Smart containers can report that they are full. Prague will buy six thousand of them
So far, around 450 containers in Prague have received sensors in the pilot program. “The sensors are located in the middle of the container to take up its entire volume. The sensor sends a signal downwards, which hits the waste and bounces back to the sensor, “explains Ondřej Šárovec’s principle of dividing the innovative and pilot projects of the ICT Operator.
Based on the signal’s flight time and depth knowledge, the sensor can calculate what percentage of the container is currently full. The processed data is then sent by the company every three hours to municipal service employees, who know how often to export the container.
A container is measured every three hours by a special sensor located in the container.
Photo: News
“This should prevent the containers from being exported even though they are still largely empty, or, conversely, when they are overfilled for a long time and waste accumulates around the containers,” explains the meaning of the Šárovec project. Six thousand sensors will be placed primarily in underground containers with a bottom dump. It is with them that waste collection is the most expensive in terms of time and money.
“Using the installed sensors, the city wants to monitor the real filling of the collection containers before collection and optimize its expenses associated with providing this service. From a financial point of view, these are investments whose purpose is to reduce the city’s operating costs, “says Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib about the project.
By expanding the project, the city wants to save time and money, especially for the collection of underground containers.
Photo: News
The purchase price of one sensor is around 2,500 crowns, but the city could save 1,200 crowns every year. People can also find what types of sorted waste are at the site, how full the containers are and how often the garbage trucks will export them in the Moje Praha mobile application.