The Spanish company Ros Roca has presented its smart waste containers. Their sensors not only communicate when the containers are full of trash but also send a warning if a fire has broken out inside them.

Ros Roca has come up with a smart waste container with a series of sensors that collect data. For example, these sensors are able to measure how much garbage is in the container, which makes it easier for collection companies to plan their routes more efficiently. They also send a warning if a fire may have started inside the container.

The data compiled by the sensors is sent to a cloud database located in a server at the waste collection company or the local municipal authority, thus allowing them to plan collection routes more efficiently. Organic waste must be picked up every day, but for other items such as glass or paper this is not always necessary. Until now, the only way to find out if a container needed to be emptied was to visually inspect it. Now, with these sensors, collection companies have more data at their disposal and can decide what containers need to be emptied and when.

For fire detection, the sensors also collect data about the temperature and presence of any smoke inside the container; what’s more, they can be configured to communicate directly with the closest fire department. The sensors also possess another advantage: they have a system to automatically open for users with reduced mobility (who are given a card or bracelet to activate it), thus helping them to deposit their waste.

The sensors are located within the casing of the containers and cannot be seen from the exterior, in order to prevent vandalism.