Smart Waste Bin: A New Approach for Waste Management in Large Urban Centers

Solid waste management is a significant worldwide problem, mainly for municipalities located within large urban areas. Efficient waste management is an essential requisite for a clean and safe environment, and keep cities away from the harm caused by the mismanagement of solid waste produced in urban centers. There are many technologies for managing waste collection as well as recycling, but among the studied related works, none addresses the citizen's perspective, focusing only on the collection performed by the landowners. This paper proposes an integrated system combining identification through ultrasonic sensors and load cell sensors, location by Global Positioning System (GPS), and communication through Global System of Mobile Communications (GSM) / General Packet Radio Service (GPRS). In other words, everything to provide citizens with a better disposal methodology for waste generated in their homes, besides being easily integrated with the municipal collection service to assist in efficient collection scheduling by promoting optimized routes. The solution is demonstrated, validated, and is ready for use.