Recycling: An Optimization with Machine Learning

The new era brings constant challenges to the sustainability issue. The keyword is recycling in order to save the planet. The logistics around collecting all the recyclable items in a city is of extreme relevance. Typically, there is no or minimal technology integration in the recycle delivery points, so the logistics about the optimal frequency for collecting the items is being empirically managed over time. This article describes the preliminary work done to apply artificial intelligence (AI) tools to predict the optimal moment for the pickup of the recycle delivery points. The machine learning approach by random forest is presented as a new conceptual proposal for an optimal logistic approach for collecting the recyclable materials, without the need for sensor integration in the recycle delivery points.