Trash Disposal Mechanism: The chute, angled at 140°, regulates the size of the waste that can be deposited, allowing typical trash like food containers and bottles while preventing larger, longer items from entering. The lower flap is also angled in a certain way such that as the chute is being closed, items will be deposited into the inner bin.
Filling Detection: Each bin is equipped with a set of three ultrasonic sensors and a weight sensor to detect when the bin is full. The ultrasonic sensors monitor the trash level, and when two out of three sensors detect readings outside their ‘expected values’ for five consecutive readings, the bin is considered full. Alternatively, the weight sensor triggers a full-bin status if the weight exceeds 4 kg with a stable reading over five measurements within a 200 g tolerance.
Bin Locking and Unlocking: Once a bin is detected as full, an electromagnetic lock secures the bin to prevent further use. At the same time, the second bin in the cluster automatically unlocks, ensuring users can continue disposing of trash without overflow. This inter-bin communication guarantees only one bin is locked at a time, maintaining continuous waste disposal availability.
Mobile App Integration: The accompanying mobile app allows cleaners to monitor bin status and control the bin system. On the app’s homepage, cleaners can quickly review the full status of all bins within the mall, organized by levels. Clusters of bins are color-coded (green, orange, red) based on their fullness, and the “view in map” button provides a visual representation of bin locations on the floor plan. Clicking on a cluster reveals detailed information, allowing cleaners to see which bins are full and access each bin’s information page.
Bin Information and Control: On the app, each bin’s information page displays its current full status, whether it is locked or unlocked, the weight of the trash, and whether the ultrasonic sensors deem it full. Cleaners can take a live picture of the bin contents to verify if it’s truly full, especially in cases where trash might obstruct the sensors. False positive full reports can be managed through the auto-lock function, which cleaners can disable if necessary. When auto-lock is disabled, bins can be manually locked and unlocked as needed. Once again, once one bin is locked, the other in the same cluster will automatically unlock.