Abrantix AG - Blog #vending machine

Optimizing Vending Machine Operations with IoT Integration

Sat, 16 Mar 2024 10:33:37 +0100

In the dynamic world of vending machines, the integration of Internet of Things (IoT) technology is revolutionizing operations, driving efficiency, and enhancing the overall customer experience. In this guide, we'll explore the transformative impact of IoT integration on vending machine operations and how it's reshaping the automated retail landscape.

The Power of IoT in Vending Machines

Real-Time Monitoring and Insights

IoT-enabled vending machines are equipped with sensors and connected to the internet, allowing operators to monitor machine performance and inventory levels in real-time. This invaluable data provides insights into consumer behavior, popular products, and machine health, enabling operators to make informed decisions and optimize operations.

Predictive Maintenance

By analyzing data collected from IoT sensors, operators can anticipate maintenance needs and proactively address issues before they escalate. Predictive maintenance reduces downtime, prolongs machine lifespan, and ensures uninterrupted service for customers.

Personalized Customer Experience

IoT integration enables vending machines to offer personalized experiences tailored to individual preferences. By analyzing past purchasing behavior and demographic data, machines can recommend products, promotions, and pricing tailored to each customer, enhancing engagement and satisfaction.

The Role of MDB Converters in IoT Integration

Seamless Connectivity

MDB Converters act as the bridge between IoT-enabled vending machines and the MDB protocol, facilitating seamless communication between machine components and IoT platforms. By translating MDB protocol data into a format compatible with IoT systems, these converters enable operators to harness the full potential of IoT technology.

Data Translation and Standardization

IoT platforms require data in standardized formats for analysis and insights. MDB Converters play a crucial role in translating MDB protocol data into formats compatible with IoT platforms, ensuring interoperability and enabling operators to leverage IoT analytics for optimization.

Enhanced Operational Efficiency

By enabling IoT integration, MDB Converters enhance operational efficiency by providing real-time data insights, enabling predictive maintenance, and facilitating personalized customer experiences. The synergy between MDB Converters and IoT technology drives efficiency gains and operational excellence in vending machine operations.

Future Outlook: IoT Integration Driving Innovation

Expansion of IoT Capabilities

As IoT technology continues to evolve, we can expect further integration of advanced features into vending machines. From machine learning algorithms for predictive analytics to AI-driven personalized recommendations, the future of IoT-enabled vending machines promises unparalleled convenience and efficiency.

Enhanced Customer Engagement

IoT integration opens up new avenues for customer engagement and interaction. From interactive touchscreens to mobile app integration, vending machines of the future will offer immersive experiences that go beyond simple transactions, fostering loyalty and brand affinity.

Conclusion: Shaping the Future of Automated Retail

The integration of IoT technology is transforming vending machine operations, driving efficiency, and enhancing the customer experience. MDB Converters play a critical role in enabling IoT integration, bridging the gap between vending machine components and IoT platforms. As we look ahead, the synergy between IoT technology and MDB Converters promises to redefine automated retail, ushering in an era of unprecedented innovation and convenience.

How the MDB Converter Enables Seamless Integration with Vending Machines

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 09:28:55 +0200

Are you looking to integrate your vending machines with the MDB protocol but struggling with compatibility issues? The MDB Converter is your solution. Our easy-to-use converter allows for seamless communication between vending machines and peripherals like Raspberry Pi controllers, payment terminals, and bill collectors. With the MDB protocol's 9-bit serial communication, our converter ensures fast and efficient data transfer, providing a reliable interface for multi-drop bus-controlled devices.

The MDB protocol is the dominant communication standard in the vending industry, enabling efficient and secure transactions for a wide range of vending machines. By implementing the MDB protocol, vending operators can benefit from increased sales, reduced maintenance costs, and improved customer satisfaction.

At MDB Converter, we understand the importance of reliable communication between vending machines and peripherals. Our converter is designed to work with any MDB-compatible device, making it the perfect solution for any vending operation looking to optimize their communication protocols. Additionally, our converter is compatible with the Raspberry Pi HAT, allowing for IoT integration and providing an even greater level of flexibility.

But don't just take our word for it. Read about the success story of the University of Applied Sciences Berlin (HTW), where the MDB Converter was used to implement NFC technology in their coffee machines, increasing sales and improving the customer experience.

In summary, the MDB Converter is the reliable and efficient solution for integrating vending machines with the MDB protocol. With our easy-to-use converter and compatibility with any MDB-compatible device, we can help you optimize your vending operation for increased sales and improved customer satisfaction.

How can MDB help with your vending machine project?

Tue, 28 Feb 2023 08:59:00 +0100

What is the MDB Protocol and who invented it?

The MDB (Multi-Drop Bus) protocol was developed by the National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) in 1990. The protocol was designed to create a standard communication interface between vending machines and peripheral devices such as payment systems, coin mechanisms, and bill validators. The goal was to simplify the integration of vending machines with these devices and enable vending operators to easily upgrade their machines with new features and capabilities.

Who uses the MDB protocol an in which industries is it predominant?

The MDB (Multi Drop Bus) protocol is primarily used in the vending industry for communication between devices such as vending machines, payment systems, and other peripheral devices. As such, the biggest users of the MDB protocol are likely to be companies that operate vending machines, such as vending machine manufacturers and vending machine operators. It's difficult to say which specific company or companies are the biggest users of the MDB protocol, as it is an open standard and widely used throughout the industry. However, some of the major vending machine manufacturers, such as Crane, N&W Global Vending, and Azkoyen, use the MDB protocol in their machines.

What are the benefits of using the MDB protocol in vending machines?

There are several benefits of using the MDB (Multi Drop Bus) protocol in vending machines, including:

Increased compatibility: The MDB protocol is widely adopted in the vending industry, which means that using it will help ensure compatibility with a wide range of vending machines and payment systems.
Improved efficiency: The MDB protocol allows for faster and more reliable communication between vending machine components, which can improve overall efficiency and reduce downtime.
Enhanced security: The MDB protocol includes built-in security features that help protect against fraud and tampering.
Greater flexibility: The MDB protocol allows for greater flexibility in vending machine design and configuration, which can help manufacturers create machines that better meet the needs of their customers.
Easier maintenance: The MDB protocol simplifies the process of diagnosing and repairing issues with vending machines, which can help reduce maintenance costs and downtime.

Overall, using the MDB protocol in vending machines can help improve performance, reduce costs, and enhance the user experience.

Are there any technical restrictions, problems or specialties you need to know before using the MDB protocol? Does it work with any peripheral device such as Raspberry Pi controllers, payment terminals, bill collectors, etc.?

While the MDB protocol is a widely used standard in the vending machine industry, there are some technical considerations and limitations to keep in mind.

Firstly, the MDB protocol is designed for vending machine peripherals, so it may not be suitable for other types of devices. While it is technically possible to connect the MDB protocol to a Raspberry Pi or other controller, it may require additional hardware and software development.

Additionally, the MDB protocol is a synchronous serial protocol, which means that it requires a clock signal to synchronize the communication between devices. This clock signal is typically provided by the vending machine's control board, so it may not be possible to use the MDB protocol without an existing vending machine interface.

Finally, while the MDB protocol is a well-established standard, there may be variations in implementation between different manufacturers or models of vending machines. It's important to ensure that any peripheral devices you are using with the MDB protocol are compatible with the specific vending machine you are working with.

Overall, the MDB protocol can be a powerful tool for vending machine integration, but it's important to understand the technical limitations and requirements before getting started.

What are the benefits of a MDB Converter hardware?

The MDB Converter provides several benefits, including:

Cost-effective solution: Instead of buying a new vending machine that supports the MDB protocol, you can upgrade your existing machines by using the MDB Converter.
Easy installation: The MDB Converter is easy to install and does not require any major modifications to your vending machine.
Versatility: The MDB Converter can convert between serial and MDB protocols, allowing you to use a wider range of peripherals, such as payment systems and telemetry devices.
Improved reliability: The MDB Converter provides a more reliable and stable connection between your vending machine and peripherals, reducing the risk of errors and downtime.
Compatibility: The MDB Converter is compatible with a wide range of vending machines and peripheral devices, making it a versatile and flexible solution for any vending operator.

MDB in the vending industry

Thu, 05 Jan 2023 12:07:00 +0100

MDB, or Multi Drop Bus, is a standard protocol used in vending machines and other self-service kiosks to allow for communication between the payment system and the vending machine or kiosk. It allows for the exchange of data such as the selection of products, the acceptance of payment, and the dispense of products.

One of the main problems that MDB solves is the need for a standardized communication protocol between payment systems and vending machines. Before the adoption of MDB, each vending machine manufacturer used their own proprietary protocol, which made it difficult for payment system providers to integrate with multiple vending machine brands. MDB provides a common language that can be used by all parties, making it easier for payment systems to work with a wide range of vending machines. MDB also allows for the integration of advanced payment methods, such as credit card readers and mobile payment systems, into vending machines. This increases the convenience for customers and can lead to increased sales for vending machine operators.

Overall, the use of MDB in the vending industry has helped to standardize communication between payment systems and vending machines, making it easier for payment system providers to enter the market and for vending machine operators to accept a wider range of payment methods.

Restrictions of the MDB Protocol

One issue that can arise with the MDB protocol is the need for precise timing of the communication between the payment system and the vending machine. The MDB protocol requires that the payment system and vending machine maintain a strict timing relationship in order to properly exchange data. If the timing is not correct, it can result in communication errors and the transaction failing. Another issue that can arise with the MDB protocol is the limited number of available commands. The protocol only defines a small number of commands, which can limit the flexibility of the system. For example, it may not be possible to add new features or functionality to the vending machine if there are no available commands to support them.

The devices communicate in a single-master, multiple-slave configuration using the MDB protocol which is based on 9-bit, implemented as an 8-bit data value with an additional mode bit. The mode bit differentiates between ADDRESS and DATA bytes. The master sends messages containing one address byte and a variable number of data bytes. The bus "slave devices" listen for an address, and if it matches their address that slave device will process the message and respond to the master.

The MDB-Converter handles the 9-bit data format and makes sure timing is correct.

All our MDB products can be found here.

MDB Converter: your reliable Interface for Multi Drop Bus controlled devices

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 14:36:00 +0100

If you look for an easy way to upgrade your vending machine with a modern IT device, get our MDB Converter. It allows to connect the vending controller to modern IT solutions such as Linux, Android, or Windows devices. The MDB Converter is a reliable Interface for Multi Drop Bus controlled devices.

The converters use a proprietary serial protocol called CP (Control Protocol) to talk to your application. This protocol only frames the MDB payload and does not put constraints on the MDB messages or behavior. This means that the converters do not implement MDB behavior themselves, which gives you the full control over the messages and behavior.

You can therefore send any MDB data to the bus or implement any MDB behavior you would like. This is an easy interface to the raw MDB bus messages, so any peripheral and master function can be implemented.

Several product versions help you to fulfill all your requirements. We provide

MDB Bus with stabilized 5V power @ 1A (up to 5W) output
an SDK that gives you a fast start for developers
a Raspberry PI Hat to use your Raspberry PI as an VMC and even logging and tracing possibilities.
Best selling MDB Converter 4 supporting USB

All our MDB products can be found here.

Internet of things (IOT) for vending: MDB Raspberry Pi HAT (Multi Drop Bus)

Mon, 20 Nov 2017 02:00:00 +0100

If you want to upgrade your vending machines with a modern controller based on Raspberry PI, you can use our MDB (Multi Drop Bus) hat to connect you Raspberry Pi to the vending machine.

The internet of things (IoT) is fast approaching and will affect every area of our lives. This will equally be true for the vending industry. That’s why we have created an MDB Raspberry Pi HAT.

While many vending machines these days are already connected to the internet, in cases this is still considered an “add-on”, or a telemetry unit. This means there is an old-school VMC (vending machine controller) that talks MDB. MDB is a 9 bit protocol (yes, you read correctly) designed around a bus where peripheral devices can be attached. It has strict and very short timing constraints. The internet add-on is then either attached to this bus or the the VMC.

MDB was clearly designed for hardware components that run some sort of low-level firmware that implements the protocol. It does not suit modern, state of the art software solutions. We made this discovery when we created our first MDB cashless peripheral. Soon we realized that we needed a piece of hardware that enables integration with MDB. You can read more about this experience here.

You may ask why MDB was not replaced decades ago? There are probably multiple reasons for this:

Long investment cycles for vending machines.
VMCs use firmware that cannot just be updated to something new. Someone has to go there to update the machine.
There are many MDB peripheral devices available that might not offer any other interface. For example coin changers or bill validators. These are still crucial parts of a vending machine.

There are more modern vending machines out there today, but the vast majority will still use MDB.

Innovative Vending Machines

So how to create a more modern vending machine? After we created our first cashless peripheral, we released the MDB Converter 3, which takes care of the difficult parts of the MDB specification and provides a simple interface for modern devices (USB, serial and Low Voltage TTL). This is what we used back then in our cashless peripheral. On top of that we used some processor board and created our own hardware. This was before Raspberry Pi and Arduino. Today, we would of course do this using an MDB Raspberry Pi HAT, which we now have created.

We are proud to release this new product called MDB2Pi. It is an MDB Raspberry Pi HAT and some of its features are:

Can be used as MDB VMC or MDB cashless peripheral
Supports MDB Logging/Tracing
Has a Real Time Clock (RTC)
Powers the Raspberry Pi through the MDB bus
Provides a low level API to send and receive MDB messages. It does not alter the MDB payload, which gives you the full control over the MDB implementation.
We provide sample implementations of the API in C# (SDK)

This product will give you the power to create a modern vending machine, because you can delegate the old-school MDB stuff to the MDB2Pi, while you have state of the art options on your Raspberry Pi. Imagine you can update your VMC software remotely. Imagine you can turn features on and off remotely and much more. Without any other extra add-ons. I am sure you will have many and much better ideas than these…

You can find more details about the MDB2Pi here and the product is available here.

NFC at a Coffee Machine - Success Story at the University of Applied Sciences Berlin (HTW)

Mon, 02 Sep 2013 04:00:00 +0200

Congratulations to Maurus Rohrer from the BeWiTEC / INKA research group at the University of Applied Sciences Berlin (HTW)!

For a research project Maurus used the Abrantix MDB Converter to connect a coffee machine to a sophisticated user system. The goal was to investigate and implement a system that allows the user to easily make purchases with an NFC device and store these purchases in an accounting system. Also, the system was to memorise the product preferences of the user and automatically inform maintenance personnel about the machine status. More features were implemented and many more could be imagined. For example, users can sign up with any NFC capable device, be it a credit card, key fob or a badge. Users can also share preferences and recommend products to each other, or the sytem can suggest new products to a user based on their previous consumptions.

We’ve posted a video on our Youtube channel so you can see the system in action.

This is exactly what the MDB converter has been designed for: Enhance old MDB hardware with modern and smart technology! There are many vending machines out there and replacing them with modern machines is very costly. With the MDB converter it is easy to add complex and new technology at a low cost.

The MDB converter is a piece of hardware that can act as an MDB master or MDB peripheral device. It is fully MDB compliant and can easily handle the conversion of the 9 bit communication requested by MDB devices into an 8 bit protocol understood by regular PCs or any other RS232 capable device. Furthermore, it takes care of the polling and timing mechanisms of the MDB system, leaving you to deal with the important requests only. Simply connect your MDB system over the MDB converter to the serial port of your device and you are ready to go. With the sample source code that is provided with the SDK, you will be able to run any custom application on top, from a very simple test application to a full blown system as Maurus did.

Here is what Maurus says about it: The MDB converter from Abrantix helped me a lot for my research project. Using it meant that I could implement the coffee application successfully. Also I want to thank Abrantix for their technical support during my project. The machine has now been running successfully every day for 6 months!

If you have any questions or need more information, please leave a comment or contact us via our website.

Congratulations again to Maurus!

You can buy the MDB converter here.

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The darned 9th bit and what you need to know about the MDB protocol

Sun, 25 Nov 2012 02:00:00 +0100

Working with payment terminals put us in contact with the MDB protocol. A very special protocol that gave us some headaches. For a long time now I wanted to share some of the problems we had – and insights we gained – while creating a product based around the MDB protocol. As a software company, starting with the product design we never imagined that the final product would be a fully engineered hardware terminal. But that’s what it turned out to be…

MDB Protocol Issues

One of the key features of the AXT1 is its MDB vending machine interface designed in the 80ies by Coca Cola. MDB stands for Multi Drop Bus. Simply put this is a serial bus you can connect one master and several slaves to. The MDB protocol is widely used in vending machines and it’s the way to go if you want to provide a payment terminal for vending machines.

The special thing about it – or at least special for us software people coming from 8, 16, 32 and 64 bit environments – is that it is a 9 bit protocol. Instead of using the more common 8 data bits and one optional parity bit, it uses 9 data bits and no parity bit. The 9th bit is used to address the slaves in the beginning of a communication session. The problem is that the UARTs (hardware components that takes care of the serial communication on the bus) provided by standard embedded PC boards (PCB) support 5 to 8 data bits, but 9 data bits are not supported out of the box. Therefore, connecting a “more intelligent” device such as a PC to a vending machine is not a plug and play kind of thing. But this is exactly what we wanted to do. Our payment software runs on linux and android and we undoubtedly wanted to keep it that way. The reasons for this I think are quite obvious and could fill another blog.

First Solutions and More Issues

Easy done, we thought. We simply get a linux PCB, use a UART in 8 bit mode and use the parity bit as the 9th data bit, as this guy here suggests. Not very elegant, but it works. Another option would be to get a PCB with 9 bit UART support. There are some of these out there, but this limits the choice of PCBs and creates an unnecessary dependency to the PCB used. That is in most cases not a solution.

Happy about our first implementation, we connected our terminal to a vending machine. This first test was a big disappointment. The MDB protocol specifies a time window of 5 milliseconds for a slave to answer. We found out that when running our software on an OS like linux or android, it is more or less accidental whether we could reply in this short time or not. In hindsight, it is now obvious… We thought about changing to a real time OS, but dismissed this because it would have required massive efforts to port and maintain our software. This is also in most cases not a solution.

Solution: MDB Converter

The only way to go forward was to design our own piece of hardware with a 9 bit UART and a micro controller that acts as a “gateway” between the PCB and the MDB. The MDB converter was born. The micro controller on the MDB converter takes care of all the MDB specific timing issues and uses the 9 bit UART to communication with the MBD. On the PCB side, we use a standard 8 bit UART and an internal communication protocol. As a final step, we integrated the MDB converter with a standard PCB into one piece of hardware and there it was, the MDB enabled AXT1.

Currently, we run this solution in over 500 vending machines and are very happy with the solution. It gives us the flexibility we need to extend our software while still keeping up with the MDB requirements.

Talking to our partners, we found out that most of the companies who want to connect linux, android or other modern devices to vending machines have the same problems. Therefore, we now provide the MDB converter as a standalone module. Simply connect your device to the vending machine using the MDB converter.

If you have had similar problems or are looking for a solution in this area, please share with a comment.

You can buy the MDB converter here.

Dec 2017: MDB to Raspberry Pi

It has been a while since I have written this post. It is now December 2017 and we have just launched our MDB2Pi. The MDB2Pi has the same features like the MDB converter, but can be used as Raspberry Pi HAT.

We have also revised the MDB Converter, which is now in its third generation: MDB Converter 3.

Nov 2022: MDB Converter 4

These days we have customers around the world using our MDB converter products. Many thousands of them were shipped and they work reliable every day around the world. Even some of the largest companies in the world use our products. We even upgraded to MDB Converter 4.

Mastercard PayPass transactions on vending machines

Tue, 01 May 2012 04:00:00 +0200

You just want to have a quick cup of coffee or a quick drink before a meeting. Wouldn’t it be nice and easy if you could just wave your Mastercard and get your coffee or drink? If you would work in Switzerland this could be the case.

We have just installed several AX-T1 payment devices that accept Mastercard PayPass transactions. This really is the way to go on low value payments. Nothing is easier than to wave your card and get your coffee. We get a tremendous positive feedback from the users. They really like this system.

If you think this is cool just post your feedback. If you are an acquirer and you also want to accept low-value payments without pin, just call us. And we think that this system is not only for coffee and snacks. It could also be for parking, road toll, car wash, transport, etc. Just anywhere where low-value payments must be processed fast, secure and easy.

We have now made the vending machine to PC interface that the AXT1 use available to the public. You can buy the MDB converter here.

Abrantix is a payment software engineering company and has extensive knowledge around card payments and EMV. Abrantix also sell an EMV Level 2 Kernel here.