Patent ID: 7571024

Claim:
A device for dispensing items, the device comprising: a cabinet having a front, a back, a pair of sides and an interior having a storage area; a dispenser frame coupled to the cabinet, wherein the dispenser frame includes a plurality of dividers, wherein the plurality of dividers are configurable; a plurality of dispensing mechanisms coupled to the dividers, wherein the dispensing mechanisms are configured to hold a plurality of items within the storage area; a lockable door coupled to the front of the cabinet so as to be positioned in front of the dispenser frame, wherein the door is openable to provide access to the interior of the cabinet and to the dispenser frame; a dispense drawer coupled to the cabinet below the storage area such that items dispensed from the dispensing mechanisms fall into the dispense drawer; a computer that is operably coupled to the dispensing mechanisms; a plurality of sensor mechanisms each being associated with one of the plurality of dispensing mechanisms, wherein each sensor mechanism is configured to generate a signal when an item from the associated dispensing mechanism is dispensed, wherein the signal is usable by the computer to identify the associated dispensing mechanism, and wherein the computer is configured to determine whether the associated dispensing mechanism needs to be replenished with an item based at least in part on the signal received from the sensor mechanism; and a divider configuration sensor coupled with the computer configured to automatically sense that the plurality of dividers have been repositioned and resized, to automatically determine the plurality of divider's newly configured positions and sizes, and to transmit the plurality of divider's newly configured positions and sizes to the computer.