Project 1
Student id: s24
To select another student or project, return to the Project Page.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<?xml-model href="../schema_3302.rng" type="application/xml" schematypens="http://relaxng.org/ns/structure/1.0"?>
<!--the second line in the document associates the schema, so be sure not to change it-->
<DOC>
<docHead>
<!--required header includes metadata about the assignment (title, author, version)-->
<title>Annotated Bibliography for Automated Trash Sorting</title>
<author xml:id="s24">Oliver Scott</author>
<version n="num_of_version" date="2016-07-12"/>
<!--note that the date must be YYYY-MM-DD for the document to be valid-->
</docHead>
<annotated_bib>
<problem_stmt> World War II saw Americans willfully ration clothes and gasoline, plant war
gardens, and participate in scrap metal drives to manufacture bullets. The effort on the
home front came as an overlooked victory, proving that the nation could survive — thrive
even — without superfluous luxuries when organized under a common cause. Although U.S.
government’s propaganda based success to conserve resources at home was a fantastic
accomplishment, it came with a disconcerting lesson. Without an enemy, Americans lost
their capacity to skirt comforts for conservational purposes. As it happens, the
overwhelming amount of research indicates that there still is an enemy — although it
does not present itself in a swastika emblazoned SS jacket, but with climbing
temperatures and rising sea levels — however a complicated mesh of conflicting interests
seems to be hindering Americans from readopting the thrifty traits of their
grandparents. The consequence is a culture that continues to increase its consumption,
ignoring the all but certain consequences. As the speed at which items are deemed
obsolete increases, driving the economy further toward a reliance on disposable
commodities, the rate at which our landfills reach max capacity increases in step,
despite our technological potential to accomplish the opposite. Further encouragement
for America to deal more effectively with its waste addiction should come from an
awareness of what is transpiring beyond its own shores. Population growth compounded
with the entrance of developing countries in consumer markets guarantees that demand for
first world commodities is to skyrocket. The amount of waste produced by such an
increase in demand, spells uncertain questions for how factories and our environment
will respond to this change. Luckily, a solution to our apathy<note type="instructor"
>funny, though, this doesn't solve the root problem of apathy, it outsources caring
to technology; it does address an important symptom of that apathy.</note> might be
found in new technologies. By levering technology to sort our waste for us, both in our
home and in public, the current flow of thousands of tons of metals, rare earth and
plastics could be directed out of our landfills rather than into them. This is crucial
not only in ensuring that less waste reaches our landfills, but also in ensuring that
what does reach our landfills does so safely.<note type="instructor">fascinating problem
and problem statement; I might think about more clearly outlining your disciplinary
stance and why the tech approach is characteristic of it.</note>
</problem_stmt>
<!-- 1 -->
<citation n="1" style="MLA">
<author n="1"> Unni Eikeseth </author>
<author n="2"> Chris Veløy </author>
<ref>http://sciencenordic.com/machines-are-better-people-sorting-household-trash</ref>
<title>Machines are better than people at sorting household trash</title>
Sciencenordic.com. N.p., 03 April 2013. Web. 12 July 2016. </citation>
<annotation>
<!-- can include <q> element(s) for quoted material -->
<background type="source"> Science Nordic is an independent news site, focused on the
coverage of scientific developments in Nordic countries. As such, their coverage of
automated waste assortment in Norway fits nicely into the domain of the website. </background>
<summary type="general">A broad overview is given of new waste sorting technology at a
waste disposal plant on the outskirts of Oslo. In addition to providing coverage of
the capabilities of the plant (in sorting between plastic and food waste), the
article also refers back to failures in similar technology that had been attempted
in the 1980s.</summary>
<summary type="approach">With improvements in spectrography, infra-red sensors and
hardware it seems the Oslo plant has found its solution. </summary>
<summary type="interpretation"> Although only an industrial level of trash separation is
discussed in this article, there might be replicable methods for the residential
setting as well.</summary>
<relevance type="value_stmt">There is little evidence to suggest that sorting technology
has developed much beyond what is addressed in the article, making the technology
discussed still of pinnacle importance. </relevance>
<relevance type="application"> Communities scouting to find functional technologies for
their waste processing could find inspiration from the Oslo plant discussed.<note type="instructor">yes, excellent application here</note>
</relevance>
</annotation>
<!-- 2 -->
<citation n="2" style="IEEE">
<author n="1">Mahmudul Hasan Russel</author>
<author n="2">Mehdi Hasan Chowdhury</author>
<author n="3">Md. Shekh Naim Uddin</author>
<author n="4">Ashif Newaz</author>
<author n="5">Md. Mehdi Masud Talukder</author>
<title>Development of Automatic Smart Waste Sorter Machine</title>
</citation>
<annotation>
<background type="author">The paper's authors are a group of engineers based out of
Bangladesh's Chittagong University and the University of Rajshashi. The authors
present an in-depth technical report on how they sought to address the automated
sorting of recyclable goods.</background>
<summary type="general">The paper is broken into eight sections. The authors open with a
broad overview of the world's waste problem, followed by discussion of potential
resources that could be harvested from this waste. They then delve into the fine
level details of their sorting system before resurfacing in the last three sections
to critique their project. </summary>
<summary type="approach">The technical solution -- detailed in sections three to five --
discusses a replicable system of OP Amps, IR, LDR, and other components accompanied
by flowcharts and explanations. </summary>
<summary type="interpretation">Although the project in question doesn't address the
issue of waste storage through a particularly novel approach, it is a logical one,
and is fit for the task at hand. </summary>
<relevance type="value_stmt">The issues with grammar in the paper are far outweighed by
the technically challenging solution to a serious problem that is put on display.<note type="instructor">it does make me wonder about the credibility of the place of publication, though</note> </relevance>
<relevance type="application">Engineers looking for a highly detailed report on creating
a control flow to develop sensor based systems can gain insight from this
paper.<note type="instructor">yes, very applicable methodologically, it seems</note></relevance>
</annotation>
<!-- 3 -->
<citation n="3" style="MLA">
<author n="1">Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan</author>
<ref>http://gizmodo.com/this-trash-sorting-robot-could-revolutionize-recycling-511989613</ref>
<title>This Trash-Sorting Robot Could Revolutionize Recycling</title> Gizmodo.com. 06
June 2013. Web. 12 July 2016. </citation>
<annotation>
<background type="author">Campbell-Dollaghan, a popular Gizmodo contributor, details an
innovative approach to waste sorting specifically outfitted for use on construction
sites created by ZenRobotics.</background>
<summary type="general">The article opens by making the staggering point that the
construction center is responsible for a third of all waste created. By
reintroducing the materials from active demolition cites into future projects, this
number could be successfully and profitably lessened.</summary>
<summary type="approach">Of particular interest in the article is the approach taken by
ZenRobotics. Rather than using the more conventional servos to merely push or drop
waste into different bins, the system relies upon a mobile arm to grab waste from a
conveyor belt and sort it accordingly. </summary>
<summary type="interpretation">This approach provides a novel means of addressing the
issue of waste sorting. </summary>
<relevance type="value_stmt">What the source seems to lack is critical insight into the
more nuanced potential of the system in question. As a result, it comes across more
as a public service announcement for social media than as a serious intellectual
investment.<note type="instructor">not all that surprising, given where it appears</note> </relevance>
<relevance type="application">Engineers looking to think outside the box can certainly
find inspiration from within the lines of this text, however if they seek more
in-depth knowledge they should visit the ZenRobot's website.<note type="instructor">right, nice job critically evaluating here</note></relevance>
</annotation>
<!-- 4 -->
<citation n="4" style="IEEE">
<author n="1"> H.G. Barrow </author>
<author n="2">J.M. Tenenbaum </author>
<author n="3">R.C. Bolles </author>
<author n="4">H.C. Wolf </author>
<title>Parametric Correspondence and Chamfer Matching: Two New Techniques for Image
Matching</title>
</citation>
<annotation>
<background type="author">The authors in question are all published and highly
referenced members of the artificial intelligence community. In this instance, they
use their knowledge of the field to discuss two areas of computer
vision.</background>
<summary type="general"> By combining parametric correspondence and chamfer matching,
the researchers demonstrated a means by which a camera can automatically reorientate
itself to a predetermined setting. </summary>
<summary type="approach"> The paper addresses parametric correspondence as being the
ability to distinguish the offset of an image by referencing small predetermined
landmarks. These landmarks are identified through the use of chamfer matching.
Chamfer matching was used to identify these landmarks due to its fast computation
speed and resistance to lighting disturbances.</summary>
<summary type="interpretation">Although the methods discussed provide useful object
recognition results in environments with variable parameters, most trash sorting can
likely be done in a contained environment.</summary>
<relevance type="value_stmt">The credentials of the authors speak for themselves, as
they make a highly complex topic both informational and accessible.</relevance>
<relevance type="application">This paper serves as a strong display of how engineers
might think about object recognition in a slightly unorthodox manner.</relevance>
</annotation>
<!-- 5 -->
<citation n="5" style="IEEE">
<author n="1">Duncan Furness</author>
<title>SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PRECISELY POSITIONING A ROBOTIC TOOL</title>
</citation>
<annotation>
<background type="source">Although the patent in question was published in 1994, it
maintains relevance through a large number of citations referring to it due to its
novel methods of handling vision parallax. </background>
<summary type="general">The patent details a robot arm and camera setup, whereby a
camera positioned at an angle to the camera is used to guide a fixed robot arm to a
destination. </summary>
<summary type="approach">By breaking from the norm, and placing the camera to the side
of the arm, rather than on the arm itself, the inventor was able to address parallax
errors in order to operate more accurately in three dimensions. </summary>
<summary type="interpretation">Using this technology could provide for more precise
motor movements if a robot arm were used to sort the trash.</summary>
<relevance type="value_stmt">Although most readers would find following the terms and
mathematics behind this patent to be rightfully confusing, such a proven technology
is rarely done simply.</relevance>
<relevance type="application">The problem addressed in the patent provides a useful
solution for skilled engineers operating in controlled environments.</relevance>
</annotation>
</annotated_bib>
<docReview>
<reviewer type="instructor" xml:id="kgs"/>
<report type="instructor" resp="#kgs">
<p>I know that you've thought about how you would change your citations given our conversation, so I'll not mention that further. I think your annotations are, on the whole, very well done. Particularly in the critical approach to the sources you took (specifically in the relevance @type value_stmt). This is a crucial aspect of an annotated bib, especially one that seeks to help you organize sources for a particular project. See my note on your problem statement; I think the bib would have benefited from a clearer articulation of where you see yourself and your discipine intervening in this problem (at the level of research, design, implementation, logistics, investment, etc.). It became much more clear after reading through your annotations, however.</p>
</report>
</docReview>
</DOC>