FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to an arrangement based on oxygen deficit and vacuum for collecting and storing biowaste.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION By biowaste is meant organic, decomposable waste. Biowaste is created, for example, in connection with preparing food in household kitchens, industrial kitchens and restaurants, grocery stores as well as in food industry processes.

Biowaste is also created in the primary production of foodstuffs, as well as in yards and gardens. In Finland, more than 300 000 tons of biowaste are collected annually, and a comparable amount gets into the mixed waste. There are more than 2.6 million households in Finland, of which a great portion collects, or would like to collect biowaste for further utilization. The corresponding figures in Europe and the world are significantly greater. In the waste hierarchy, the first priority is that an attempt should be made to reduce waste and use it for alternative purposes, or to transform it, for example, into biofuels. This waste utilization principle has increased the need for recycling and separate collection, and in most European countries the sorting of waste is regulated and an attempt is made to get rid of landfills. Regulation is applied to individuals as well as businesses and other legal actors.

Biowaste is a valuable and energy-rich raw material for many applications. Typical manners of utilizing biowaste are composting, burning for energy, decomposition into biogas, or fermentation into bioethanol. The worst manner of treating biowaste, currently illegal in Europe, is to keep biowaste at a waste treatment facility piled among mixed waste, wherein methane is uncontrollably released, accelerating climate change. There are many challenges relating to the collection and storage of the biowaste created in households. Organic material deteriorates rather quickly, as it serves as a growth medium for various moulds, fungi, bacteria, banana flies and other living organisms, which degrade and transform organic substance into various

compounds. This may cause health risks but, at the very least, an unpleasant odour, for which reason domestic biowaste bins must be emptied quite often, regardless of how full they are.

Biowaste is usually collected in its own bins having their own emptying cycle. In areas with private homes, separate collection of biowaste is not arranged in all countries, as the bins fill more slowly than those of multi-resident living complexes, and emptying biowaste, with its frequent collections requirement, is not profitable. For households, collection of biowaste may be quite unpleasant, because it deteriorates rapidly and smells bad. On the other hand, a more frequent emptying cycle of bins causes extra driving and expenses.

The most common manner of collecting household biowaste is an ordinary bucket, which is kept in the cupboard under the sink, or on a table. The bucket may have a lid, and its inner surface is usually protected by a biodegradable plastic bag. It is good to empty biowaste into the waste bin of the yard at intervals of a couple days, and especially in warm weather, waste begins to deteriorate in just a few hours. Biowaste bags are unpleasant to use as they typically begin to decompose in a couple of days. As a result of this, they are no longer capable of containing waste inside them, instead they become soaked and rip.

In private households, biowaste can also be composted. A composter is generally placed outdoors, but on the market are also smaller composters to be placed in the kitchen. The soil obtained from a composter may be used, for example, in a home garden. Composters often use microbe or nutrient additives to promote

decomposition, and otherwise maintaining the process requires regular care of the composter.

Lately, onto the market have also come biowaste collection bins based on drying. Biowaste containing an abundance of water is dried with heat, and the dried biowaste is composted at home or collected separately for further treatment.

However, this is a rather energy-inefficient manner of storing waste.

One manner for storing biowaste is vacuumizing, i.e. vacuum packaging. To promote the storage of foodstuffs, there are on the market various vacuum devices, using which foodstuffs can be packaged into a vacuum bag or bin. Vacuum is sucked into the bins usually by a separate hand pump through a valve in the lid. In principle, these bins may also be used in the storage of biowaste, i.e. to prevent deterioration. However, small size and the lack of automation in daily use essentially decrease the convenience of use.

To facilitate the collection of biowaste at its place or origin and prevent

deterioration, other solutions have also been developed. As an example of these is international patent application (WO201719806 Al), the solution of which is based on two nested waste bins, onto the lid of which outer bin is installed an air pump. The purpose of the outer bin is to maintain vacuum within it, whereas the inner bin serves as the holder for a biodegradable bag. However, this solution is complex and expensive to implement. In addition, it limits the size of the bin to a few litres. The larger the bin in question, the larger an air pump is required to remove air from the bin. From the point of view of usability, a pump of any large size cannot be placed on the lid, or the lid can no longer be easily opened manually.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION The object of the invention is to allow collecting and storing of biowaste such that the waste neither decomposes nor smells. The invention is based on a simple innovation: to a biowaste container is coupled a separate pumping system, by means of which vacuum can be created in the container and the amount of oxygen can also be reduced. This stops the deterioration process almost completely, and biowaste is stored, even for weeks, odour-free. At the same time, this allows a higher quality raw material for those who would utilize the biowaste. The system is technically simpler to implement and use than the competing, vacuumizing-based waste storage methods presented above. DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is characterized in that, which is presented in the

characterizing part of the accompanying claim 1.

The preferred embodiments of the invention are characterized in that, which is presented in the characterizing part of the accompanying dependent claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following, the invention is described in more detail by means of reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows an arrangement for collecting and storing biowaste according to a preferred embodiment. The arrangement is composed of a frame part 3, an easily-removable waste container 1, a lid 2 having a seal, a user interface and two air holes 5, 6, as well as a separate pumping system 4, by means of which air is sucked away from the waste container 1 to create therein vacuum and a lower oxygen content. The whole entity may be an independent device, or it may be integrated into other furnishings of the kitchen or industrial facility. The lid 2 is hinged either to the frame part 3, or optionally, to other furnishings of the kitchen.

The waste container 1 is intended for storing waste. There is only one container 1, and it is to be easily removed and re-installed in place for the emptying of biowaste. The inside surface of the waste container is of a smooth and dirt-repellent material in order that a biowaste bag is not required. The outside surface of the container may be smooth, or it may have attachments to other systems. The container may have any shape, or be of any material, which will withstand the vacuum to which it is subjected, also in long-term use. The container may also be produced from a material that retains its shape under vacuum, or a material flexing inwards along with the vacuum.

The lid 2 has a seal, air holes 5, 6 for output and input air, as well as user interfaces for starting the pump as well as for opening the lid. The output hole 5 is connected by an air hose 7 to the pumping system 4 and, through it, air is sucked away from the waste container 1, creating vacuum. The output hole 5 is protected such that biowaste cannot pass therein. When vacuum is desired in the waste container, the air input hole 6 is closed by a mechanical barrier. The waste container is returned to ambient air pressure by moving this mechanical barrier by means of the user interface, after which the lid can be opened easily. The function of the user interface may be based on closing the lid, the use of an electromagnetic or mechanical switch, or a motion sensor. The air holes 5, 6 may have filter material for odour removal.

The pumping system 4 is composed of one or more vacuum pumps 4', a control system (not shown), an air hose 7, an electrical supply system (not shown), measurement sensors (not shown), as well as other necessary mechanical and electrical components (not shown), which allow the system to function. These control and electrical supply systems, as well as the various sensors and mechanical as well as electrical components are obvious to the skilled person in the art, nor are they further described in this connection. The air hose 7 is coupled to the output hole 5 in the lid 2. The control system is coupled to the user interfaces of the lid 2, the measurement sensors as well as the vacuum pumps. The vacuum pump 4' is started either through the user interface, on a timer, or based on, for example, information received from a pressure sensor. According to Fig. 1, the pumping system 4 may be located below the waste container 1, or alongside it, or it may be integrated into other furnishings of the kitchen. The pumping system 4 may be supplied directly from the power network, it may contain a rechargeable battery, or it may operate on batteries.

When a user wishes to place biowaste into the waste container 1, he first allows ambient air pressure into the container through the air hole 6 by means of the user interface of the lid. After this, the lid 2 can be opened either manually, or it can be opened by a spring.

When a user closes the lid 2, the pumping system 4 starts either automatically, or the user can start it through the user interface. The pump 4' stops by itself either on a timer, or when an adequate vacuum is reached. The control system can monitor the vacuum within the waste container, and start the pump if the vacuum exceeds a threshold value. Alternatively, the pumping system can operate on a timer, wherein it starts at given time intervals. If gas and overpressure is formed in the waste container, the lid automatically vents the overpressure.

When a user wishes to empty the waste container, he first opens the lid. After this, the waste container can easily be removed from its place, the contents can be emptied and, if needed, the inner surface can be rinsed or wiped clean. After this, the waste container can be easily disposed back into place.

The information obtained from different sensors can be collected, and can be analysed more precisely, for example, through a mobile application. As the sensors may be, for example, pressure, temperature and humidity sensors. Into the frame part can further be arranged elements for measuring the weight of the container. Thus, the creation, amount and sources of the waste can be monitored. This provides tools for more precise planning of bin emptying and i.a. monitoring and control of food waste.