Final Project Concept
My project Overview and Concept:
My project idea is a SIMPLE innovative solution aiming to tackle the problem of domestic food waste.According to Eurobarometer, EPRS, FAO infographic (Figure 1), available in the website of European Parliament (www.europarl.europa.eu) , “some 88 million tonnes of food are wasted in the EU every year, equivalent to 173 kilos per person. Not only is this a waste or resources, it also contributes to climate change. Food is lost and wasted along the whole supply chain from farms to processing and manufacturing to shops, restaurants and at home.
However
most
of
the
food
in
the
EU
is
wasted
by
households
with
53%
and
processing
with
19%”.Refrigeration
is
key
to
reducing
food
waste:
many
studies
are
focused
in
the
improvement
of
the
refrigerating
conditions
at
domestic
use,
such
as
for
example,
lowering
the
refrigerator
temperatures.However,
lower
temperature
operations
also
increases
energy
consumption.
(T.
Brown
et
al.,
2014
International
Journal
of
Refrigeration).Hence,
a
more
sustainable
solution
is
needed…
Vacuum
is
also
recognised
as
a
valid
mean
of
food
waste
saving,
however
in
daily
kitchen
operations
,it
is
not
considered
very
practical.My
idea
is
to
combine
the
effect
of
refrigeration
to
the
vacuum.
The
FoodBoxSaver
proposes
a
valid
solution
to
reduce
at
least
40%
of
food
waste
of
fresh
food,
since
the
average
vacuum
doubles
the
storage
time
of
food
in
the
fridge
thanks
to
the
beneficial
effects
of
the
vacuum
on
food
already
known
to
scientific
research.This
Box
with
separate
compartments,
autonomously
manages
the
vacuum
resulting in a easy-to-use system, sustainable and practical.
My
idea
is
also
in
line
with
international
framework
of
Sustainable
Development
:
the
UN
Agenda
2030
of
Sustainable
Development
Goals
-SDGs)
and
with
the
the
aims
and
objectives
of
the
PRIMA
programme,
an
initiative
supported
and
funded
by
European
Commission
under
the
frame
of
H2020
Research
and
Innovation
Programme,
“aiming
to……
develop
knowledge
and
common
innovative
solutions
for
agro-food
systems,
to
make
them
sustainable,
and
for
integrated
water
provision
and
management
in
the
Mediterranean
area,
to
make
those
systems
and
that
provision
and
management
more
climate
resilient,
efficient,
cost-
effective
and
environmentally
and
socially
sustainable,
and
to
contribute
to
solving
water
scarcity,
food
security,
nutrition,
health,
well-being and migration problems upstream”.
What is PRIMA?
PRIMA – Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area ( http://prima-med.org/ ) is the most ambitious joint programme to be undertaken in the frame of Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, counting for a total financial contribution of 500 Millions Euros. The programme has launched very recently (6th February 2018) the first calls for projects proposals for Innovative solutions for the agry-food value chain.Features:
This is my first idea…
- four independent compartments.
- ermetic closure, airtight sealing.
- food presence sensor:
blue led “on” = food insidegreen
led “on” = empty compartmentred
led “on” = food alarm
-four solenoid valves
-one pump for vacuum
-bluetooth communication with external panel,here we can read the status of
compartments.
-open compartments acoustic alarm
-compartments alarm setting with switch, the color of the button indicate the status.
- the box is positioned in the fridge and will be powered by internal lamp plug.
-four RGB led
Giuseppe Allocca
12/02/2018Upgrade:
After meeting with my instructor and others students, I decided to limit compartments to only one , in this way is more simple to start to make a first prototype of Food Box Saver.The next steps is to improve features and expand compartments.State of the Art:
I have tried to find something a similar idea but did not find nothing similar. The system mostly used are electrical (or manual) vacuum pumps to use with plastic transparents bags. Howevwe most of the people have not a lot of time and it is a time consuming operation. The innovative idea for my Food box saver is the automatism of vacuum, incorporated in the refridgerator and very simple to use. You only have to press the button, open the box and you can put in your food. then, close the compartment and press again the button and automatically vacuum will be produce .Now your food is safe and with higher conservation conditions , more or less.... depending by food
