Patent ID: 7422144

Claim:
A system to separate and store trash for use in a multi-floor building, the system comprising: (a) a vertical waste chute with at least one trash intake door to the chute located on a floor of the building, the chute having an upper and lower portion and a path therethrough; (b) a login device for identifying a user of the system that is about to put trash and or recyclable material into the waste chute; (c) a selection device for use by the user to select the type of trash or recyclable material about to be discarded; (d) a first receptacle for trash, (e) at least one additional receptacle, each additional receptacle for a different type of recyclable material, (f) a diverter system, associated with the selection device, located adjacent the lower portion of the chute for diverting the path of the trash placed into the chute to one of the first receptacle or one of the additional receptacles; (g) at least one controller, each controller adjacent the respective trash intake door, the controller including the selection device for selecting the particular category of trash to be deposited into the trash intake door and the login device, the controller operatively connected to the diverter system for selectively controlling flow of trash into one of the first receptacle for trash and the at least one additional receptacle; (h) a first scale connected to the first receptacle for measuring the weight of trash in the first receptacle; (i) a scale connected to each additional receptacle, for measuring the weight of recyclable materials in each additional receptacle; and (j) a computer system, connected to the scales connected to each additional receptacle, to process and store data collected from the scales connected to each additional receptacle.