Java Object Oriented Analysis and Design Problem - Vending Machine Part 2

This is the second part of Java tutorial to show how to create Vending Machine in Java. In the first part, we have discussed problem statement and the solution itself, but unit testing and design document was still pending, which we'll see in this article. As I said, there are multiple ways to implement Vending machine in Java e.g. you could have easily used state design pattern to implement a vending machine, in fact, it's one of the best examples of State design pattern. Vending machine behaves differently on different states e.g. return a product if the machine is not empty, otherwise, it just returns coins, so it ideally fits in state design pattern. Though, In our solution, I have not used the state design pattern but have just coded the solution with an if else block. This is easier because of a limited number of state and not many state transition but in more real world scenario, state design pattern is better as it uses Polymorphism and removes the logic we have put inside the if-else block.

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Design a Vending Machine in Java - Interview Question

How do you design a Vending Machine in Java? is one of the good Java interview questions mostly asked at Senior level Java developer Interviews. In a typical coding interview, you will be given a problem statement to develop a vending machine and within a limited time, usually, 2 to 3 hours you need to produce design document, working code and unit test in Java. One of the key advantages of such Java interviews is that you can test many essential skills or a candidate in one go. In order to complete the design, coding, and unit testing of a Vending machine, a candidate needs to be really good in all three departments. By the way, this kind of real world problem is also a good exercise to improve your object-oriented analysis and design skills (see here), which is very important if you want to become a good application developer.

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