Trash-Bot

[Jim Thompson]

C'mon, guys, all this stuff is _way_ too complicated. It's not the
_robot_ you need to place accurately, it's the _trash_. I recommend
using Kevlar-reinforced bags, an extra-heavy-duty trash can, a bit of
silicon carbide and water, and a spark plug--ta-daa! the Trash Cannon.
Measure the weight of the trash bag, and adjust the amount of carbide
with a PIC controlling a small motorized hopper. The metering curve
would have to be calibrated experimentally.

Alternatively, if local laws or jumpy neighbours render pyrotechnics
inappropriate, you could use a Trash Trebuchet. This would have the
advantage of a much more predictable trajectory, since the initial
velocity of the payload is more nearly constant than with a gun.

Either of these would solve the navigation problem, since the relative
positions of trash can and curb can be calibrated in advance, and both
would be a bit big and nasty to steal. (Control algorithm suggestions
welcomed.) A small CO2 laser (eye-safe!) could be used to shoo
pedestrians out of the line of fire.

Cheers,

Phil Hobbs

I once toyed with the idea of trash cans sunken into the ground, walk
outside, step on foot-pedal to open lid.

On trash pickup day the cans would rise out of the ground so the
automated trucks could grab them and empty.

...Jim Thompson

 

[Keith Williams]

I once toyed with the idea of trash cans sunken into the ground, walk
outside, step on foot-pedal to open lid.

On trash pickup day the cans would rise out of the ground so the
automated trucks could grab them and empty.

I've seen such things. Forty years ago neighbors had something
similar, though there was nothing automatic in it. I think there
is the problem of someone falling in and breaking a leg; lawyers.

 

[Charlie Edmondson]

I once toyed with the idea of trash cans sunken into the ground, walk
outside, step on foot-pedal to open lid.

On trash pickup day the cans would rise out of the ground so the
automated trucks could grab them and empty.

...Jim Thompson

Hi Jim,
Actually, about 25 years ago, my mom and dad had underground trash cans.
You walked out to the street, stepped on a raised part of the lid, and
dropped your trash into the can. The garbage guys had to open a larger
lid, and lift the whole can (a pretty typical galvanized one) out of the
hole, and then empty it into the truck. Biggest problem was you usually
filled the can, and then had to stack bags up on top. Since this was
Palm Desert, you had to worry about wildlife spreading the trash all
over the place from the bags, but I think that was why they had the
in-ground cans in the first place.

Charlie

 

[Tim Williams]

C'mon, guys, all this stuff is _way_ too complicated. It's not the
_robot_ you need to place accurately, it's the _trash_. I recommend
using Kevlar-reinforced bags, an extra-heavy-duty trash can, a bit of
silicon carbide and water, and a spark plug--ta-daa! the Trash Cannon.

^ ^ ^ ^

SiC + 2H2O > SiO2(passivates) + CH4
(with some insane activation energy around white heat, I'm sure)

Wrong carbide ;-)

Tim ("Damnit Jim I'm a doctor not an escalator")

 

[Michael A. Terrell]

C'mon, guys, all this stuff is _way_ too complicated. It's not the
_robot_ you need to place accurately, it's the _trash_. I recommend
using Kevlar-reinforced bags, an extra-heavy-duty trash can, a bit of
silicon carbide and water, and a spark plug--ta-daa! the Trash Cannon.
Measure the weight of the trash bag, and adjust the amount of carbide
with a PIC controlling a small motorized hopper. The metering curve
would have to be calibrated experimentally.

Alternatively, if local laws or jumpy neighbours render pyrotechnics
inappropriate, you could use a Trash Trebuchet. This would have the
advantage of a much more predictable trajectory, since the initial
velocity of the payload is more nearly constant than with a gun.

Either of these would solve the navigation problem, since the relative
positions of trash can and curb can be calibrated in advance, and both
would be a bit big and nasty to steal. (Control algorithm suggestions
welcomed.) A small CO2 laser (eye-safe!) could be used to shoo
pedestrians out of the line of fire.

Cheers,

Phil Hobbs

If you build it big enough, you can lob the trash bags into the
garbage truck from a couple blocks away.


--
Service to my country? Been there, Done that, and I've got my DD214 to
prove it.
Member of DAV #85.

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

 

[Michael A. Terrell]

"Three new McDonalds restaurants come on line every day, that
McDonalds corporate goal is to have no American more than four minutes
from one of its outlets."

martin

By car, or on foot?

--
Service to my country? Been there, Done that, and I've got my DD214 to
prove it.
Member of DAV #85.

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

 

[Phil Hobbs]

^ ^ ^ ^

SiC + 2H2O > SiO2(passivates) + CH4
(with some insane activation energy around white heat, I'm sure)

Wrong carbide ;-)

My bad. Safest cannon on the block, though. How about nitrogen
tri-iodide?

Cheers,

Phil Hobbs

 

[Spehro Pefhany]

British word for sausage.

As in "Bangers & mash", British (not so haute) cusine:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangers_and_mash

Apparently (I don't see anything definitive on it) bangers are
so-called because they were made of particularly poor quality
ingredients during WWII and tended to pop when cooked. J. Woodgate
would know for sure, but I hesitate to add sci.lang.translation to the
list.


Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany

 

[Anthony Fremont]

Alternatively, if local laws or jumpy neighbours render pyrotechnics
inappropriate, you could use a Trash Trebuchet. This would have the
advantage of a much more predictable trajectory, since the initial
velocity of the payload is more nearly constant than with a gun.

Ah yes......my favorite instrument of warfare.....the trebuchet. I want
to build one for my back yard that will launch a water balloon to the
stop sign located six houses down from mine (about 700'). That way I
can get even with the local hoodlums that like to fly past my house when
they approximate their stop at the corner. It will need to be quiet,
triggerable by remote control (no problem on that) and auto reloading.
That way I can sit in the front yard and enjoy the fun. :-D I really
like the kind that use simple leverage and weight, no springs.

 

[Rich Grise]

My bad. Safest cannon on the block, though. How about nitrogen
tri-iodide?

CaC2 + H2O => C2H2 + CaO

C2H2 + 4O2 => 2CO2 + 2H2O + boom! ;-)

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

I once toyed with the idea of trash cans sunken into the ground, walk
outside, step on foot-pedal to open lid.

On trash pickup day the cans would rise out of the ground so the
automated trucks could grab them and empty.

And if you could teach your dog to use the foot pedal, you wouldn't
need to clean up after him. ;-)

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Bill Kearney]

--ta-daa! the Trash Cannon.

a Trash Trebuchet.

Bwahahahaha! Having been to Punkin' Chunkin' I can well imagine how well a
siege engine would go over in most neighborhoods.

Up next... the piano!

 

[Bill Kearney]

If you build it big enough, you can lob the trash bags into the
garbage truck from a couple blocks away.

Hmmm, get the truck to broadcast it's GPS coordinates and you'd really have
something!

 

[Mitch Berkson]

"....scream like a banshee...." reminds me of a problem we once had
in a medical center setting. The facility consisted of multiple buildings
spread over a wide campus area, and were essentially freely open to the
public. Thieves kept stealing tv sets from various locations, and
security was unable to patrol open areas effectively (this was before the
advent of camera surveillance and other tv security devices). We decided
to install a sonalert in series with a 9v battery,
a tilt switch, and a key-operated switch to arm the system and allow
the technicians to install the sets without activating the sonalert. For
the next six months or so we would almost daily find squawking tv sets in
hallways or classrooms, but we didn't lose a single tv after that.

Hey. Maybe in order to reduce car thefts, cars could make a lot of noise if
they're being tampered with. Oh, wait - never mind.

Mitch

 

[E. Lee Dickinson]

Ah yes......my favorite instrument of warfare.....the trebuchet. I want
to build one for my back yard that will launch a water balloon to the
stop sign located six houses down from mine (about 700'). That way I
can get even with the local hoodlums that like to fly past my house when
they approximate their stop at the corner. It will need to be quiet,
triggerable by remote control (no problem on that) and auto reloading.
That way I can sit in the front yard and enjoy the fun. :-D I really
like the kind that use simple leverage and weight, no springs.

"Launching a Missile at a Motor Vehicle." Class 6 misdemeanor. I know this
all too well.

 

[Richard Henry]

If you build it big enough, you can lob the trash bags into the
garbage truck from a couple blocks away.

If you can lob it that far, you can stop paying the garbage service
altogether. And you don't even have to hit the truck.

 

[MR Robot]

try multiple four hundred pound people, many of whom are forced to use
breathing machines ironicly.

 

[The Hermit]

I'm thinking of making a trash can/bag transporter robot, something for
residential use, where trash is picked up once a week by the curb. This
device would be a low flat container that would hold garbage bags and
cans. When trash day comes, the robot would open a gate (gate has
electrical power opener), then drive itself down the driveway to the
curb. The trash gets picked up, and then the robot returns to its
primary duty station, where it's connected to a recharger.

Any suggestions?

I want to do something similiar. But I wanted the bot to leave it at the
curb. And getting the can off itself and onto the curb seemed too hard.

I planned on making the robot big enough so the can rides in the center and
the bot could lift and lower it into place. It could also bring multiple
cans to the curb, one at a time. (And I wouldn't have to worry about
someone walking away with it either.)

Also, it has to be waterproof. There's nothing worse than dragging your
garbage cans to the curb in the pouring rain.

 

[Robert Green]

Bwahahahaha! Having been to Punkin' Chunkin' I can well imagine how well a
siege engine would go over in most neighborhoods.

Up next... the piano!

I can only imagine how badly beseiged castle defenders must have felt when
they saw a couple of those suckers appear off in the distance heading their
way.

 

[Mac]

Hmmm, get the truck to broadcast it's GPS coordinates and you'd really have
something!

Actually, the truck could have several pre-determined stop areas. Just
imagine. It pulls up to a stop area, opens up the tarp covering the
payload area, and at the stroke of 6:00 AM (or whatever) garbage bags come
flying in from all quarters. At 6:01 AM, the driver puts the tarp back in
place over the payload and drives on to the next stop area.

--Mac