✔ 最佳答案
The first vending machine is believed to have been invented by Hero of Alexandria, a first-century inventor. His machine accepted a coin and then dispensed a fixed amount of holy water. When the coin was deposited, it fell upon a pan attached to a lever. The lever opened up a valve which let some water flow out. The pan continued to tilt with the weight of the coin until it fell off, at which point a counter-weight would snap the lever back up and turn off the valve.
圖片參考:
http://www.underthepier.com/images/19_temple-urn.gif
Note: Alexandria is actually a engineer and geometer.
See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_of_Alexandria