Facts and data on pictograms
Synonyms / Other Terms Used
Automat, Coin-operated Machine
Category
Commercial Facilities, Services, Travel
Message / Function
To indicate the location of automated facilities, where goods or services can be obtained against payment
| Source | Description | |
|---|---|---|
 |
Kapitzki | Hand in outline holding coin |
 |
Tern | Hand inserting coin into slot |
 1) |
ÖNORM A 3011 | Hand in outline inserting coin into slot |
 |
Renner | Hand inserting coins into slot |
 |
Picto'grafics | Hand holding coin next to slot in rectangle |
 |
Dreyfuss | Hand holding coin above slot in rectangle, crossed knife and fork inside of this rectangle |
 2) |
ON Testdesign | Hand in outline inserting coin into slot, rectangle with two products below |
 |
Kapitzki | Hand in outline holding coin, two framed products above |
 |
ISO 7001 | Bottle, snack bag, coin inserted into a slot at a 40° angle |
 |
CNIS | Bottle, beverage can, coin inserted into a slot at a 40° angle |
 |
PC | Coint with $ sign, rectangular vending machine with display and drink, output opening below |
 3) |
Pierce | Rectangular vending machine with three products, slot in the middle |
 |
O'72 | Rectangular vending machine with two products, slot right of each product |
 |
Aicher & Krampen |
Rectangular vending machine with glass, slot on top right |
 |
Dreyfuss | Rectangular vending machine with two legs and restaurant pictogram (fork, knife, spoon inside filled circle) |
 |
SVG Repo | Rectangular vending machine with several displays and output opening, two slots indicated on right side |
 |
EJP | Rectangular vending machine with display, dot, and output opening |
 |
HSSS | Human figure, rectangular vending machine with five displays and output opening with object below |
 |
Miraikan | Oblique projection of cup with stripe |
Discussion
The range of pictograms shown in the table above indicates the diversity of variants and image contents available to inform about the location of automated facilities, where goods or services can be obtained against payment. While several renderings focus on showing a hand inserting a coin into a slot, some just display the front view of a vending machine. These elements often are combined with images of products available from the vending machine. No single visual stereotype can be identified.
There is only limited data available concerning symbols or pictograms used to signify Vending Machine or Automat:
Data from a Comprehension Test available for the variants marked 1) to 3) (Brugger, 2000) indicate that variants showing a hand inserting a coin into a slot in combination with individual products reach good comprehension: The testdesign marked 2) elicited 88 % responses with the word 'Automat'. The corresponding numbers for the other two variants are 45 % and 43 %.
Showing a hand inserting a coin into a slot requires sufficient context information. With the text 'Inside a railway station' as context information the pictogram marked 1) reached a score of 59.8 according to ISO 9186:2000 and responses included answers like 'Luggage lockers' and 'Coin slot'.
Some of the responses to the variant marked 3) like 'Snacks' or 'Provisions' may be connected to correct understanding, but answers like 'Buffet' or 'Restaurant' seem somewhat far away from the intended message.
Showing a Kaiser roll as in the pictogram marked 2) elicited wrong answers like 'Fan' and 'Washing machine' among older respondents. It should be taken care not to show local products if the general public is expected to understand a pictogram.
In a Matching Test with a set of 29 symbols (Zwaga & Boersema, 1983) the variant from the Dutch Railways (almost identical with the variant labeled Dreyfuss) reached 64 % correct responses as 'Food vending machine'. Symmetrical confusions with the two referents Buffet and Restaurant happened quite frequently.
The pictogram from the Chinese standard GB/T 10001.1-2012, Public Information Graphical Symbols, labeled CNIS in the table above, seems to convey its message quite well with about 84 % correct responses among Chinese respondents (An & Chan, 2017). No details are available how far answers for this variant were general enough or just had a strong focus on beverages.
Just showing a cup as in the pictogram from the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation Tokyo (Miraikan) may be a hint for availability of water or berverages, but surely not work to indicate the location of automated vending facilities in general.
Recommendations
We suggest to conduct studies comparing more concepts than the ones tested in the papers available, including the variants of Tern and ÖNORM A 3011, but also designs similar to the variant from the Hospitality Symbol Signs System (HSSS). Only on such a basis a clear decision concerning a specific recommendation can be reached.
Tests of pictograms of referent Vending Machine
An, D. & Chan, E.H.W. (2017): Investigating the Comprehension of Public Symbols for Wayfinding in Transit Hubs in China. In: Rau, PL. (eds) Cross-Cultural Design. CCD 2017. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 10281. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57931-3_24
Brugger: Ch. (2000): Verständlichkeitstest ON 2000. Report to the Austrian Standards Institute (ON) dated November 2000, Vienna.
Zwaga, H.J. & Boersema, T. (1983): Evaluation of a set of graphic symbols. Applied Ergonomics, 14, 1, 43-54.
Updated 2024-04-11 by Ch.Brugger