This full text paper was peer-reviewed at the direction of IEEE Instrumentation and Measurement Society prior to the

acceptance and publication.

A LoRa-based IoT Sensor Node for Waste

Management Based on a Customized Ultrasonic
Transceiver
Tommaso Addabbo Ada Fort Alessandro Mecocci
Department of Information Engineering Department of Information Engineering Department of Information Engineering
and Mathematics and Mathematics and Mathematics
University of Siena University of Siena University of Siena
Siena, Italy Siena, Italy Siena, Italy
addabbo@dii.unisi.it ada@dii.unisi.it alessandro.mecocci@unisi.it

Marco Mugnaini Stefano Parrino Alessandro Pozzebon

Department of Information Engineering Department of Information Engineering Department of Information Engineering
and Mathematics and Mathematics and Mathematics
University of Siena University of Siena University of Siena
Siena, Italy Siena, Italy Siena, Italy
mugnaini@dii.unisi.it parrino2@unisi.it alessandro.pozzebon@unisi.it

Valerio Vignoli
Department of Information Engineering
and Mathematics
University of Siena
Siena, Italy
vignoli@dii.unisi.it

Abstract—This paper discusses the use of an integrated ultra-
sonic transducer for the realization of a LoRa-based Smart Bin
architecture, to be employed for waste management in the Smart
Cities context. In particular, the paper analyses the usability
of waterproof ultrasonic sensors for the measurement of waste
level inside a trash bin: in this context, a solution is described
to increase the directionality of the sensor. Indeed, ultrasonic
sensors used in common off-the-shelf waterproof ranging systems
are characterized by a wide radiation lobe, corresponding to an
aperture angle up to 70◦ : this means that, when employed in
trash bins, these sensors detect the presence of the lateral surface
of the bin and are not able to detect the garbage layer top or
its position in the bin. In this paper we propose a tailored cap,
designed to be mounted on a commercial ultrasonic sensor, able
to reduce the detection angle down to around 28◦ degrees. The
modified sensor can thus be exploited in this application.
The proposed sensing structure is integrated into a sensor node
provided with a LoRa transmission module, that allows to employ
it for the development of city-scale monitoring infrastructures.
Index Terms—Ultrasonic Sensor, Waveguide, LoRa, Smart
City, Waste management
I. I NTRODUCTION
The vast diffusion of the Internet of Things (IoT) tech-
nologies that has occurred in the last ten years is rapidly
changing the services and processes in several contexts, from
industry [1] to agriculture [2] or cultural heritage [3]. One of
the scenarios that emerged as crucial for the realization of in-
telligent, interconnected infrastructures is the Smart City one.
A wide range of innovative services has already been studied
and developed, changing the approach towards problems like
traffic, parking and public transportation. Waste management
is for sure among the services that can greatly take advantage
of IoT technologies.
The concept of waste management refers to all the activities
and actions that are undertaken to manage waste, from the
moment of its inception to its disposal [4]. In urban areas, this
means to collect waste from trash bins or dumpsters (or even
door-to-door), carry it to dumps or to recycling centers and
then to its final disposal destination (for example incinerators).
All these activities, especially if carried out in large urban
areas, require the work of hundreds (or even thousands) of
operators, as well as the handling of hundreds of means
of transport, with a noteworthy impact on urban traffic and
pollution.
The adoption of technological solutions to optimize the
process of waste management can bring great benefits in
terms of process optimization, time reduction and operators
efficiency. These solutions include the real-time tracking of
the means of transportation, the analysis of the user’s behavior,
the automatization of the disposal processes and the real-time
measurement of the filling levels of bins and dumpsters. This
last activity in particular can be crucial to optimize the whole

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waste collection process, leading to the emptying of the bins
or dumpsters only when they are actually full: automatic route
optimization protocols may lead to a substantial reduction in
both the number of hours worked by the operators and the kms
travelled by the vehicles, with a positive effect on the overall
pollution and traffic levels.
II. S MART WASTE M ANAGEMENT
Smart Waste Management refers in general to the adoption
of intelligent technological systems for the optimization of the
waste management process. Several systems in this context
have been designed and tested in the last years.
Many solutions deal with the realization of Wireless Sensor
Networks (WSNs) and connected systems to be employed for
waste management purposes. In [5], for example, the authors
describe a solution based on the use of WSNs to check the
filling level of trash bins: this solution exploits ZigBee for local
connectivity and GSM for remote data transfer through the
Internet. Similarly to this paper, the filling level is measured
by means of ultrasonic sensors.
Other solutions, also based on ultrasonic sensors, exploit
different wireless transmission technologies for data transfer.
In [6] wireless data transfer is in charge of ZigBee networks
while in [7] data transmission is carried out by means of RFID
(Radio Frequency IDentification) technology: measured values
are stored in the memory of an RFID transponder that can then
be read through an ad-hoc RFID reader. The main drawback of
this technology is the short communication range that forces
to operator the be within a few meters distance (less than 1
m for High Frequency or Low Frequency systems) from the
bin. This solution is then not able to operate remotely.
GSM is in the most part of the papers the key wireless
communication technology for remote data transmission. Sys-
tems measuring the filling level of bins by means of ultrasonic
sensors, as well as other parameters, and transmitting them
through SMSs or GPRS connection are discussed in [8], [9]:
nevertheless, cellular technologies have the big drawback of
power consumption since GPRS, UMTS and LTE are energy
hungry technologies, while also running costs are high due to
the need of a SIM card, and then a subscription for each trash
bin.
Another interesting solution is presented in [10], where a
Vehicular Ad-hoc Network (VANET) is designed, with the
smart bins collecting information about their status and trans-
mitting it through ZigBee connection to the nearest passing
vehicle. The drawback of this solution is that the filling level
is measured by means of laser diodes: in the context of smart
bins, with a high level of dirt, fouling on the emitter or the
transmitter may compromise the measurement.
The emergence of Low Wide Power Area Network (LP-
WAN) technologies has opened the way to a wide range of
different IoT architectures also for the waste management
scenario [11], [12]. These solutions allow wireless data col-
lection in large areas without the need of any other remote,
cellular transmission technology, with a high level of power
efficiency. This allows the realization of low cost, energy-
efficient, pervasive infrastructures that can be applied also to
city-scale scenarios.
In this context, the use of low complexity, and then low
cost, efficient sensors is mandatory to design optimized archi-
tectures for the overall wireless sensing infrastructure.
III. U LTRASONIC D ISTANCE S ENSORS
Ultrasonic transducers (both piezoelectric and capacitive)
are a traditional solution to distance/range measurement prob-
lems. A large number of different commercial solutions are
available, comprising complete modules hosting the sensor, the
excitation and conditioning electronics and standard interfaces.
The selection of the sensor is based on the required spatial
resolution (axial and lateral) and the distance range: this allows
for choosing the optimum operating frequency and the sensor
technology.
In the current application the axial resolution is not an issue:
indeed, the monitoring of the bin filling can be considered
satisfactory even if based on a cm resolution. On the other
hand, the directivity of the sensor is a very critical issue. In
fact, the sensor operates in a closed structure, so a sensor
characterized by a wide radiation lobe causes large echoes
from the lateral walls: on the other hand, a too directive sensor
can give only partial information about the filling of the bin,
which can be very irregular. So, the ideal sensor should have
a main lobe covering exactly the bin bottom.
Other critical issues in this application are the mechanical
robustness, the waterproofing level (since the bins are washed
every few days by means of water-jet), the power consumption
and finally the cost. Indeed, expensive and efficient sensors
obviously exist on the market: nevertheless, smart bins are
expected to be deployed in large quantities, so the overall cost
of the technological infrastructure has to be kept as low as
possible. This means that the sensors to be employed must
cost no more than few euros.
An ideal off-the-shelf solution is provided by the ultrasonic
sensors and rangefinder modules for car-parking applications.
Automotive ultrasonic distance sensors operate in echo-mode,
hence the distance is evaluated exploiting the Time of Flight
(TOF).
Typically these devices operate in the frequency range (40
kHz-58 kHz), corresponding to wavelengths λ q in the range
◦
(8.7 mm-5 mm), at 25 C, considering c = c0 1 + 273T K .
The sensor diameter is usually in the range 10 mm-20 mm:
correspondingly, the far-field limit lies in the range (9 mm-
36 mm) when working at 40 kHz. These characteristics are
satisfactory for the application of interest.
The directivity on the other hand is usually not suitable. In
fact, considering a typical commercial transducer operating at
40 kHz and with diameter D of the active element of about 15
mm, the far field starts at a distance Z0 given by the following
expression [13]:
D2
Z0 = π ≈ 20 mm (1)
4λ
and the beam divergence is described by the following equa-
tion:
λ
sinγ = 1.22 = 0.7 (2)
D
This means that the aperture angle λ is approximately 44◦ .
This corresponds to a beam cross section with a diameter of
1.4 m at a distance from the transducer of 50 cm.
In this work we use a waterproof Aihasd JSN-SR04T V2.0
sensor operating at 40 kHz, with an aperture angle of 35◦ ,
resolution 1 cm, distance range 20 cm-600 cm. The problem
of insufficient directivity was overcome, by simply placing on
top of the transducer an ad-hoc cap, able to adapt the receiver
lobe to the specific application. This structure (see Fig. 1) is
composed by a 3 cm high, 3D printed ABS plastic cylinder that
has a 3.5 cm diameter: the ultrasonic transducer is positioned
at the bottom of the cylinder, while the other side features a 18
mm hole. The whole internal surface is covered with a sound-
absorbing material. This structure allows to reduce the receiver
lobe (See Fig. 2). The internal layer aims at absorbing the
emitted waves in order to prevent them from being reflected
by the cap lateral surface and then being received from the
transducer. The structure of the ad-hoc cap and its placement
on the internal surface of the ABS box are shown in Figs. 3(a)
and 3(b).
Fig. 1. Structure of the ad-hoc cap.
Fig. 2. Reflected waves detection by the sensor. Black waves are received
while red ones are absorbed and not received.
(a)
(b)
Fig. 3. The ad-hoc cap (a) and its placement on the internal surface of the
ABS box (b).
IV. S MART B IN A RCHITECTURE
The ultrasonic sensor is part of a more complex architecture
that is in charge of collecting in real-time a broader set
of different parameters and transmit them to a remote data
collection centre. The whole technological structure is energy
self-sufficient, being battery-powered, and it is positioned in
the top cover of common trash bins. In particular, the solution
has been customized on the trash bins of the city of Florence,
Italy, even if it could be easily fit within different models of
bins.
The sensing platform is then composed of the following
subsystems:
• The sensors;
• The microcontroller;
• The LoRa transmission module;
• The power management system.
Regarding the sensors, besides the ultrasonic sensor, the
platforms incorporates also a Texas Instrument LM35 temper-
ature sensor that is used to detect the presence of fire and an
Itead tilt sensor that is used to detect the possible overturning
of the bin, while a sensor to detect the opening of the bin (and
then its emptying) is expected to be added in the next future.
The system integrates then an Atmel ATMega328P micro-
controller and a Libelium SX1272 LoRa radio module.
The system is powered by 4 off-the-shelf 1.5 V AA
batteries: in order to optimize their consumption, a power
gating system [14], based on the use of an HEF4060BP 14-
stage ripple carry binary counter, has been adopted. This
system allows for implementing a strict duty-cycling policy
that allows to totally turn off the sensing platform when not
used. Moreover, since the most power hungry components of
the platform are the ultrasonic sensor and the LoRa radio
module, three MOSFETs acting as switches have been used
to turn on the single components only when actually used.
The system operates as follows: one of the outputs of the
counter acts as a control signal for a MOSFET that is the
switch of the whole sensing platform. When the counter output
turns high, the MOSFET turns on and the microcontroller
is activated. The microcontroller, controlling one of the two
MOSFETs, activates then the ultrasonic sensor and collects
the distance measurement, together with the readings of the
other sensors. Then, it turns the sensor off and activates the
LoRa module (again by means of a MOSFET), sensor data
are encapsulated in a packet and transmitted to a remote LoRa
gateway. The system architecture is shown in Fig 4.

Fig. 5. Interior of the sensing platform.

Fig. 4. Block diagram of the sensing platform.

The whole electronic circuitry was placed inside an IP65

ABS plastic box that was holed in its bottom to allow the
positioning of the ultrasonic sensor as shown in Fig. 5. The
box was then placed in the top covering of the bin, with the
holed surface facing the the interior of the bin. The sensor was
then able to measure the distance of the rubbish layer inside
the bin and then its overall level.
(a)
V. T ESTS AND M EASUREMENTS
The system was tested using a real trash bin for urban areas
(Fig. 6). This bin has a regular octagonal shape: nevertheless,
its internal structure is circular, with a 41 cm diameter. Its
external height is 115 cm but the actual distance from the
positioning point of the sensor and the internal bottom is 80
cm: indeed, the bin houses in its bottom a 23 cm high empty
space to keep the trash afar from the floor.
In order to analyze the effectiveness of the proposed
solution, the first measurements were performed using the
unmodified sensor, connected to a LoRa node featuring the
architecture described in IV. (b)
The value measured by the sensor when placed in the empty Fig. 6. (a) Trash bin used for the tests and (b) internal structure.
bin was 34 cm. As expected, in fact, the side wall of the bin
generates echoes that are interpreted by the electronic read-out
systems as an axial obstacle placed at this distance. From this
data we can evaluate the detection angle α, i.e., the angle at
which the amplitude of the radiation pattern is sufficient to
generate an echo accepted as a meaningful signal by the read-
out logic. The angle is geometrically calculated as shown in
Fig. 7(a), where d is the measured distance value and r is the
bin radius (i.e., 20.5 cm):

r 20.5
α = 2θ = 2arcsin = 2arcsin ' 74◦ (3)
d 34
Following this first test, the modified sensor provided with (a)
the developed cap was embedded in the LoRa node. The
measured value was then 80 cm, that is the distance between
sensor and the bottom of the bin. This allows us to calculate
an upper bound for the achieved detection angle, as shown in
Fig. 7(b):

r 20.5
α = 2θ = 2arctan = 2arctan ' 28.7◦ (4)
d 80
This value may also be lower since the measure is limited
by the bin dimension: nevertheless, it is sufficient to allow the
correct measurement of the trash level inside the bin.

VI. C ONCLUSION
The proposed sensing platform, as well as the customized
ultrasonic sensor has been tested in laboratory, proving its
effectiveness. The value of the trash layer inside the bin is
measured with a 2-3 cm accuracy: this value is sufficient
since trash is not evenly distributed inside the bin. Following
this first set of tests, a network composed of 5 sensor nodes,
connected to a single-channel LoRa gateway, has been realized
and deployed in the historic centre of Florence, Italy. One of
the five bins, in its final deployment site, is shown in Fig.
6. Each sensor node has been programmed to measure the
value every 15 minutes. Data are then transmitted every hour:
4 values are then sent for each transmission. This sampling
rate allows to achieve a theoretical life time for the sensor (b)
node up to 500 days [12].
While the deployed nodes have currently operated for Fig. 7. Distance calculation (a) without the ad-hoc cap and (b) and with the
ad-hoc cap.
around three months, and are still in activity, work is going
on to identify the ideal ad-hoc cap sizes in relation to the
bin dimensions. This will allow to easily identify the ideal
solution also for other typologies of bins, characterized by [4] Pongracz, E. Re-defining the concepts of waste and waste management:
different sizes and shapes. Evolving the Theory of Waste Management. 2002, Oulu: University of
Oulu.
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