Patent ID: 7693602

Claim:
A method of performing cashless vending transactions, said method comprising the steps of: a) initiating a cashless transaction at a payment module having access to a memory, said payment module interconnected with a vending machine; b) implementing an MDB TRANSACTION STRING in the memory, the MDB TRANSACTION STRING having data fields; c) receiving a vend request for a vending item having a price at said payment module from said vending machine; d) updating one or more of the MDB TRANSACTION STRING data fields in the memory accessible by the payment module responsive to the vend request; e) selecting between a first cashless mode and a second cashless mode for a performance of the cashless transaction such that in the first cashless mode a computing platform, remote from the vending machine, authorizes the vend request based on at least in part the price for the vending item and in the second cashless mode the payment module authorizes the vend request; f) authorizing the vend request while in the first cashless mode by: (1) communicating the MDB TRANSACTION STRING to said computing platform, and (2) receiving, at said payment module, an instruction from said computing platform to change at least one of the MDB TRANSACTION STRING data fields from the data fields of the communicated MDB TRANSACTION STRING; and g) completing, by the payment module, said cashless transaction based on the at least one of the changed MDB TRANSACTION STRING data fields.