NEW YEAR, NEW TRENDS & VENDING TECHNOLOGY
New AI applications for vending, emotion recognition, and industrial sound analysis
The pace of AI adoption in the vending sector is set to quicken as new tools make it easier for operators and manufacturers to integrate intelligent capabilities into machines and wider systems.
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ECO, for example, has introduced six new artificial intelligence applications designed to accelerate
the deployment of AI across industrial and embedded environments. Covering areas such as smart vending, vision analytics, and acoustic monitoring, the latest additions further strengthen SECO’s edge AI ecosystem, helping companies bring intelligent capabilities into production faster and more efficiently.
The new application release includes: • Object detection – vending machine: An AI-powered object detection solution tailored for smart vending systems, enabling real-time recognition of products and interactions to optimise inventory.
• Emotion recognition: A deep learning– based emotion detection system that analyses facial expressions to provide adaptive user experiences, personalised engagement, and human–machine feedback in vending environments.
• Facial attribute detection with qualcomm: An application leveraging Qualcomm AI hardware acceleration to identify facial attributes, offering efficient, privacy-
preserving analytics for embedded edge systems.
• Background removal in industrial field: An advanced vision model for precise segmentation and background removal, enabling improved quality control, safety monitoring, and process automation.
• Audio classification – industrial noise environments: A robust sound classification application that distinguishes between different types of industrial noise, supporting preventive maintenance, anomaly detection, and acoustic monitoring in complex environments.
• Inception – training experience: A flexible training experience based on the Inception architecture, allowing users to experiment, retrain, and validate models in their preferred environment, and then deploy them on SECO hardware.
“Our goal is to make AI deployment at
the edge as straightforward and reliable as possible,” says Fausto Di Segni, head of IoT and AI at SECO. “By combining a growing portfolio of validated applications with the Clea Framework and the resources of our Developer Centre, we help companies
How automated coffee shapes the year ahead
A key trend for the coming year is the rise of automated coffee systems designed to replicate café-quality drinks in a range of settings. Evoca’s decision to extend the Gaggia brand across its table-top machines
reflects this growing demand for higher- quality, self-serve options. The use of the Gaggia name connects the
range to the heritage of Giovanni Achille Gaggia, who patented his ‘sistema lampo’ brewing system in 1938. His approach — using pressurised water rather than steam — helped establish the modern style of espresso that underpins many of today’s popular drinks. Evoca’s G-Line series machines are built
to deliver consistent drinks without a barista and are positioned to meet the needs of a variety of locations. The line currently includes models with
differing capacities. The G300 is designed for higher-volume sites, offering a daily output of up to 200 cups, making it suitable
accelerate their AI journey from concept to production, while ensuring full compatibility with existing ecosystems.” All SECO applications are validated for deployment across platforms from Intel, Qualcomm, NXP, AMD, Rockchip, and MediaTek, supported by enterprise-grade Long-Term Support for operational stability and seamless integration. The new AI applications are now available on the SECO Application Hub, with technical details and documentation available through the SECO Developer Centre and the opportunity for a free trial of the Clea Framework.
for larger offices, hospitality settings and other busy venues. The smaller G100 provides capacity for around 100 cups per day and has been developed with compact spaces in mind; the 31cm-wide unit is available in both fresh-milk and powdered- milk versions. It also carries an A-Class energy rating, reflecting growing operator interest in efficiency and running costs. Evoca plans to expand the range further in
2026 with the introduction of the G500 and G700, both aimed at enhancing fresh-milk performance and broadening choice for operators reviewing their hot-drink provision. With workplace catering continuing to adapt post-pandemic, equipment suppliers are positioning self-serve coffee systems as a way for businesses to improve on-site amenities and respond to staff expectations for higher-quality beverages.
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