Smart, solar-powered trash bin with igus® plain bearings revolutionizes waste management

Finbin develops waste bins with maintenance-free igus plain bearings

30 May 2023 – A clean cityscape is what many large cities around the world long for. Finbin, a Finnish company, has engineered an innovative trash receptacle to bring that dream closer. This advanced trash bin employs a solar-powered compactor that increases waste collection capacity by six times. Designed with self-lubricating and dry-running igus plain bearings ensure a long service life for the bin.

Pizza boxes, coffee cups, and drink cans

European cities have long grappled with the overwhelming tide of garbage. Traditional waste receptacles are increasingly reaching their limits. In response, Finbin has developed the CitySolar Smart Bin. This innovative waste bin compacts trash, increasing its holding capacity sixfold. The bin is connected to the Internet and communicates when it needs to be emptied before it reaches capacity.

In designing the CitySolar Smart Bin, Finbin engineers incorporated igus components that require no maintenance to increase sustainability. Therefore, dry-running and maintenance-free igus iglide® G and iglide M250 plastic plain bearings are used for the press and foot lever mechanics. Conventional metal bearings were not considered because high humidity and lubrication pose problems in everyday operations. However, iglide plain bearings from igus resist moisture, dust, and dirt.

Product testing in the igus 3,800-square-meter in-house laboratory demonstrated how wear-resistant the bearings are. In tests, the plain bearings were pivoted on a gas-nitrified St52 steel shaft with a load of 30Mpa at a speed of 0.01 meters per second. The iglide G plain bearings showed virtually no signs of wear even after 200,000 cycles. This makes them ideal for reliable, maintenance-free use in all weather conditions over many years.

Learn more about Finbin’s application story here.