Smart Pad Vending Machine
A connected vending machine for public sanitary pad access, with remote inventory and status monitoring.
Overview
An IoT-connected vending machine designed to improve public access to sanitary pads, with remote monitoring so operators know stock levels and device health without a manual site visit.
The challenge
Public-access vending hardware is only useful if it's reliably stocked and functioning — without remote visibility, operators only discover a problem (empty stock, a jammed dispenser) when a user encounters it directly.
The solution
An ESP32-based vending controller that reports stock levels and device status back to a backend, giving operators remote visibility and alerts before a machine fails a user.
Architecture
An ESP32-based controller handling dispensing logic and sensor input, reporting status to a lightweight Express backend and MongoDB store, surfaced through an operator dashboard.
Key features
Automated dispensing
Reliable, coin/card or app-triggered dispensing mechanism.
Remote stock monitoring
Live stock-level reporting so restocking can be scheduled proactively.
Device health alerts
Automatic alerts for jams or faults, reported remotely rather than discovered on-site.
Operator dashboard
A dashboard for monitoring multiple machines across locations.
Related work