Email a Friend
Printer Friendly
Slashdot It!
Submit to Reddit
Add to Facebook

`Artificial vision` for recycling

August 09, 2002

The technological centre Robotiker from Zamudio (Basque Country) has developed a system of artificial sight to separate metals that come with copper, in order to obtain high purity copper.

To recover copper from old cables it is not something new. However, the recycled copper is not pure, because it is mixed with other metals, such as lead, aluminium and tin. It is quite complicated to separate copper from those components by using mechanical, physical and other methods. Nevertheless it is easy to distinguish impurities through the eyesight.

The recycling of cables has been promoted by the need to change conventional telephone lines. The price of the material obtained from the recycling of electrical and telephone cables depends on the level of purity of the copper. Therefore, the fact of having lead, aluminium and tin along with copper determines the use and, hence, the price of copper.

With the system developed by Robotiker, after several processes the copper cable is divided into small pieces, and that divided copper has a purity of 99 %. The size of those pieces is variable, but usually it has 8-15 mm long, 3-1 mm wide and 1 mm high. When those pieces of the cable go along a belt, a camera with artificial sight can see them and differ them by the colour. If it realises it is not copper, it will reject it.

When copper has a purity of 99 %, it is used for plumbing and heating-systems. However, if it is going to be recycled for electrical use, its purity must be at least of 99.9 %. Thanks to the high purity obtained at the end of this new process, copper can be used for electrolytic processes, that is, for batteries. That was the aim of the companies that have developed the project together with Robotiker; more precisely the aim of Laining Industrial and two companies from the recycling sector Indumental Recycling and Botrade.

Thanks to this leading technique of artificial sight, materials can be separated by colour and shape. The result of this project (reduction of impurities from 10 to 1 with 1,000 Kg/hour flows) allows to expand in future such systems to other recycling processes.

Elhuyar Fundazioa

Science Research Departments

	The Science Book: Everything You Need to Know About the World and How It Works (National Geographic) by National Geographic (Author), Marshall Brain (Foreword) A delight for the casual reader, yet so complete and wide-ranging that science buffs and students will welcome it, The Science Book encapsulates centuries of scientific thought in one richly illustrated volume. Natural phenomena, revolutionary inventions, and the most up-to-date investigations are explained in detailed text, and 2,000 vivid illustrationsincluding 3-D graphics and pictogramsmake the information even more accessible and amazing to discover. The Science Book offers both a general overview of topics for the browsing reader and more specific information for those seeking deeper insight into a particular subject. Six major sections, ranging from the universe and planet Earth to biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics, encompass everything from microscopic life...
	Scientific Explorer's Mind Blowing Science Kit for Young Scientists by Scientific Explorer Mind blowing experiments to delight and educate young scientists! Erupt a color changing volcano. Mix up magic ooze with a mind of its own. Play with sand that never gets wet. Mix safe chemicals and watch colors change before your eyes. You'll amaze yourself and your friends as you explore the science behind these truly remarkable reactions.
	The Everything Kids' Science Experiments Book: Boil Ice, Float Water, Measure Gravity-Challenge the World Around You! (Everything Kids Series) by Tom Robinson (Author) Science has never been so easy - or so much fun! With The Everything Kids' Science Experiments Book, all you need to do is gather a few household items and you can recreate dozens of mind-blowing, kid-tested science experiments. High school science teach Tom Robinson shows you how to expand your scientific horizons - from biology to chemistry to physics to outer space. You'll discover answers to questions like: Is it possible to blow up a balloon without actually blowing into it? What is inside coins? Can a magnet ever be "turned off"? Do toilets always flush in the same direction? Can a swimming pool be cleaned with just the breath of one person? Get ready to enter the laboratory and learn how to conduct cool experiments, understand scientific terms...
	Science: The Definitive Visual Guide by DK Publishing (Author), Adam Hart-Davis (Editor), John Gribbin (Editor), Douglas Palmer (Editor), Jeremy Cherfas (Editor) This remarkable reference book tells the story of science from earliest times to the present day, taking in everything from ancient Greek geometry to quantum physics, and the wedge to the worldwide web. Exploring science in a thematic, highly approachable manner, each spread takes as its theme a specific event, discovery, invention, experiment, theory, or individual and explains why this subject was so significant in the development of scientific thought and what its impact on history has been. In addition to providing a broad-ranging and comprehensive history of science, the book also explains how science works, employing DK's trademark clarity and visual ingenuity to render tricky scientific subjects easily comprehensible. Science is structured chronologically with five...
	Be Amazing Lab-in-a-Bag Test Tube Wonders by Be Amazing Includes: Bag, test tube rack, giant plastic test tubes with lids, insta-snow powder, magic sand, energy beads, super absorbent crystals, coloring tablets, water gel and instructions.
	The Complete Book of Science, Grades 5-6 by Carson-Dellosa Publishing (Author) The Complete Book of Science for grades 5 to 6 teaches children important science skills! Children complete a variety of exercises that help them develop a number of skills in this 352 page workbook. Including a complete answer key this workbook features a user-friendly format perfect for browsing, research, and review. Over 4 million in print! The best-selling Complete Book series offers a full complement of instruction, activities, and information about a single topic or subject area. Containing over 30 titles and encompassing preschool to grade 8 this series helps children succeed in every subject area! ...
	Scientific Explorer's Disgusting Science - A Kit for Studying the Science of Revolting Things by Scientific Explorer What's grosser than gross' Disgusting Science is the grossest, gooiest, most revolting science kit out there. Grow your own friendly germs and fuzzy molds. Mix up a batch of coagulating fake blood. Even make a stinky intestine model. Learn the science behind sticky and icky bodily functions while doing some truly nasty experiments. Your little scientist will love this disgusting twist on regular science kits. All experiments are safe and kid-friendly.
	Science in Seconds for Kids: Over 100 Experiments You Can Do in Ten Minutes or Less by Jean Potter (Author) Make lightning in your room! Keep paper dry under water! Lose weight by going upstairs! See colors that aren’t there! Experience the magic of science with these quick, easy experiments and activities from Jean Potter. You can complete each activity in ten fun-filled minutes or less. Clear, step-by-step instructions and illustrations help you get it right every time. The projects help you learn about everything from why eggs aren’t round to how submarines surface and submerge. You will find most of the required materials already in your home, backyard, or neighborhood, and you can perform the experiments practically anywhere. The 108 activities in this book cover twelve different subject areas, including air, animals, energy, gravity, magnetism, light, the human body, and much more....
	One Minute Mysteries: 65 Short Mysteries You Solve With Science! by Eric Yoder (Author) Not an ordinary mystery book, One Minute Mysteries makes science fun! Each one-minute mystery (solutions included) exercises critical thinking skills while covering earth, space, life, physical, chemical, and general science. A bonus section includes five mysteries from our upcoming title in the series, One Minute Mysteries: Solve 'em with Math! This entertaining and educational book is great for kids, grown-ups, schools, educators, homeschoolers and anyone who loves good mysteries, good science, or both!
	Scientific Explorer's The Magic Science Wizard's Kit by Scientific Explorer Cast real smoke from your fingertips, make a wizard wand, and whip up color-changing potions in your test tube laboratory. Also included are laminated cards with magic tricks to baffle all your friends, an instruction booklet with 11 activities, lab equipment, and mysterious wizard powders that will mix together to mystify you!