I am looking to make an arduino powered vending machine and need some mechanism advice. I want to vend four different 'sets' of capsules. Each set being a particular product the customer can choose. My idea is to have four columns of capsules with a tilted bottom piece that rolls them to a tray where the customer collects it.
Is there any low powered, Inexpensive way of realising the capsules from the columns depending on which the customer chooses?
I've looked into solenoids but they look quite expensive, and I wouldn't like to have to power each one with 12v.
PaulRB:
Hi. Servos. What exactly is in these capsules? Is it legal?
Paul
Haha, yes legal, I don't know what to put in them yet, but I'm thinking little toys such as the classic 'stretchy man' which I can flog to my brothers for an extortionate mark up
I don't know how I'd fit the servos in, as I was planning on having each column neighbouring the next.
Is there any other solution? If not, I'll rethink the design to incorporate servos
Suggest you look at the way vending machines for crisps and snacks work. Many of them just use a metal spiral running in a trough. Turning the spiral moves items sitting on it along the trough. One complete revolution will dump whatever is at the front spiral off the end, so it can drop onto your discharge chute.
