The present disclosure provides an automatic vending machine for dispensing beverage cans. The machine includes a main housing having a can delivery slot. The housing includes a refrigerant compartment for storing the beverage cans. The housing further includes a delivery sub-system for delivering a beverage can from the refrigerant compartment to the delivery slot accessible to a consumer. The delivery sub-system is configured to orient and open the can while delivering to the delivery slot.

A portable vending structure comprising: exterior walls, a roof and a floor all defining a main structure; at least one transaction window defined in a wall; at least one ATM mounted in a wall; at least one sign removably mounted at an upper edge of a wall; a safe room defined within the structure with heightened physical security features including a secure entry door; electronic systems including at least one camera, an interact connection, at least one point of sale system, and at least one power distribution system. The structure may include a second floor removably mounted: on top of the main structure, the second floor serving as a customer lounge for consuming products vended on the main floor. The second floor preferably includes a vent means for venting fumes from the second floor comprising either floor grates up through which at least one fan blows air or a vent hood with a powered fan drawing fumes up and away from the second floor.

An individual-specific cosmetics manufacturing selling machine includes a housing, a raw material supply part provided inside the housing and configured to supply liquid cosmetic raw materials, a container supply part configured to supply a cosmetic container, a raw material injection part configured to inject the raw materials into the container, an articulated robot configured to pick up the container from the container supply part and place the container at a predetermined position, a stirrer configured to stir the raw materials injected into the container, and a cosmetics outlet configured to discharge a manufactured cosmetics to the outside of the housing. Also provided is a cosmetics manufacturing selling method using the individual-specific cosmetics manufacturing selling machine.

In an embodiment, a kiosk mounting apparatus includes a chassis, payment module, and enclosure. The chassis is configured to mount a tablet computing device. The tablet computing device includes a touch screen display and is configured to execute an interactive application. The payment module is mounted to the chassis and is configured to be communicatively coupled to the tablet computing device. The payment module is configured to detect payment data specifying an account from a user's payment device. The payment module is configured to encrypt the payment data and to communicate the encrypted payment information to the tablet computing device for processing by a payment gateway. The enclosure is mounted to the chassis and has an opening for the touch screen display. The enclosure encloses the payment module. By enclosing the payment module, the kiosk mounting apparatus encapsulates the payment module into the kiosk.

A fulfilment centre for fulfilling an order of one or more items, wherein the fulfilment centre includes: for storage of the storage; iii) a dispatch system having a plurality of lockers with an interior space for storing items, the interior space being accessible through a first opening exterior of the fulfilment centre and a second opening interior of the fulfilment centre; iv) a door mechanism operable to selectively close the first opening(s) of the lockers exterior of the fulfilment centre and the second opening(s) of the lockers interior of the fulfilment centre; and a locking mechanism configured to lock and unlock the door mechanism.

A novel food station comprises first and second pluralities of cubbies, each sized to enclose a food portion container, and a food collection hatch that is selectively externally accessible. A heating system can controllably heat one or more of the first plurality of cubbies independently of the first plurality of cubbies, and a cooling system can cool one or more of the second plurality of cubbies independently of the first plurality of cubbies. An internal transport system including an end effector that temporarily couples to the portion container carrier of a selected cooled cubby of the second plurality of cubbies and can controllably move the food portion container carrier to a selected heated cubby or to the food collection hatch.

A direct current (DC) electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) that includes a secure enclosure. The secure enclosure encloses a set of one or more contactors to open and close to provide DC charge transfer with one or more electric vehicles; a conductor to electrically connect the contactors with DC input; a current sensor to measure current draw; a voltage sensing circuitry to measure voltage; and one or more circuits that receive current data from the current sensor and voltage data from the voltage sensing circuitry, the one or more circuits to perform one or more safety functions and one or more metering functions using the received current data and voltage data. The DC EVSE may also include, external to the secure enclosure, a controller that is coupled with the circuits to control the opening and closing of the set of contactors.

Systems and methods are provided herein for producing and vending ice in an energy-efficient manner. A system for producing and vending ice comprises: an ice-making device configured to manufacture ice; a reservoir coupled to the ice-making device and configured to store the manufactured ice manufactured; and a control circuit communicatively coupled to the ice-making device, the control circuit configured to: determine a beginning ice inventory at a first time; determine a predicted ice demand for a first period, wherein the predicted ice demand is a function of at least a historical factor, a weather factor, a customer social event factor, and a public social event factor; determine an ice manufacturing quantity based on the beginning ice inventory, the predicted ice demand, and a manufacturing capacity of the ice-making device; and cause the ice-making device to produce an amount of ice consistent with the determined ice manufacturing quantity.

Disclosed are systems and methods for protecting an escrow clutch of a self-service terminal. The systems and methods may include actuating a motor of the self-service terminal to cause an escrow clutch of the self-service terminal to spin at a rate. As the clutch spins, a determination as to when a clutch slippage exceeds a preset slippage rate may be made. When the clutch slippage exceeds the preset slippage rate, the motor may be actuated to cause the escrow clutch to spin at a second rate. The second rate may less than the first rate.

A vending machine includes a product storage cabinet having a housing defining a storage compartment for storing a product and a door movably connected to the housing. A product sensor is configured to detect removal of the product from the storage compartment. The vending machine further includes a control assembly configured to control operation of the vending machine. The control assembly includes a support structure, a control unit mounted on the support structure, a transceiver mounted on the support structure, and a power supply mounted on the support structure. The control assembly is configured to receive information from collected by the product sensor to determine an identity of the product removed from the storage compartment.