Shinjuku station introduces robot bins

Nick's ESL News Lessons

A printable worksheet for news-based English conversation classes.

Date: 2026/09/30

Difficulty: Intermediate B1

PDF: Shinjuku station introduces robot bins

Vocabulary Match

common •• working well
concourse •• alike
sensors •• station area
avoid •• usual
similar •• devices
successful •• stay away from

Vocabulary Answers

commonusual
concoursestation area
sensorsdevices
avoidstay away from
similaralike
successfulworking well

Article

What if a rubbish bin came looking for you? A new robot at Shinjuku Station could help solve a common problem in Japan: finding somewhere to throw away your rubbish. Instead of people looking for a bin, the bin comes to them!

The small robot looks like a train and has big eyes on the front. It moves around the station by itself, using sensors to avoid people and other objects. Passengers can put their rubbish into openings on its sides as it passes by.

JR East is testing the robot to see if it can safely move through the busy station. Shinjuku is famous for its huge crowds, so the robot has a difficult job. If the test is successful, similar robots could appear at other stations.

Quiz

  1. What problem does the robot help solve?
  2. What does the robot look like?
  3. How does the robot move around the station?
  4. What will happen if the test is successful?

Quiz Answers (examples)

  1. The robot helps solve the problem of finding a place to throw away rubbish.
  2. The robot looks like a train and has big eyes on the front.
  3. The robot moves around the station by itself, using sensors.
  4. If the test is successful, similar robots could appear at other stations.

Conversation

A:Hey, what's that robot doing?
B:I'm pretty sure it's a rubbish bin.
A:Seriously? It moves by itself?
B:Yeah. You can put your rubbish in it when it comes past.
A:That's pretty useful. I can never find a bin here.
B:Me neither. Let's see if it comes this way!

Discussion

  1. Does your local train station have rubbish bins? Why or why not?
  2. What do you do with your rubbish when you can't find a bin?
  3. Do you think a robot bin in a busy station is a good idea? Why or why not?
  4. What kind of robot do you wish you could have?

Source Material

https://japantoday.com/category/national/roaming-rubbish-bin-robot-at-shinjuku-station-solves-problem-of-where-to-put-your-trash

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