We all know that reducing the amount of waste that heads to landfills is extremely important for the environment, but knowing what items can and can’t be recycled isn’t always easy.
To help make it easier for consumers, including hotel guests, to get their trash to the right place, manufacturer MyMatR has introduced automatic sorting waste containers that are designed to help put waste in its proper place at the source of disposal. This helps reduce the location’s carbon footprint and also potentially provides a new revenue source and reduces costs.
The containers, created for public areas like hotel lobbies, casinos, airports, sports arenas, amusement parks and commercial properties, use AI to scan and sort trash into the proper category.
“The way our solution works is that individuals walk up to the container with something to throw away,” said John Starke, founder/CEO, MyMatR. “We have a model with two input holes labeled ‘trash’ and ‘recycling,’ allowing the individual to choose where they think their waste should go.”
Once the item is placed in one of the holes, the device identifies the item with AI and will sort it into the proper bin.
“An individual could deposit a plastic cup into the trash side, but it’s really recyclable, and the system would then physically sort that material into the proper recycling bin,” he said.
The system can be configured to the type of items it will separate for recycling—glass, metal or paper, or a combination of all three.
While the item is being sorted, the unit has a display screen that provides feedback to the user in real time.
“We are creating an engagement and educational solution all at the source of disposal,” said Starke. “We’re gamifying waste disposal. You step right up and play the game. ‘Where do you think the waste goes?’ We’ll tell you if you get it right or not, but we make sure it goes to its proper place. We have an engaging educational solution, but it ensures proper disposal.”
The CEO said that the gamification of the process for consumers is continuing to expand, adding, “One of the things we are working on is even more gamification with QR codes, allowing people to earn points. They get points for using the machine and additional points for sorting items correctly. It gets people to come back to play the game. They may not play it correctly, but they’re already not playing it correctly with other standard waste containers.”
The unit can also teach consumers about separating items that fall into both categories. “It will tell the guest that they threw away things that were both trash and recycling,” he said. “It lets them know to separate the two next time.”
While the containers help educate consumers on the items they are discarding, it also provides data on the waste collected to the owner of the bin in real time.
“No one is collecting this level of waste disposal data,” he said. “Most of the waste data people collect are snapshots or audits. They’ll do a dumpster dive occasionally, but we’re doing dumpster dives constantly, and it’s all virtual. We can take all these images, and we can help our customers understand that this is the value a waste container is now providing you. We’re taking the waste container from a cost product to a knowledge-generating product.”
The data can help the owner understand how people are throwing things away. “If they keep thinking this one product is recyclable, but it’s trash, maybe we need to look into changing the product,” said Starke.
The collected data can also analyze the potential recycling revenue that is sitting in the container at any given time or collected over a time span.
“We do not guarantee that revenue, but we say, ‘Here is the potential because we have properly collected it at the beginning of the waste disposal process,’” he said. “This can also translate into energy savings and carbon-emission reduction. You’re also decreasing your landfill tipping fee costs because you have fewer items going to the landfill.”
The data collection also helps optimize waste collection, according to Starke, who said, “It lets you reduce the number of footsteps that your collection crews might need to take to help make sure that your waste containers don’t overflow and are picked up appropriately.”