SmartGC: a software architecture for garbage collection in smart cities

Abstract

With populations in cities increasing in a very accelerated pace, the problem of collecting and handling the waste produced becomes a major concern to governmental authorities. Indeed, the amount of garbage they create is increasing even faster than their populations, worsening the problem and turning garbage collection into a very challenging task. In this paper, we see garbage collection through the spectacles of the emerging concept of smart cities, accounting for new performance measures defined on the grounds of sustainability, energy efficiency, optimum resource allocation, and low carbon emission and footprint. We thus devise a smart garbage collection management system, coined SmartGC, whose architecture is detailed and explained. Abstracting out garbage collection from a smart mobility perspective, the underlying methodology supporting the proposed architecture relies on the concept of artificial transportation systems. For the sake of demonstration we have implemented a routing strategy to generate improved itineraries accounting for the content of garbage containers, which are continuously monitored through IoT-based smart meters. Also, we discuss on how the architecture is instantiated and integrated into the smart city agenda of Natal, a medium-size capital in Northeastern Brazil.