Smart Dustbin

Smart Dustbin

Image: Rubbish bins in Adelaide 01.jpg by AlphaLemur via Wikimedia Commons, CC0

How It Works

• An ultrasonic or IR sensor mounted at the front of the bin continuously checks for nearby motion within a short detection range.
• When a hand or object comes within range, the controller triggers a servo motor connected to the lid hinge, opening it.
• After a short delay with no detected motion, the controller commands the servo to close the lid again automatically.
• The detection range is tuned so the lid only responds to someone actually at the bin, not general nearby movement.

Components

Arduino Uno/Nano
Ultrasonic sensor (HC-SR04) or IR proximity sensor
Servo motor (lid mechanism)
Battery pack
Dustbin housing with hinge mount

Applications

• Public and office waste bins
• Kitchen and hospital hygiene-sensitive waste disposal
• General demonstration of sensor-servo automation

Advantages

• Fully touchless lid operation improves hygiene
• Automatic close after use, no lid left open
• Low-cost retrofit onto an existing bin

Sample Code — Motion-Triggered Lid Control

// Simplified smart dustbin lid control - Arduino
#include 
Servo lidServo;
#define TRIG 9
#define ECHO 10
unsigned long lastDetected = 0;

long readDistanceCM() {
  digitalWrite(TRIG, LOW); delayMicroseconds(2);
  digitalWrite(TRIG, HIGH); delayMicroseconds(10);
  digitalWrite(TRIG, LOW);
  return pulseIn(ECHO, HIGH) * 0.034 / 2;
}

void setup() {
  pinMode(TRIG, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(ECHO, INPUT);
  lidServo.attach(6);
  lidServo.write(0); // closed
}

void loop() {
  if (readDistanceCM() < 20) {
    lidServo.write(90); // open
    lastDetected = millis();
  } else if (millis() - lastDetected > 3000) {
    lidServo.write(0);  // close after 3s idle
  }
}

Related Research

• Smart Dustbin Monitoring System using Arduino UNO — IJERT