How Do Vending Machines Deal With Our Money?

I was at a vending machine the other day trying to get myself some drink.

A thought came to my mind. How do vending machines know
how much money we put in? How does it determine the value of the coins we drop in? There are old coins, new coins and they come in different denominations of 5 cents, 10 cents, 20 cents etc...

I did a search on YouTube and the answer was that vending machines uses laser to scan dollar notes for its value and authenticity. Light sensors and electromagnets are used to identify the thickness, diameter and type of coin denomination that is entered. All these information are then relayed to the system which will then compute the amount entered and return any balance to me together with my drink.

That is all very cool! So much going on in one small box machine occupying a small spot at the corner of a room Will there be a day when there will be a machine that can determine my wants and needs? Or at the payment counter, when i hand over my money, there will be a prompt saying what i am trying to buy is a want, which is good to have but i don't necessarily need it.

Well, before something like that comes along, i guess we should just rely on the 'Wants and Needs' thought process in our head.


Just something for you and i to consider over the weekend. It's Good Friday! Have a great celebration for those celebrating and happy holidays for everyone else.