Development of the Metal and Non-Metal Waste Sorting System Design by using an Arduino Uno

Abstract

A material is waste if it has been utilised and no longer desired. Waste needs to be appropriately managed and disposed of. However, most of the waste is not effectively managed and disposed of. As a result, it has brought up certain difficulties, such as environmental pollution, which can affect human health. Every year, more waste is produced around the world, and not all parties are aware of the importance of maintaining environmental cleanliness by making solid waste segregation a daily practise. In this regard, several initiatives have been taken by the government, such as introducing various campaigns towards a better environment, such as the 3R concept (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) as well as the solid waste separation campaign. This paper presents the design and development process of a waste sorting system that can separate metal and non-metal materials by using an Arduino UNO. The benefit of this system is that it has a notification system that may alert the person or entity in charge when the trash in the bins is full. The system's design and development go through four major phases. Phase 1 is the design of the circuit, Phase 2 is the development of the Arduino Uno coding and simulation; Phase 3 is the assembly, testing, and prototype development; and Phase 4 is the results analysis. This system is a complete success. When detecting metal and non-metal materials, all three input components—the proximity sensor, the IR sensor, and the ultrasonic sensor are fully functional. The servo motor will move the non-metal material to the right side of the bin if the IR sensor detects non-metal material, and if the inductive proximity sensor detects metal material, the servo motor will move the metal material to the left side of the bin, ensuring that waste is separated properly.