Vending machines (MDB)

This installation article covers installation on all types of vending machines, including Vendrite machines.

The vending machine MUST support the MDB (Multi-Drop Bus) interface, which most machines do.

One way to tell is to check the machine to see if it has a harness with a 6-pin plug on it (2 by 3 pin formation) like either one of these:

MDB male

MDB female

Required parts

1. MDB Cable Harness - Wiring Harness Part #: 02-06-61
   
   
   
2. MDB Card Reader - Reader Board Part #: ASSY-02-02-09
   
   

   Note: this is a specialized reader that will say MDB on the sticker on the back of the reader board itself:
   
   
   

Installation Steps

Step 1: Turn Machine Power Off

Step 2: Number the reader using the DIP switch on the back of the reader

Switch #1 does not have any effect for vending machine readers
(it doesn't matter how you set this switch, but we recommend leaving it in the down/OFF position).

Use switches 2-7 to number the reader, the same way numbering works on Washer/Dryer readers.

For example, with the dip switch configuration below, the reader will appear as number 1 (SOAP1).

If you have multiple vending machines, just continue to number them in increasing order:

If the location has more than 5 vending machine readers

see our article: Reader DIP Switch settings for additional reader numbers

Step 3:  Connect the MDB harnesses

Connect the MDB connector from the reader's harness to mating MDB connector on the vending machine's cable harness.

The MDB connector is a 6-position connector that looks like this:

The Reader's wiring harness is a "Y" cable, so if needed, you can daisy chain the card reader with other MDB attached equipment, if there is not a free MDB connector to use for the card reader.

Step 4: Mount the reader

The vending machine reader kits will include a couple mounting brackets, as optional parts, that can be used for some machines, but the mounting will differ depending on the specific machine.

Normally, no drilling will be required; but some machines may require custom mounting.

Step 5: Power on the machine and Activate the reader

Use the provided Activation card to activate the reader:

Step 6: Configure display

By default, the reader will display "Soap Machine" on its LCD display, but this can be changed so the reader displays "Snack Machine", by using the Laundro Portal.

Click the wrench icon of the reader, and change the reader's Control Type to Snack Vending:

On the Laundro Portal, all Vending machine readers will always display as a "SOAP" reader;

this Control Type change only affects the messaging on the reader's display.

Setting Vend Prices

Vend prices for the various products are set on the vending machine itself;

the reader does NOT control any prices.
It will reflect the price that is programmed on the vending machine itself for the selected product.

Troubleshooting

Below are problems commonly encountered during installation of readers on these dryers. For more general reader troubleshooting, see Reader Support

Issue	Explanation and resolution
Reader says No Comm with MDB machine	There's no serial communication with the machine over the MDB interface. Try rebooting power to the machine. Some vending machines have multiple MDB connectors; try using one of the other 6-PIN MDB connectors if the first one you tired did not work. Power cycle the machine after changing the MDB connector you are using to see if that clears the no comm error.

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