First Lessons Learned of an Artificial Intelligence Robotic System for Autonomous Coarse Waste Recycling Using Multispectral Imaging-Based Methods
This addresses the inefficiency in current manual sorting processes at disposal facilities, aiming to recover more recyclable materials from coarse waste, though it appears incremental as it builds on existing imaging and AI methods for a specific domain.
The paper tackles the problem of automating coarse waste recycling by developing an AI robotic system that uses multispectral imaging (UV, VIS, NIR, SWIR) for material classification in mixed waste piles, where object detection alone is infeasible due to damaged objects, and investigates autonomous control of hydraulic machinery with cost-effective cameras and AI-based controllers.
Current disposal facilities for coarse-grained waste perform manual sorting of materials with heavy machinery. Large quantities of recyclable materials are lost to coarse waste, so more effective sorting processes must be developed to recover them. Two key aspects to automate the sorting process are object detection with material classification in mixed piles of waste, and autonomous control of hydraulic machinery. Because most objects in those accumulations of waste are damaged or destroyed, object detection alone is not feasible in the majority of cases. To address these challenges, we propose a classification of materials with multispectral images of ultraviolet (UV), visual (VIS), near infrared (NIR), and short-wave infrared (SWIR) spectrums. Solution for autonomous control of hydraulic heavy machines for sorting of bulky waste is being investigated using cost-effective cameras and artificial intelligence-based controllers.