Importance

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Abstract

An escrow vending machine has a secure, locking cabinet; a dispenser for cards or other merchandise; a bill acceptor, coin acceptor or similar cash acceptor; and a controller board within the cabinet and connected to the dispenser and to the cash acceptor. The dispenser contains a supply of prepaid telephone cards or other merchandise, and dispenses them one at a time in response to a control signal. The cash acceptor accepts and registers units of cash, e.g., dollars, and generates a pulse or other signal for each unit accepted. The controller board has an input that receives the cash signal from the cash acceptor and an output supplying the control signal to the dispenser. An escrow counter or register accumulates an escrow count of the pulses or cash signals. This enables the controller board to supply the control signal when the count in the escrow register equals or exceeds a preset number that represents a price or value. When this happens, the controller board stores the difference between the escrow count and preset number as a new escrow count. Then, when additional units of cash are inserted into the cash acceptor, and the latter produces additional cash signals, the escrow register counts up to increase the new escrow count. This enables the controller board to supply the control signal again when the new escrow count again equals or exceeds the preset number.

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First Claim