Vending System

At least one storage medium having instructions stored thereon for causing a first mobile computing node to:

• communicate with at least one remote computing node to indicate the first mobile computing node desires to purchase a first credit for a second computing node;
• receive a second credit from at least one of the second computing node and a third computing node in response to the at least one of the second computing node and a third computing node communicating with the at least one remote computing node to indicate the at least one of the second computing node and a third computing node desired to purchase the second credit for the first mobile computing node;
• receive a communication from the at least one remote computing node indicating the second credit was awarded to the first mobile computing node;
• and
• communicate an actuation command to a first vending machine (VM) based on the second credit.

The at least one medium of 11 comprising instructions to cause the first mobile computing node to:

• establish a first communication session with the at least one remote computing node;
• and
• receive first and second inventory data, corresponding to the first VM and a second VM, from the at least one remote computing node in response to establishing the first communication session and before the first communication session ends;
• communicate a user initiated selection of a product included in the first inventory data to the at least one remote computing node;
• and
• receive directions regarding a physical location of the first VM, but not the second VM, in response to communicating the user initiated selection to the at least one remote computing node.

A vending system comprising:

• a proximity detection module to detect proximity of a mobile computing node within 100 meters of the vending system;
• a wireless communications module to wirelessly communicate with the mobile computing node;
• a device emulation module;
• a multi-drop bus (MOB) interface to couple the device emulation module to a MOB;
• and
• at least one storage medium having instructions stored thereon for causing the system to communicate a first emulation of a first peripheral state to a vending machine controller (VMC);
• wherein the first peripheral state corresponds to a state of at least one of a physical coin acceptor device, a bill acceptor, a credit card reader, a near field communication (NFC) reader, and a radiofrequency identification (RFIO) reader.

At least one storage medium having instructions stored thereon for causing a system to:

• establish a first communication session with at least one remote computing node;
• receive first and second actuation commands and first and second data from the at least one remote computing node;
• communicate (a) the first actuation command to a first vending machine (VM) to actuate an actuator of the first VM to provide a first vended good to an aperture included in the first VM, and (b) the second actuation command to a second VM to actuate an actuator included in the second VM to provide a second vended good to an aperture included in the second VM;
• and
• communicate the first and second data respectively to the first and second VMs in response to establishing the first communication session.