When you step into the break room to purchase your favorite snack, you probably don’t give the vending machine much thought. You deposit your money, punch in the product code, and take your chips or candy bar back to your desk. You might not realize it as you eagerly await your food, but a complex series of processes is happening inside the machine, and you can thank magnets for that. Different types of magnet technology are used depending on how you decide to pay — whether it’s with coins, cash, or credit card.

The reality is that once this happens to people and they have no plan or do not know how to place their vending machines at different location then they get discouraged and give up or quit. I will tell you first hand that there is an abundance of money to be made in vending, but the trick is to make smart educated decisions about how you. Vending Machines Make It Better Profit For Your Business. For many companies the best way to get their business up and running is by using a vending machine.While it’s true that they are expensive to set up and can be quite costly to repair, there are some simple ways for you to make money off of them. Nowadays, many vending machines are made with photocells or cameras that can be programmed to recognize the visual markings of various bills. Lights illuminate the bill, allowing the tiny camera to. But still, a vending machines business can be very profitable if you plan contentiously. Starting a Vending Machine Business is one of today’s fastest growing businesses. In fact, every day, 7 out of 10 people do business with a Vending Machine. In the United States, $79,000 is spent every minute in Vending Machines. The fact is, vending machines can be highly profitable, if a business is structured in the right way. There is a lot of money to be made in vending, and it shows in the current state of the industry. There are around 5 million operational vending machines in the US right now and they rake in over $7 billion in annual sales for their operators.

Paying with Coins: Eddy Currents, Lasers, and Electromagnets

How Do Vending Machines Verify Money Is Real

Once your deposit your coins, the vending machine gets to work separating quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies. To keep fake coins from entering circulation, some vending machines use an eddy current, which is a loop of electrical current that slows ferromagnetic objects that move within conductors. Because the fake coins are moving slower than the real coins, they’re diverted into a rejection chute and dispensed back to the customer.

So, what about real coins? Well, after you slip your change into the slot, the coins roll down a ramp where they’re scanned by lasers (to verify size) and electromagnets (to check composition). Using this information, the vending machine determines the coin type and deposits each into a designated chute. In the case that a vending machine doesn’t use an eddy current to separate fake coins, lasers and electromagnets are also capable of rejecting false currency.

Paying with Cash: Magic Ink

Making Money From Vending Machines

In the United States, paper currency is equipped with a myriad of anti-counterfeit measures like microprinting, raised print, watermarks, and even color-shifting ink. But the ability to change color isn’t the only thing that makes the ink on a bill unique. It can also be ferromagnetic — a quality that’s hard to duplicate — and each denomination receives a unique blend of ink and iron. Vending machines are able to “read” or measure the amount of iron in the ink of each bill to determine its worth and validity.

Paying with Credit Card: Tiny Magnets and Processors

More modern vending machines accept credit cards, increasing the complexity of the process. The back of your card has a magnetic strip filled with unique magnetic particles (less than 20 millionths of an inch!). The strip contains all of your important payment information, including name, account number, and card expiration date. When you swipe your card, that data is sent to a small processor housed inside the vending machine. After reading your information, a computer sends the transaction to your bank for further processing. As long as your card is in good standing, you’ll be able to complete the transaction and get your snack.

How To Purchase Vending Machines

Apex Magnets in the Office

Vending machines aren’t the only place you’ll find magnets in the office! We offer PLENTY of magnetic tools to help the workday run smoother, including convenient clip magnets and hook magnets. Our associates are always available to help you decide what’s best for you at (1-304)-257-1193.

How Do Vending Machines Verify Money Is Real