Smart Dustbin and The Problem of Waste Mishandling

Every product has a shelf life, but sadly that is not the case with plastics. The fact is that our planet cannot digest plastic. Plastics take around 500 to 1000 years to completely degrade due to the presence of complex polymers. As per the survey conducted by NDTV, India generates around 56 lakh tonnes of plastic waste annually. Experts have estimated that annual waste generation in India will increase to 165 million tonnes by 2030. If we do not change our waste practices now then we will soon be buried in our own muck.

Hence, we feel there is a need for SMART DUSTBIN to remove this problem of waste mishandling from its roots. The main objective for the development of this product are:

• To reduce the waste area for the reduction in waste volume
• To segregate the plastic wastes
• To maintain healthy environment by preventing any occurrence of diseases
• To help the waste collectors to collect easily and segregate different kind of trash
• To help the environment and contribute to restoring its natural beauty and condition

The main aim of the project is to segregate waste at source level to wet, dry and metallic such that waste is not wasted but its value is understood and can be converted to a source of energy, in a cost-effective way. Because of this reason we have come up with our product named SMART DUSTBIN which can be built to work in a very efficient manner.

The process of segregation starts when the Infrared sensor detects the entry of waste on the conveyor belt, after which the conveyor belt starts moving with the help of two pulleys which are powered by two DC motors and controlled by a microcontroller. There are different sensors installed for detecting different types of waste. The first sensor which is used in the SMART DUSTBIN is a proximity sensor which helps in detecting the metallic waste. This sensor emits electromagnetic waves for finding metallic objects in the waste. If the sensor is successful in finding metallic objects in the waste, it automatically changes the direction of the conveyor towards the bin which will collect metals. The second sensor is the moisture sensor which is used for segregating the wet waste from the conveyor. This sensor is installed in such a way that it makes a contact with all the wastes. If there is a spark in the sensor; the microcontroller detects that it is a wet waste and changes the direction of the conveyor towards the wet waste bin. The remaining waste passes through the capacitive sensor which detects the plastic and is programmed to be dropped in the bin for plastic collection.

Procedure

Revenue Model

The market potential of this product will be very high given it is not only made for profit-making but also for society in large. There are countries like Sweden who ran out of trash and ask countries for plastic so that they can keep their recycling plants running and hence our product will play a major role in segregating plastics and sending it to other countries thereby reducing the landfills. Also the metals that are separated can be used as a source of earning.

As we see that these days, dustbins are unorganised because people don’t make efforts to see where the waste is to be disposed, they are also not labelled in order to differentiate it. There is a big problem of mixing waste therefore the reuse or recycle of these wastes will be difficult and there will be an increase in environmental pollution. So, there are chances for this product to flourish in the market.

As we see that these days, dustbins are unorganized because people don’t make efforts to see where the waste is to be disposed, they are also not labelled in order to differentiate it. There is a big problem of mixing waste therefore the reuse or recycle of this waste will be difficult and there will be an increase in environmental pollution. So the market potential of this product will be very high given it is not only made for profit-making but for society at large.