SMART Hopper, SMART Coin System and Twin SCS: how to choose the right type for the Polish currency

SMART Hopper, SMART Coin System and Twin SCS in version 4 currently support several dozen currency sets worldwide. Each of these devices, however, physically belongs to one of several hardware types, labelled E, F, G or H. It's the type, not just the loaded currency dataset, that determines whether coins run through the mechanism without jamming. Here's what to check before you buy, especially with second-hand units or when exporting machines abroad.

A currency dataset is not the same as a hardware type

SMART Coin System and Twin SCS, the dual SCS configuration used for high-volume self-checkout tills, run on the same coin counting and pay-out mechanism as SMART Hopper. Everything below about types applies equally to all three devices.

The manufacturer distinguishes between two things that are easy to confuse. The currency dataset is the software layer: information telling the device which denominations of a given currency to recognise and pay out. The hardware type is the physical configuration of the mechanism, matched to the coin dimensions used in a given region. Across the whole product range, accepted coins run from 18 to 28.5 mm in diameter and 1.65 to 3.2 mm in thickness, but each type has its own coin feeder path insert, built for a specific range within those limits. That insert is what physically separates one type from another.

For a device to work correctly, both layers need to match. The manufacturer even separates the two at the diagnostics level: a dataset mismatch is fixed by loading the correct file, but a hardware type mismatch means connecting a different unit entirely. Reflashing the firmware won't fix it. A coin larger than the dataset expects can also jam the recesses of the feeder disc, a cause of coin jams the manufacturer documents directly.

We see this pattern regularly. A customer reports a quality problem with a unit: frequent jams, misread denominations, constant need to clean the mechanism. On inspection, it turns out the unit is a completely different type than the zloty requires. The equipment isn't faulty. It was simply never built to work with the Polish currency.

Type E and the Polish currency: what else it covers

In the current device generation, firmware 1.42, the Polish currency is type E. The manufacturer offers two dataset variants for Poland.

The difference comes down to the 5 grosz coin: some installations handle it, some skip it.

The same type E also covers two other currencies: the Romanian leu (RON01034) and the euro, in four denomination variants, ranging from the full set of eight coins (EUR01074) to a version without the lowest denominations (EUR10074). For a machine manufacturer selling the same platform to Poland, Romania and the eurozone, that's a useful fact: one hardware type of hopper covers all three markets. Only the loaded dataset changes at the device configuration stage. There's no need to replace the mechanism.

Type E is the standard configuration you can order directly from ViewPro. Besides type E, the manufacturer's current line-up includes three more types. Type F is the largest group, with twenty-five currency sets, including Hungary, Ukraine, Denmark, Brazil, Australia and Czechia. Type G covers, among others, the US dollar, the Canadian dollar, the Swiss franc and the Thai baht. Type H is the British pound, across all three denomination variants. If your machines are heading to any of these markets, we can source the right type for you on special order.

It's worth adding that the exact version code decides compatibility, not just the country name. The Turkish lira currently has two variants: TRY10046 in type F and TRY05047 in type G, differing in their set of denominations. Same currency, two different hardware types, depending on which denominations the unit needs to handle.

The secondary market: when saving money upfront costs more in service calls

There's a fair amount of used SMART Hopper, SCS and Twin SCS units in circulation, coming from fleets in other countries or from decommissioned installations. The price can be tempting, but the hardware type stays whatever it was built as at the factory, regardless of which dataset someone loads onto it afterwards.

If a second-hand unit is a different type than E, loading a Polish dataset won't fix the mechanical mismatch. Coins with dimensions outside the range the type was physically built for will jam the recesses of the feeder disc or produce misread denominations. In a vending machine, a car wash or a gaming cabinet, that means more frequent service visits, downtime, and customers who don't get their change. A cheaper unit upfront quickly becomes more expensive to run than new equipment ordered in the correct type from the start.

Version 3 and version 4: same letter, different device

Older units hide a separate trap. The previous generation, SMART Hopper 3, firmware 6.55, used a different type assignment than the current one, firmware 1.42. In version 3, the Polish currency wasn't type E. It was type F.

Poland isn't an isolated case. The entire type classification was reworked between generations. Most currencies that used to be type A moved to type F in version 4. The British pound got a brand new, separate type H, which didn't exist in version 3. Type E itself, back in version 3, covered only one euro variant. The other euro variants were type A at the time.

That means the type letter alone, on an older unit, tells you nothing about compatibility until you know which generation it comes from. Buying a used hopper means knowing the exact version code and firmware number, not just the type letter printed on the housing or listed in a sales ad.

What to check before you pay for a unit

A few steps that save trouble later.

• Check the exact version code on the rating plate or in the device documentation, not just the type letter.
• Ask for the firmware number, especially with second-hand equipment. Version 3 and version 4 use different type assignments for the same currencies.
• When buying a used unit, ask the seller to confirm the version code in writing before you pay.
• When ordering a new unit for the Polish market, you'll get type E as standard. That's ViewPro's default configuration for domestic customers.
• When planning to export machines, work out the target markets first, then check whether a single type E covers them or whether you'll need several types on special order.

ViewPro is currently the only official Trading Partner of Innovative Technology in Poland, and our team has been trained directly by the manufacturer. That means we can verify type and dataset compatibility before you place an order, for both new and second-hand equipment.

Check it with us before you buy

Before you buy a SMART Hopper, SMART Coin System or Twin SCS, especially second-hand, verify it with us. Send us the version code from the rating plate, or tell us which market and currency the unit needs to serve. We'll check compatibility before you pay for equipment that might not fit your installation.