At CES, AI-powered rubbish vans cut back battery hearth danger
By John BIERS
Las Vegas (AFP) Jan 10, 2025
From laptops to EVs, lithium-ion batteries have fueled phenomenal progress within the twenty first century, however companies wrestle with a big draw back: elevated hearth danger.
At this yr’s Client Electronics Present (CES), firms unveiled a next-generation rubbish truck designed to detect these extremely flammable batteries.
The innovation comes as careless disposal of batteries from smartphones, electrical toothbrushes, and different devices has turn into an acute downside at recycling facilities. The proprietor of a New Jersey recycling plant that caught hearth early Thursday pointed to the batteries as a probable trigger.
In the USA, throughout the trade, “a few recycling facilities burn down yearly,” stated Jon Vander Ark, chief govt of waste administration firm Republic Companies.
Republic showcased their resolution at CES: a state-of-the-art rubbish truck constructed by industrial firm Oshkosh that screens for the batteries.
The automobile resembles a traditional rubbish truck, weighing in at greater than 41,000 kilos and able to carrying 9 tons of cargo. However it’s totally electrical and outfitted with AI software program that scans for downside refuse in rubbish and recycling masses.
Whereas Republic already makes use of detection methods at recycling services, batteries typically slip by.
If undetected, a forklift can run over a small battery and begin a hearth, Vander Ark advised AFP.
The brand new vans permit drivers to flag collections containing batteries as delicate masses earlier than they attain recycling vegetation.
“Getting that out of the stream is of giant worth to us,” stated Vander Ark.
– Worth in trash –
The Oshkosh sales space additionally showcased electrical arm expertise that may pace up trash collections and software program that identifies non-recyclable contamination in recycling bins.
The spiffed-up autos present a font of operational knowledge that may make higher use of a trash driver’s time, stated Oshkosh CEO John Pfeifer.
Corporations can pinpoint contamination sources to coach prospects or nice repeat offenders, he defined.
The vans even seize video proof when drivers cannot entry bins as a consequence of blocked pickup spots.
“When a buyer asks, ‘Why did not you choose me up?’…we now have video proof,” stated Vander Ark.
He famous that waste administration is especially well-suited for electrification since vans usually journey shorter distances per shift, eliminating the vary issues that always deter on a regular basis EV shoppers.
The quieter electrical vans might additionally permit for earlier morning collections when site visitors is lighter, whereas their in a single day charging functionality ensures operational readiness.
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