Patent ID: 7765026

Claim:
A vending machine comprising: means for enabling a customer of the machine to select an initial product or service to be vended at a given price; means for accepting payment from customers; a controller for operating the vending machine, the controller comprising: means for recognizing said payment and establishing customer credit in response to the payment; means for initiating a vend of the initial selected product or service; means for determining the amount of the initial selected product or service that remains as the vend is completed; and, bar graph means operated by said controller for providing a visual analog display varying between zero and one hundred percent illumination that corresponds to the amount of a selected product or service that remains to be vended, wherein the bar graph means comprises a plurality of separate segments arranged serially in a line that can be individually illuminated, and wherein all of the illuminated segments in the bar graph means are illuminated any time a vend is initiated, and as the vend completes, the number of illuminated segments decreases to indicate the proportion of the selected product or service that remains to be vended; means for recognizing when a subsequent product or service is selected by the customer while credit still remains for the vend of the initial product or service; means for initiating a vend of the subsequently selected product or service; means for recognizing the customer credit remaining after the vend of the initial product or service; means for determining how much of said subsequent product or service may be vended in response to said customer credit remaining; and, means for resetting the bar graph means to a one hundred percent indication which is thereafter visibly decreased in response to the vending of said subsequent product or service.