Building useful smart campus applications using a retired cell phone repurposing model

Abstract

The usage of cell (mobile) phones has increased over the years. As newer and more advanced cellular technology is introduced, the question of what will be done with disposed or retired cell phones becomes a pressing one. Currently, this problem has an impact on the environment, as e-waste in landfills is a growing concern. Many have offered solutions to this problem, some that involve recycling the materials the cell phone is made of or extending the length of the contract so that users keep their cell phones longer. However, in this paper, we provide an alternative to these methods by using our model to determine if a retired cell phone can be repurposed by identifying its functional components and its sensor capabilities. Given this information from our model, a repurpose-capable cell phone can then be used to develop useful smart campus applications and can potentially reduce the number of retired cell phones that become e-waste.