# Capsule Toy Machine: How It Works Inside

Pay, crank, shake and open a capsule toy machine and watch its coin wheel, gears, dispensing wheel and chute work inside

By Numa

Topic: Machines

[Open the interactive Jig](https://ask.jig.com/j/J8mJrbp65kxS)

## Guide

### 1. A machine full of surprises

A capsule toy machine swaps one coin for one surprise\. There is no motor and no plug: your hand does all the work\. Tap the clear globe to give it a shake, or drag the paper to look around\.

A common capsule is about 5 centimetres across, a little bigger than a golf ball\.

### 2. Pay first

Until a coin is inside, the crank is locked, so try it and feel it stop\. Tap the coin on the floor or press the button\. The coin stands on its edge to fit the narrow slot, then drops into a notch in the coin wheel\. That wheel sits on the shaft, the metal rod the crank turns\.

In Japan these machines usually take 100 to 500 yen, with no change given\.

### 3. Turn the crank

Drag the blue handle round clockwise, one full turn\. The coin wheel carries your coin round, and a pair of gears passes the turn up to the dispensing wheel\. A ratchet stops the crank going backwards, so the coin cannot be pulled back out\.

The red glow shows where your push travels: handle, shaft, gears, then the wheel\.

### 4. The wheel picks at random

The wheel under the capsules has two pockets\. Gravity drops whichever capsule happens to be on top into the empty pocket at the back\. Half a turn later that pocket slides under the hood, a little roof that keeps the other capsules off, and reaches the hole\.

The machine cannot see or choose the capsule\. That is why every turn is a surprise\.

### 5. One capsule at a time

Over the hole, the capsule drops through a soft rubber sleeve into a slanted chute\. The sleeve and the hood let only one capsule through\. It rolls down into the pocket behind the flap, and the coin falls into the coin box\.

The pocket must match the capsule size, so a big capsule never fits a small machine\.

### 6. Take your prize

Tap the blue flap, or press the button\. The flap swings up, the capsule rolls out and its two halves pull apart\. The clear lid lets you peek, while the coloured half hides the toy until it opens\.

### 7. Light it up

The mechanism needs no power, but some machines add lights to catch your eye\. Switch them on and watch electric current flow from the battery box, up the wire, to the LED strip under the globe\.

### 8. Your turn

Everything works now\. Tap the stack of coins to pay again, then turn the crank, shake the globe and open the flap as many times as you like\. Each turn gives a new surprise colour\.

The see\-through walls are only for you\. A real machine hides all of this inside\.