcards. Vending machines exist in many countries and, in more recent times, specialized vending machines that provide less common products compared to traditional vending machine items have been created.

History

The earliest known reference to a vending machine is in the work of Hero of Alexandria, an engineer and mathematician in first-century Roman Egypt. His machine accepted a coin and then dispensed wine or holy water. When the coin was deposited, it fell upon a pan attached to a lever. The lever opened a valve which let some water flow out. The pan continued to tilt with the weight of the coin until it fell off, at which point a counterweight snapped the lever up and turned off the valve.

Coin-operated machines that dispensed tobacco were being operated as early as 1615 in the taverns of England. The machines were portable and made of brass.An English bookseller, Richard Carlile, devised a newspaper dispensing machine for the dissemination of banned works in 1822. Simon Denham was awarded British Patent no. 706 for his stamp dispensing machine in 1867, the first fully automatic vending machine.

Mechanism

Internal communication in vending machines is typically based on the MDB standard, supported by National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) and European Vending & Coffee Service Association (EVA).

After payment has been tendered, a product may become available by:

the machine releasing it, so that it falls in an open compartment at the bottom, or into a cup, either released first, or put in by the customer, or
the unlocking of a door, drawer, or turning of a knob.

Some products need to be prepared to become available. For example, tickets are printed or magnetized on the spot, and coffee is freshly concocted. One of the most common forms of vending machine, the snack machine, often uses a metal coil which when ordered rotates to release the product.

The main example of a vending machine giving access to all merchandise after paying for one item is a newspaper vending machine (also called vending box) found mainly in the U.S. and Canada. It contains a pile of identical newspapers. After a sale the door automatically returns to a locked position. A customer could open the box and take all of the newspapers or, for the benefit of other customers, leave all of the newspapers outside of the box, slowly return the door to an unlatched position, or block the door from fully closing, each of which are frequently discouraged, sometimes by a security clamp. The success of such machines is predicated on the assumption that the customer will be honest (hence the nickname "honor box"), and need only one copy.

Vending machines Popularity in Japan .

Vending machines are a common sight in Japan, and are considerably popular. There are more than 5.5 million machines installed throughout the nation, and Japan holds the highest ratio of machines per person for any country with one machine for every twenty-three people.

Regarding the development of advanced technology, Japanese vending machines provide more services by selling different kinds of products. Food, smartphones, SIM cards, and even clothing can be found in these machines. Apart from the most popular drink vending machines, Japanese vending machines also offer certain products depending on the demand and need for different locations. For example, products like sanitary napkins and tampons can be found in vending machines in female restrooms, while machines selling condoms are usually located in male restrooms.

Convenience, low cost of running, security, and stability seem to be the main reasons for Japan to invest in vending machines.

A patent for an "automatic goods vending machine" was filed in 1888 in Japan; early surviving vending machines from around the 1900s include one that dispenses stamps and postcards, and one that dispenses sake. Confectionery vending machines became widespread in the 1920s, and juice vending machines became popular in the late 1950s and 1960s.By 2000, the number of vending machines in Japan had grown to 5.6 million. However, from around the early 2000s, the number of vending machines in Japan decreased slightly to 5.03 million, and the sales amount also decreased gradually, in part due to the rise of digital technology and market competition. In recent years, attention has been drawn towards older machines, such as the collection of vintage vending machines installed at the Sagamihara Vending Machine Park.

In 2024, it was reported that a sizeable portion of the vending machines in Japan would require updates to their acceptors in order to accept the new designs for the Japanese yen banknotes that were due to be released that year.