Research

In order for us to create a design for our can crusher , our group did some researching on the history of recycling and the different processes people have developed over the years. We gathered inspiration from past design and looked at what has worked in the past and what didn't. To make our design we also required information which included:

• What are the initial dimensions of the can? 

• How big must the can crusher be in order to accept a new can?

• How much must the can be crusher to achieve a 70 % reduction in volume? 

• How much force must be applied to the can to crush it by 70%?

• What power sources are available that can deliver this force? 

• Would denting the can help in crushing it? 

What is Can-Crusher?

Can crusher is a tool that is used for crushing empty aluminum cans for easier recycling. It is a tool for everyday usage and is especially useful for those, who use a lot of cans, for example, drinking soda from aluminum cans. The most common type of cans that people use regularly are soda cans. If you are  a common soda drinker, you probably have a large bag of empty cans lying on floor in your kitchen or garage. Compressing all those cans with your hands or feet would not only take a lot of time, but also would be very exhausting. Uncompressed cans can take up a lot of space, especially larger 16 and more oz. cans. Can crusher is able to compress cans to just 1 inch height. For example, if size of an average 16 oz can is approximately 9 inches than aluminum can crusher will compress 16 oz can 9 times smaller. This way you will have a free room for 9 more cans in your garbage disposal. The size of a regular 12 oz can is approx. 4.75 inches, which means that is can be compressed down 4 times of its usual height with a can crusher.

Why Automatic Can-Crusher?

Crushing cans can be a long and hard process when you have a bag with empty aluminum soda or beer cans after a party, and although a regular can crusher or a semi-automatic can crusher can make this process a lot more efficient, you can still get tired easily after few dozens of aluminum cans compressed. So to make this process even more effective some handy people have made their own automatic can crushers. These tools are made using various technologies such as electricity, pneumatic or hydraulic cylinders to power crushers from a metal, wood or even a plastic construction. There are also some commercial automatic can crushers, but these devices usually cost a lot more than regular crushers or homemade tools and are used in industrial applications. We tried to find the most practical, creative and interesting automatic can crushers on the internet and have categorised them by the technology they use to compress aluminum cans, either with air or pneumatic cylinders, electric engines or hydraulic cylinders. Our Automatic Can Crusher is portable can crusher which can be used anywhere without requiring gas cylinders or hydraulic pumps for applying pressure, since it operates with a 12 Volt of battery.