Hi all,
I'm using ultrasonic sensor and interfacing it with arduino. i'm trying to detect the level of garbage inside the bin but due to uneven objects inside the bin i'm not able to get the accurate or approx value of the garbage level. so tried taking the average of 20 values but still ended up getting errors.
what is best way to detect the uneven objects using ultrasonic. if not any other way is there to do so??

 

Hi all,
I'm using ultrasonic sensor and interfacing it with arduino. i'm trying to detect the level of garbage inside the bin but due to uneven objects inside the bin i'm not able to get the accurate or approx value of the garbage level. so tried taking the average of 20 values but still ended up getting errors.
what is best way to detect the uneven objects using ultrasonic. if not any other way is there to do so??

Yes, Possible but a bit more difficult and needs processing power.
Use vibrating wire method this allows you to calculate volume. (actual level= empty volume - calculated)
But the bin must be closed. ( pulse a mechanical string and measure the damping and frequency shift )
damping and frequency shift are related to volume.
Picbuster

 

What is the sensor? Something like a Ping))) board?

Ultrasonic really wants a nice flat perpendicular surface to reflect the wave off. It the reflector sits at an angle the return echo will also go out at an angle. Does angle of incidence equal angle of reflection sound familiar?

There are two things you may want to try. First is boosting the gain on the main sensor to pick up whatever signal is there. That has obvious noise problems. Next is using multiple return sensors to catch an echo wherever it may come back.... Say ping in the center and listen in the center and all four corners.

This is a messy real world problem that may not have a clean solution if you are looking for a continuous level... but chances are FULL will still be detected since the reflecting object is so close.