{"id":439625,"date":"2023-03-27T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-27T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/innovationorigins.com\/?p=439625"},"modified":"2023-03-27T15:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T13:00:00","slug":"ai-sensor-makes-your-bin-smart-and-helps-you-sort-waste","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/ai-sensor-makes-your-bin-smart-and-helps-you-sort-waste\/","title":{"rendered":"AI sensor makes your bin smart and helps you sort waste"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The first ever waste disposal ordinance in history came from the then-king of the Two Sicilies, Ferdinand II of Bourbon. In 1832, he issued a decree to rule garbage management, urging citizens to separate trash and imposing severe fines on those who infringed it. One hundred ninety-one years later, waste management is still a problem we must handle.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Inspired by king Ferdinand, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.re-learn.eu\/\">ReLearn<\/a> designed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.re-learn.eu\/nando\/\">NANDO<\/a>, an AI-powered sensor that distinguishes between waste streams. It can be installed on regular bins, notifying about recycling rates and waste quantities. As NANDO mainly targets companies, it engages people in separating garbage while sparking awareness of product materials and best recycling practices. Fabrizio Custorella is one of the company co-founders and spoke to Innovation Origins for this installment of our <a href=\"https:\/\/innovationorigins.com\/en\/tag\/start-up-of-the-day\/\">Start-up of the day series<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"vlp-link-container vlp-layout-basic wp-block-visual-link-preview-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/with-appacar-the-shared-car-should-become-more-comfortable-than-owning-a-car-yourself\/\" class=\"vlp-link\" title=\"With Appacar, the shared car should become more comfortable than owning a car yourself\"><\/a><div class=\"vlp-layout-zone-side\"><div class=\"vlp-block-2 vlp-link-image\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"vlp-layout-zone-main\"><div class=\"vlp-block-0 vlp-link-title\">With Appacar, the shared car should become more comfortable than owning a car yourself<\/div><div class=\"vlp-block-1 vlp-link-summary\">Greenwheels, Share Now and MyWheels: there is at least one shared car parkeed on every street in Amsterdam. Walking down these streets, one automatically gets &hellip; <a href=\"\">Continued<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What prompted you to start the company?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe other founders and I come from the South of Italy, but we all studied in Turin. By traveling across the country for study and then for work reasons, we got aware of how waste was a problem.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We noticed that rubbish collection didn\u2019t work and people didn\u2019t know how to dispose of waste properly. Education was missing, leading to mistakes in sorting waste and impacting recycling rates. Therefore, our pressing need was to find a solution to help people sort their garbage correctly and measure their footprint. \u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What solution did you come up with?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cInitially, we developed a bin that sorted rubbish by itself. However, we realized that it didn\u2019t tackle the educational problem. The container sorted waste on behalf of people, but it wasn\u2019t helping them learn how to separate garbage. If you develop a product that does something for the user, one will never understand the problem. We wanted to raise awareness of the different kinds of materials and how each impacts the environment. One can then decide what to buy and what materials to use. Furthermore, selling smart bins entailed high business costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a result, we thought of transforming existing wastebins into smart ones, helping users to sort waste instead of having a robot that would do this task for them. That is how our waste sensor was born.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Here comes NANDO, then. How does it work?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe start by designing NANDO depending on our customers\u2019 waste bins. As we now have more experience, we are working on a standard version of our waste sensor. NANDO takes pictures of the wastebin and, through AI, can recognize what is being thrown daily. In doing so, it detects the most common mistakes in sorting waste also displays them &#8211; alongside recycling rates &#8211; in a tablet installed above the containers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additionally, we can engage employees in circular challenges, making different floors or buildings of the same company compete against each other to reduce waste. Companies receive all data on waste production, tracking their performance on the way to zero waste targets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery aligncenter has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-id=\"439636\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.ioplus.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/DSC_8652-1-1004x670.png\" alt=\"waste sensor\" class=\"wp-image-439636\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-id=\"439629\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.ioplus.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Prospettica-1-1004x1004.png\" alt=\"waste sensor\" class=\"wp-image-439629\"\/><\/figure>\n<figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-caption wp-element-caption\">On the left, ReLearn&#8217;s founders, on the right a close-up of NANDO. &#8211; \u00a9 ReLearn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What features will you implement?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe are implementing additional features on our waste sensor, and real-time feedback is one of them. Rather than simply categorizing the mistake in the database, the bin will immediately inform the user. In addition, we are developing a feature that will allow scanning waste before throwing it to tell the user where to toss it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition, we are working in the industrial waste sector too. In that respect, we can detect container contamination and fullness levels to streamline emptying processes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"vlp-link-container vlp-layout-basic wp-block-visual-link-preview-link advgb-dyn-d09f47d6\"><a href=\"https:\/\/innovationorigins.com\/en\/tag\/start-up-of-the-day\/\" class=\"vlp-link\" title=\"Start-up of the day archive - Innovation Origins\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><div class=\"vlp-layout-zone-side\"><div class=\"vlp-block-2 vlp-link-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/innovationorigins.com\/app\/uploads\/2023\/02\/pc-youtube-website-678x450.jpg\" style=\"max-width: 150px; max-height: 150px\" \/><\/div><\/div><div class=\"vlp-layout-zone-main\"><div class=\"vlp-block-0 vlp-link-title\">Start-up of the day archive &#8211; Innovation Origins<\/div><div class=\"vlp-block-1 vlp-link-summary\">Spread all over Europe, thousands of start-ups have the most innovative ideas. Innovation Origins puts them in the spotlight every day.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How is the company doing now?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s been a year since NANDO entered the market. Currently, we operate in three countries: the United Kingdom, Italy, and Denmark, as we have eighteen customers. It\u2019s a growth moment for us. Firms understood our innovation&#8217;s potential, allowing them to monitor and reduce trash production. As ReLearn, we are the first company to offer a tool to accurately measure waste production.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What goals do you want to achieve?<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Expanding into more European countries is our primary goal. Parallel to that, we want to target the industrial recycling sector more while consolidating our presence in the commercial garbage sector. In the future, we\u2019d also like to cater to hospitals, as healthcare waste management is still problematic.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The first ever waste disposal ordinance in history came from the then-king of the Two Sicilies, Ferdinand II of Bourbon. In 1832, he issued a decree to rule garbage management, urging citizens to separate trash and imposing severe fines on those who infringed it. One hundred ninety-one years later, waste management is still a problem [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2084,"featured_media":492783,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"views\/single-startup.blade.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3009],"tags":[62872,76813,35348,35517],"location":[47626],"article_type":[6758],"serie":[],"archives":[],"internal_archives":[],"reboot-archive":[],"class_list":["post-439625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-startup","tag-real-time-warning-system","tag-relearn","tag-start-up-of-the-day","tag-waste-management","location-italy","article_type-interview"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":{"subtitle":"Every day we put a start-up in the spotlight. Today it\u2019s the Italian ReLearn. ","text_display_homepage":false},"author_meta":{"display_name":"Mauro Mereu","author_link":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/author\/mauro-mereu\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Copy-of-SITO-4.0-X-immagini-40.png","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/category\/startup\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Start-ups<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Start-ups<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/category\/startup\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">real-time warning system<\/a>","<a href=\"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/category\/startup\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">ReLEarn<\/a>","<a href=\"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/category\/startup\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Start-up of the day<\/a>","<a href=\"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/category\/startup\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">waste management<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">real-time warning system<\/span>","<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">ReLEarn<\/span>","<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Start-up of the day<\/span>","<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">waste management<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":"0","relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 3 years ago","modified":"Updated 3 years ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on March 27, 2023","modified":"Updated on March 27, 2023"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on March 27, 2023 3:00 pm","modified":"Updated on March 27, 2023 3:00 pm"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2084"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=439625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/492783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=439625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"article_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_type?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"serie","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/serie?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"archives","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/archives?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"internal_archives","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal_archives?post=439625"},{"taxonomy":"reboot-archive","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/reboot-archive?post=439625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}