US 2,006,081,653 · Filed 2005-09-30

The Smart Vending Machine That Knows Your Diet

Imagine a drink or snack machine that actually knows what's healthy for YOU. You tell it what you want, it checks what ingredients it has on hand and your health profile, suggests the best mix, and you can tweak it before it dispenses. It's like having a nutritionist built into a vending box.

Curated and verified by the IsItPatented Editorial team

The plain-English version

What it protects

The claim covers a device system that stores multiple food and beverage ingredients, tracks what's available and their nutritional properties, stores customer health information, and uses a controller to automatically mix and dispense custom servings based on what the customer requests and their health profile. What's protected is the combination of ingredient inventory management, health profile matching, and the automated formulation process that lets customers see and modify suggestions before the final product is made.

Why it matters

This patent tackles a real market opportunity: personalized nutrition at scale. Instead of one-size-fits-all vending, the system adapts to individual dietary needs, allergies, or fitness goals. For companies in hospitality, gyms, or corporate wellness, this creates a competitive edge by offering customization without requiring a human nutritionist or barista. The technology bridges consumer demand for personalization with the operational efficiency of automated dispensing.

Real-world use

You'd encounter this at a gym, office cafeteria, or hotel where you select a protein shake, the machine checks your stored preferences for calories and macros, suggests the perfect blend of powders and liquids, and dispenses it in seconds.

Original USPTO abstract

A system for dispensing a customised nutritional serving is made up of ingredients stored within a device incorporating the system. The device has a controller in whose memory is stored an inventory of the ingredients available in the device, their compositions and properties and customer profile data. The controller is programmed to formulate a serving which best matches the customised serving selected by the customer within constraints set by the programming taking into account the inventory of ingredients and the health profile of the customer. The customer is then presented with the selected serving and either accepts it or modifies it. The device is then programmed to prepare and dispense the final selection.

Patent details

Publication number: US 2,006,081,653
Filing date: 2005-09-30
Grant date: Application — not yet granted
Assignee: Boland Michael J / Haylock Steven J / Munro Peter A / Alexander David L J / Thompson Abby K / Richard Archer
Inventor(s): BOLAND MICHAEL J., HAYLOCK STEVEN J., MUNRO PETER A., ALEXANDER DAVID L.J., THOMPSON ABBY K., ARCHER RICHARD
CPC class: A47J31/52

View original record on Google Patents →

Want to file your own patent?

If you're designing a smart kitchen appliance or vending system with customization features, scan your concept through our free patentability checker to see what's already locked down in this space.

Free patentability scan