Nowadays, many hardware products in waste management sensorics lack important features or sacrifice quality for a lower price.
Sensoneo experts have been active in the smart waste management business already 10 years since 2014, and we are fully aware that producing durable and accurate ultrasonic sensors in large quantities is no easy task. Let’s face the truth: these days, almost any skillful student can produce electronics. However, producing electronic devices that will survive the harsh conditions typical in the world of waste management requires a great deal of valuable experience. We have identified the 6 best and most important features of our ultrasonic bin sensors for remote waste monitoring, which distinguish them from the competition in the smart waste market.
DURATION
Robustness and resistance are key characteristics of our ultrasound sensors for remote fill-level measurement. Our sensors are ultrasonic, robust, water and shock-resistant, fully functional within a wide temperature range, equipped with fire and tilt alerts, and capable of measuring from 3 cm up to 400 cm. Every sensor we produce is made in the EU. We make no compromises on quality, ensuring the top-quality service that our customers deserve.
The resistance of our devices was recently proven in a case that occurred at the stand of the underground bins on New Year’s Eve. The Sensoneo sensor survived the fire and was still working! Waste is often the target of public vandalism. When designing products for the demanding environment of the waste management industry, we consider not only the wide range of temperatures, shocks, and dirt but also these kinds of unpleasant situations. Our ultrasonic sensors with IP69 casing are built to withstand everything necessary to survive in the field. That is why our sensors even survived the fire caused by flares during New Year’s celebrations—and they still measure!
DATA TRANSMISSION
A very important aspect of data-driven waste management, and a challenge in this business, is transferring data from every corner of the country. That is why we do not limit customers to a certain network, because, at the end of the day, customers do not care about the network itself, but solely about the data. Based on this data, they can make quality data-driven decisions. Smart Sensors from Sensoneo can be connected to a variety of IoT networks, including Sigfox, LoRaWAN (also known as Lora), NB-IOT, and the Cat-M wireless technology network. If an Internet of Things network is not the right fit for the customer, transmission via GPRS is a safe option. Payload and network communication are encrypted on two levels, preventing false use of Sensoneo Sensors for DDOS attacks.
LARGE-SCALE
One of the most decisive factors when deploying waste monitoring sensors into containers is reliable production and mass deployment. Producing and installing a single sensor is easy, but imagine producing 1,000 or 5,000 units. Production of sensors in such quantities requires well-tuned processes and sophisticated quality assurance for every single product. Imagine producing 5,000 sensors and having a 5% defect rate. Some might say 5% is negligible, but in this case, it means 100 defective products, which would destroy customer trust in your hardware. Therefore, producing electronic devices for the waste management industry is a huge challenge. Customers should carefully consider from which company they are buying their products.
Sensoneo ultrasonic sensors will also be deployed in the largest smart waste installation worldwide, which will take place in Madrid and include more than 11,000 Sensoneo sensors for waste fill-level monitoring.
VERSATILITY
Sensoneo can monitor any type of waste, including liquids, so customers can feel perfectly comfortable whether they manage mixed waste, clothing, electronics, glass, bio waste, or anything else. Sensoneo can install sensors into any bins, whether they are 1000-liter containers, small city bins, semi-underground containers, or even custom-made bins. Over the past years in the smart waste management business, we have deployed our ultrasonic sensors in all kinds of environments, such as silos, large compactors, boreholes, containers for old books, hospital bins, and even shredding boxes in a bank. We can install the sensors in all of these environments, providing the same benefits to the customer.
Another versatility advantage is in the software: customers should not worry that Sensoneo will disrupt their current waste management systems. It can be easily integrated, allowing customers to combine the benefits they need.
EASY-TO-USE
Deployment of the Sensoneo solution is incredibly simple; if customers prefer, they can even configure the solution themselves. The solution is highly user-friendly and very intuitive, as we consistently hear from our customers. For instance, Juraj Kunak, CEO of textile waste collector Ekocharita, provided a great description of the sensor deployment. Here is what he said about installing Sensoneo ultrasonic sensors in their containers:
“We installed the sensors ourselves following a 2-hour training from Sensoneo, and we were surprised by how easy it was – it takes less than 5 minutes to install and set up the sensor.”
Ekocharita is currently using remote monitoring to detect fill levels in more than 600 bins with the goal of more effective textile waste collection.
CITIZEN ENGAGING
Trash, garbage, cans, or glass bottles scattered around the bin are common issues that our Citizen App aims to tackle by involving people in the waste management cycle. By using our app, available for free on iOS and Android, citizens can easily find the nearest required type of container, see the real-time fill level of the bin, and instantly notify the waste collection company of any problem at any container stand.
In this way, citizens help keep communities cleaner, free of trash, and maintain an efficient waste management cycle. Monitoring bins in cities and towns of all sizes with smart sensors is a wonderful opportunity to engage citizens more in the municipality’s waste policy, motivate them to reduce waste production, and increase their interest in responsible recycling practices. Our developers can even create a custom software solution to better connect with your citizens.
