Patent ID: 7904357

Claim:
A billing method for a loaning of food dispensing equipment which selectively combines at least one food product component with a dilution component for producing a resultant combination, the billing method comprising: providing an equipment operator with the food dispensing equipment for placement to allow use of the food dispensing equipment by an end user to dispense the resultant combination of the food product component and the dilution component; providing a product source of the food dispensing equipment for controllably dispensing the food product component by the end user; providing a dilution source connected to the food dispensing equipment for controllably dispensing the dilution component in relation to dispensing of the food product component for producing the resultant combination, with the dilution component being provided by the equipment operator; providing a controller of the food dispensing equipment for controllably operating the product source and the dilution source; monitoring, by the controller, operation of the dilution source; capturing, by the controller, information from the monitoring, by the controller, operation of the dilution source including an amount of the dilution component dispensed; and billing, by a data collection portion, the equipment operator for the loaning of the food dispensing equipment and a providing of the food product component, without separately charging for the food product component, based on the amount of the dilution component dispensed and not based on an amount of the food product component dispensed; wherein the equipment operator and the end user are not the same party.