Vending Machines: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

A vending machine is that machine which gives out products when money is inserted in it by a customer. A currency detector identifies whether the money deposited is sufficient to buy the product desired by the customer.

The Hero of Alexandria invented the first vending machine in the first century. Apparently, vending machines have been around for a long time but it is only recently that they have been recognized as a potential source of earning substantial profits.

You can spot vending machines practically everywhere but these are commonly found in hotels, amusement parks, restrooms, office lunchrooms and busy stations.

Usually, vending machines are categorized according to the products filled in them. These may be as follows:

Candy vending
These are mechanical machines which dispense a handful of candies at a time for one or two quarters. These are very popular amongst kids.

Soda and Snack vending
These machines provide soda cans or bottles and various snacks.

Newspaper vending
As the name suggests, newspaper vending machines sell newspapers.

Specialized Vending
These machines dispense specialized products like tampons, tissues, etc in ladies restrooms and other products like cleansers and condoms in men’s restrooms. These are usually placed in heavy traffic areas.

Customized vending
This is the latest concept in vending machines. Various innovations have led to the rise of customized machines which can be styled as per the customer demands and business objectives.

The future innovations in vending machines will witness the emergence of vending machines which will be capable of dispensing many new products that were not available through this channel before. Already, digital products like cameras, iPods, etc are being sold through vending machines in some countries and rapidly becoming a global trend.

One of the most interesting breakthroughs in vending innovations is the concept of telemetry. This involves the use of wireless technology to transmit data to a remotely located headquarters to enable the arrangement of route stops, recognizing component malfunction and collection verification.

Among vending solution providers, Planet Antares provides uniques and state-of-art vending equipment which suits everybody's need.