Container deposit system solution to Australia’s war on waste
Adelaide-based technology and engineering company SAGE Automation is increasing production of its smart container deposit systems on the back of increased demand from Queensland. The machines were developed by SAGE Automation and the University of South Australia for South Australian company Container Deposit Systems(CDS) to help decrease Australia’s landfill. South Australia has led the country in recycling, introducing a container refund scheme in 1977, but other Australian states have only just begun to refund bottles and containers. Since Queensland launched its Containers for Change scheme in November 2018, CDS has recorded a rise from 32,000 to 230,000 containers per day through its 16 Semi Auto Return Terminals (ART) at private recyclers across six sites. The terminals allow customers to return deposit cans, plastic bottles and glass in any condition for a 10c-per-container refund. More than 344 million containers have been returned to date since the scheme commenced late last year. The ARTs identify and sort containers by integrating Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technology and a vision counting and sorting system developed by SAGE over two years. A recycling depot employee loads the mixed containers onto a vision and sorting system hopper that uses advanced vision technology to count up to 350 containers per minute without the need for coding or labelling. The containers are counted in real time for a predicted refund sum that customers can view on a TV screen at most facilities. Conveyer belts, electric motors and spinning discs sort the containers by separating common recyclables like metals, plastics and glass. The machines have seen thousands of images of containers and can identify different container types, including unwanted materials. The containers are ready to be recycled once compressed air pushes them into specific categorised cages. The entire process takes only a few minutes and a refund receipt […]