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IoT and waste management:

Revolutionizing an old
industry
KRISTINA HEINZE 2 YEARS AGO

Experts estimate 50 billion connected

devices by 2020. We typically think of the
Internet of Things (IoT) in terms of
autonomous cars, fitness wearables and
smart homes, but some of the best
applications of IoT technology are in fields
that are industrial and intensely practical.
One such example is waste management.

The U.S. generates nearly 230 million tons

of trash every year – that’s 4.6 pounds of
waste per person, per day. With strained
budgets and growing populations, most
nations are facing a crisis that keeps
growing.

But there is a resolution: sustainability-

focused IoT companies look at the waste
crisis as both a challenge and as an
opportunity to invent solutions that will
reduce costs and increase efficiency. In
fact, they’ve already made a number of
significant advancements by innovating
with sensor technology.

Waste Edge Compactor Mo…

Sensor technology and

route optimization
The ultrasonic level sensor is one type of
sensor that IoT companies have put to
good use. Initially designed to measure
slurries and liquids, a number of
businesses and municipalities are applying
the sensor to measure solid waste as well.
Ultrasonic level sensors work by
emitting acoustic waves and then listening
for an echo. Upon reaching a level surface,
the waves will reflect back to the sensor
with a measurement reading – similar to
the process of echolocation. Think of it as a
radar system that tracks the amount of
garbage in a trash can.

See also: What is the Internet of Things?

One IoT company that specializes in

remote monitoring systems, SmartBin, is
using ultrasonic level sensor technology to
help Australia-based Corio Waste
Management reduce
unnecessary collection trips. Corio’s
haulers collect trash from bins spread
across distances that range from six to
nine miles. After a few months on the job,
Corio realized they were wasting a
significant amount of financial and
environmental resources by sending trucks
out to trash bins that were partially full or,
at times, entirely empty.

To make Corio’s routes more efficient,

SmartBin installed fill-level sensors into
the lids of waste containers across the
region, giving them the tools to track the
amount of garbage in each bin. With this
information, Corio planned their pickup
routes around the bins that were near-full
and needed pickup, reducing their travel
times, costs and fuel expenditure.

A connected system for

waste
Manually keeping track of pickup routes
and fill-levels are expensive and time-
consuming procedures. Realizing that a
connected network of sensors would help
waste management and other disposal
services track their activities, Chicago-
based OnePlus Systems developed
a universal sensor and software system to
monitor compactor fullness, collection
routes and pickup histories.

By using wireless machine-to- machine

(M2M) communication technology,
OnePlus’ universal waste monitoring
system can take on the role of an entire
operations team by itself. The monitoring
system is connected to a network of
sensors that can “speak” – or share
information — with each other. For
example, the system uses connected
sensors to determine which trash bins are
full, and, without any human interaction,
will automatically call for a pickup, saving
time and slashing costs.

Through the use of sensors and M2M

devices, companies like OnePlus and
SmartBin can continue to refine IoT
technology to improve transit routes,
sustainability, and cost efficiency for waste
management services all over the world.

The author is a partner at ParkerGale, a

private equity firm that acquires profitable,
founder-owned software and technology-
enabled services companies and helps them
with their product development, sales, and
growth strategy. Disclosure: ParkerGale has
an investment in OnePlus Corp.

CATEGORIES: INDUSTRIAL, SMART CITIES

TAGS: CORIO, INTERNET OF THINGS, IOT, ONEPLUS, PARKERGALE,

SMARTBIN, WASTE MANAGEMENT

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