Review

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Applications in Smart Production: Progress, Trends,
and Directions
Raffaele Cioffi 1, Marta Travaglioni 1, Giuseppina Piscitelli 1, Antonella Petrillo 1,*
and Fabio De Felice 2
1 Department of Engineering, Parthenope University, Isola C4, Centro Direzionale, 80143 Napoli NA, Italy;
[email protected] (R.C.); [email protected] (M.T.);
[email protected] (G.P.)
2 Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Via G. Di

Biasio, 43, 03043 Cassino FR, Italy; [email protected]

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Received: 1 December 2019; Accepted: 5 January 2020; Published: 8 January 2020

Abstract: Adaptation and innovation are extremely important to the manufacturing industry. This
development should lead to sustainable manufacturing using new technologies. To promote
sustainability, smart production requires global perspectives of smart production application
technology. In this regard, thanks to intensive research efforts in the field of artificial intelligence
(AI), a number of AI‐based techniques, such as machine learning, have already been established in
the industry to achieve sustainable manufacturing. Thus, the aim of the present research was to
analyze, systematically, the scientific literature relating to the application of artificial intelligence
and machine learning (ML) in industry. In fact, with the introduction of the Industry 4.0, artificial
intelligence and machine learning are considered the driving force of smart factory revolution. The
purpose of this review was to classify the literature, including publication year, authors, scientific
sector, country, institution, and keywords. The analysis was done using the Web of Science and
SCOPUS database. Furthermore, UCINET and NVivo 12 software were used to complete them. A
literature review on ML and AI empirical studies published in the last century was carried out to
highlight the evolution of the topic before and after Industry 4.0 introduction, from 1999 to now.
Eighty‐two articles were reviewed and classified. A first interesting result is the greater number of
works published by the USA and the increasing interest after the birth of Industry 4.0.

Keywords: artificial intelligence; machine learning; systematic literature review; applications;

Industry 4.0; smart production; sustainability

1. Introduction
Smart production systems require innovative solutions to increase the quality and sustainability
of manufacturing activities while reducing costs. In this context, artificial intelligence (AI)‐driven
technologies, leveraged by I4.0 Key Enabling Technologies (e.g., Internet of Thing, advanced
embedded systems, cloud computing, big data, cognitive systems, virtual and augmented reality),
are ready to generate new industrial paradigms [1].
In this regard, it is interesting to remember that the father of artificial intelligence, John
McCarthy [2], in the 1990s, defined artificial intelligence as “artificial intelligence is the science and
engineering of making intelligent machines, especially intelligent computer programs”. Generally,
the term “AI” is used when a machine simulates functions that humans associate with other human
minds, such as learning and problem solving [3].

Sustainability 2020, 12, 492; doi:10.3390/su12020492 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability

Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 2 of 24

On a very broad account, the areas of artificial intelligence are classified into 16 categories [4–8].
These are reasoning, programming, artificial life, belief revision, data mining, distributed AI, expert
systems, genetic algorithms, systems, knowledge representation, machine learning, natural language
understanding, neural networks, theorem proving, constraint satisfaction, and theory of computation
[9–11].
In the 21st century, AI has become an important area of research in all fields: Engineering,
science, education, medicine, business, accounting, finance, marketing, economics, stock market, and
law, among others [12–18]. The range of AI has grown enormously since the intelligence of machines
with machine learning capabilities has created profound impacts on business, governments, and
society [19]. They also influence the larger trends in global sustainability. Artificial intelligence can
be useful to solve critical issue for sustainable manufacturing (e.g., optimization of energy resources,
logistics, supply chain management, waste management, etc.). In this context, in smart production,
there is a trend to incorporate AI into green manufacturing processes for stricter environmental
policies [20]. In fact, as said in March 2019 by Hendrik Fink, head of Sustainability Services at
PricewaterhouseCoopers, “If we properly incorporate artificial intelligence, we can achieve a
revolution with regard to sustainability. AI will be the driving force of the fourth industrial
revolution” [21].
Thus, subfields of AI, such as machine learning, natural language processing, image processing,
and data mining, have also become an important topic for today’s tech giants. The subject of AI
generates considerable interest in the scientific community, by virtue of the continuous evolution of
the technologies available today.
The development of ML as a branch of AI is now very fast. Its usage has spread to various fields,
such as learning machines, which are currently used in smart manufacturing, medical science,
pharmacology, agriculture, archeology, games, business, and so forth.
According to the above considerations, in this work, a systematic literature review of research
from 1999 to 2019 was performed on AI and the ML technique. Therefore, it is considered necessary
to create a classification system that refers to the articles that jointly treat the two topics, in order to
have greater variance and reflection. Furthermore, to gain a deeper understanding, the influence of
other variables was explored, such as the thematic areas and the sectors in which the technologies are
most influential. The main contribution of this work is that it provides an overview of the research
carried out to date.
A number of impressive documentations of established research methods and philosophy have
been discussed for several years. Unfortunately, little comparison and integration across studies
exists. In this article, a common understanding of AI and ML research and its variations was created.
This paper is not attempting to provide an all‐encompassing framework on the literature on AI
and ML research. Rather, it attempts to provide a starting point for integrating knowledge across
research in this domain and suggests paths for future research. It explores studies in certain novel
disciplines: Environmental pollution, medicine, maintenance, manufacturing, etc.
Further research is needed to extend the present boundary of knowledge in AI by integrating
principles and philosophies of some traditional disciplines into the existing AI frameworks [22–24].
The target that this document would like to assume is not the trigger of a sudden proliferation
of an already consolidated sector, but it is hoped that this research could be an important intellectual
tool for both the refocusing of the work and creating new intellectual opportunities. This paper
presents valuable ideas and perspectives for undergoing research on AI and ML.
The final aim was to anticipate the transformation of the discipline in the future age. This would
be a journey that may experience change in its course as new generations of scholars contribute to
the dialogue and to the action. As noted earlier, this work presents a review, hence it lays a foundation
for future inquiry. It not only offers a basis for future comparisons but prompts a number of new
questions for investigations as well. While topics that might be considered as results of this work are
numerous, some are of particularly broad interest or impact.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 3 of 24

The paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents the proposed methodology and details the
research methodology adopted for the literature survey. Section 3 analyzes the main results of the
bibliometric analysis. Finally, in Section 4, the main contribution of the research is summarized.

2. Methodology
The methodological approach used mixes bibliometric, content analysis, and social network
techniques. In this study, a state‐of‐the‐art research was conducted through the SCOPUS and Web of
Science databases. For the publication time span, the time from 1999 to 2019 was considered with the
intent to understand how the level of attention towards the topic has changed before and after the
introduction of Industry 4.0. The research methodology chosen for this study was a systematic
literature review [25]. The main phases of the study were as follows:
1. Phase 1: Research and Classification. The present phase was divided into three steps:
 Step 1: Identification;
 Step 2: Screening; and
 Step 3: Inclusion.
In phase 1, bibliometric data was collected (step 1). Then, a screening of the overall result was
carried out to identify which documents can be taken into consideration, in line with the research
areas deemed interesting and relevant (step 2). At the end of this step, the last step (step 3) aimed to
select the documents to be analyzed in detail.
2. Phase 2: Analysis. Once phase 1 was completed, the next phase was phase 2, which was the
analysis of the results. The approach used for the bibliometric analysis included:
 The use of indicators for the parameters studied; and
 SNA (social network analysis) for the keywords.
The indicators chosen to perform the analysis were total papers (TPs), which is the total number
of publications, and total citations (TCs), which is the total number of citations.
SNA finds application in various social sciences, and has lately been employed in the study of
various phenomena, such as international trade, information dissemination, the study of institutions,
and the functioning of organizations. The analysis of the use of the term SNA in the scientific
literature has undergone exponential growth in the use of this mode of computable representation of
complex and interdependent phenomena. For the purpose of the study, UCINET, NetDraw software
was used, which was expressly designed for the creation and graphic processing of networks, and
was used to represent the keywords in the network, and Excel for data input.
The software UCINET, NetDraw returned a sociometric network that describes the relationships
between the classes, that is, data entered as input.
Furthermore, NVivo 12 software, the leading program for computer‐assisted qualitative analysis
(CAQDAS), was used to analyze keywords of all documents. In this specific case, it was used to
identify the possible links between the keywords of the various documents examined, developing
conceptual schemes from which to make interpretative hypotheses.
3. Phase 3: Discussion. At the end of the second phase, a third and final one followed, where the
results were discussed, and conclusions were drawn.
In Figure 1, the main phases and steps followed for the analysis are shown.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 4 of 24

Figure 1. Process flow chart.

3. Results of the Bibliometric Analysis

3.1. Phase 1: Research and Classification

The first phase consisted of the search for documents, which included the activities of collecting
the material belonging to the academic universe. This first phase was divided into three steps as
follows.

3.1.1. Identification (Step 1)

For a comprehensive survey of the phenomenon, an investigation on the Scopus (SCP) and Web
of Science (WoS) databases was carried out using Boolean operators. We began by making a search
query on the Scopus and WoS databases with the general keywords “artificial intelligence” AND
“machine learning” AND “application”, as shown in Table 1.
In order to maintain the consistency of the results, the same keywords were used in both
databases and a time horizon of 20 years was chosen, from 1999 to 2019.
The choice of keywords for performing the survey was based on the awareness that AI and ML
can be an important tool in the effort to adopt responsible business practices in the context of smart
production. In this regard, it is worthy to note that with the increasingly urgent discussions of climate
change, it seemed appropriate to focus our research on the topic of sustainability. Thus, the selection
of papers also considered applications on sustainability.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 5 of 24

Table 1. Keywords and time period.

Keywords Time Period

Artificial Intelligence
Machine Learning 1999–2019
Application

The search returned in total 13,512 documents.

The results extracted by Scopus are numerically superior to Web of Science (WoS): 12,445 for the
first and only 1081 for the second one (Table 2).

Table 2. Total results of research on Scopus and WoS.

Research Carried out on 2019

Source of research Scopus Web of Science
Results 12,445 1081

The result is not entirely unexpected, and the reason is to be found in the fact that Scopus, being
an Elsevier product, collects data from all the other databases, in particular Science Direct and those
queried by the Scirus search engine, while Web of Science (WoS) collects fewer documents.
From the documents extracted in Scopus, it was found that most of them are conference papers
(57.28%) and, subsequently, articles (33.85%).
On the contrary, the research on Web of Science (WoS) underlines that most of the documents
are articles (46.12%) and, subsequently, proceedings papers (42.86%).
All the document types are filled in Table 3.

Table 3. Distribution of document types in Scopus and Web of Science.

Web of Science Scopus

Document Types Records Contribute % Document Types Records Contribute %
Article 481 46.12 Conference Paper 7128 57.28
Proceedings paper 447 42.86 Article 4212 33.85
Review 133 12.76 Review 412 3.31
Editorial material 16 1.53 Article in Press 194 1.56
Meeting abstract 2 0.19 Book Chapter 177 1.42
Book chapter 1 0.1 Conference Review 177 1.42
Retracted publication 1 0.1 Book 90 0.72
‐ ‐ ‐ Editorial 27 0.22
‐ ‐ ‐ Note 10 0.08
‐ ‐ ‐ Letter 9 0.07
‐ ‐ ‐ Short Survey 9 0.07

AI began working in the 1940s and researchers showed strong expectations until the 1970s when
they began to encounter serious difficulties and investments were greatly reduced.
Since then, a long period began, known as the “AI winter” [26]: Despite some great successes,
such as IBM’s Deep Blue system, which in the late 1990s defeated the then chess world champion
Garri Kasparov, the study of solutions for AI has only come back for a few years. The push for a new
technological development has been given by the I4.0, which considered AI as one of the primary key
enabling technologies (KETs).
From this period onwards, the literature has been enriched with documents, as shown in Figure
2. Growth is apparent after 2011 when new technologies began to be implemented more frequently.
In fact, the Industry 4.0 term first appeared at Hannover Messe in 2011 when Professor Wolfgang
Wahlster, Director and CEO of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, addressed the
opening ceremony audience.
In fact, this research indicates that over the time period considered (1999–2019), the number of
published articles remains almost constant until 2013, from which it undergoes an increase.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 6 of 24

Figure 2. Research growth on Scopus and Web of Science.

Subsequently, the increase in the adoption of these ones has led researchers to keep pace with
the growth of I4.0 [27].

3.1.2. Screening (Step 2)

Trying to give an overview of the topics and areas interface, in the screening phase, an analysis
of documents characterized by free access was chosen, excluding those that have restrictions, and to
restrict the field to the thematic areas of scientific interest.
With this in mind, the number of open access items has been drastically reduced (1288 results
for Scopus and 149 for WoS) and, also applying the filter related to the thematic areas (Table 4), it
determined a further reduction: 947 for Scopus and 60 for WoS.

Table 4. Subject area filter on Scopus and WoS.

Subject Area
Scopus Web of Science (WoS)
Computer Chemical Computer Science Computer Science Artificial Automation Control
Science Engineering Information Systems Intelligence Systems
Materials Science Environmental
Engineering Energy Environmental Sciences
Multidisciplinary Studies
Materials Engineering Electrical Computer Science Operations Research
Decision Science
Science Electronic Hardware Architecture Management Science
Business
Environmental
Management Telecommunications Industrial Relations Labor Robotics
Science
and accounting
Engineering Environmental Engineering Manufacturing Thermodynamics
Computer Science Theory
Engineering Industrial Energy Fuels
Methods
Computer Science
Engineering Civil Engineering Mechanical
Cybernetics
Computer Science Software
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Engineering

Note how the number of filters applied is different. The databases, in fact, offer the same search
options, but, in the specific case of the thematic areas, the latter are more numerous and structured
on Web of Science (WoS) compared to Scopus.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 7 of 24

3.1.3. Inclusion (Step 3)

At the end of the screening process, the inclusion step was started, which consisted in the
selection of documents, which was extracted from the last passage, destined to be included in the
sample on which bibliometric analysis was performed. In this review step, for the purposes of
eligibility, we examined the complete text of each document independently. For each article, we
examined whether there was interest from the academic world, and if it contained case studies or real
applications, proposals for new AI and ML algorithms, or possible future scenarios.
Therefore, the final sample to be analyzed consisted of 60 documents for Scopus and 22 for WoS.

3.2. Phase 2: Analysis

This section presents and discusses the findings of this review.
First, an overview of the selected studies is presented. Second, the review findings according to
the research criteria, one by one in the separate subsections, are reported.

3.2.1. Top Highly Influential Analysis

This section lists the most highly cited documents in WoS and Scopus. The list is structured by
research source, date, title, authors, source title, and top citation (TP) in WoS or Scopus, according to
the research source. The whole list is available in the Appendix A. Looking into the Appendix A, it is
possible underline that the document by Larrañaga, Calvo, Santana et al. in 2006 [28] has the highest
citation count of 298. This article reviews machine learning methods for bioinformatics and it presents
modelling methods. Moreover, the document year is 2006, so before I4.0 was introduced. Therefore,
having more years than today has an advantage in terms of diffusion. This means that it is one of the
most influential documents in the academic world, as it proposes some of the most useful techniques
for modelling, giving the document the opportunity to become a pioneer in the computer science
research area.
Obviously, all documents before I4.0, in general, have more citations than the most recent
documents. However, it is significant to note that even recent documents have a very high number
of citations compared to the year of publication. This denotes the interest in the topic from the
scientific community.
The citation analysis revealed that the first article that we can identify among the most cited in
the I4.0 period dates to 2016. The work, published by Krawczyk [29], proposes application models to
further develop the field of unbalanced learning, to focus on computationally effective, adaptive, and
real‐time methods, and provides a discussion and suggestions on the lines of future research in the
application subject of the study. It received 119 citations. Moreover, an article published by Wuest,
Weimer, Irgens et al. [30] received much attention among the scientific community. It contributes by
presenting an overview of the available machine learning techniques.
Finally, the citation analysis pointed out that the average number of citations of all documents
is 16.58. This value is expected to increase rapidly considering the interest in the issues of ML and AI.

3.2.2. Publications by Years

Consistent with what is defined in Section 3.1.1., the study shows that the number of items
included in the analysis is definitely low for the entire period before I4.0 and then suddenly increases,
starting in 2012. The data shown in Figure 3 also show two holes in the 2001–2008 and 2008–2011
intervals. This means that the technological applications were limited before it became an enabling
technology of I4.0 in all respects, only to have a peak of technological implementation, as was
foreseeable.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 8 of 24

Figure 3. Years of publications.

With reference to 2019, the figure refers to the first months of the year, so it is plausible that
during the year, there will be a further increase in the documents in the literature. Furthermore, an
increase is expected in the coming years, in parallel with the growth of I4.0

3.2.3. Most Collaborative Authors

The analysis highlighted that most of publications have more than one author. From this point
of view, it is possible to identify the number of authors for each document. As shown in Figure 4,
most of the manuscripts were produced by groups ranging from two to five authors. The indicators
chosen to perform the analysis were total papers (TPs), which is the total number of publications.

Figure 4. Collaborative groups.

Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 9 of 24

3.2.4. Research Areas Analysis

The total research area analysis collected from the 82 papers was 164 because each paper can be
considered as more than one research area analysis. Given the small number of documents identified
in the period before I4.0, the ranking refers mostly to the current industrial revolution. Also, in this
case, the result is consistent with the introduction of paradigm 4.0, which has intensified research and
the adoption of technology.
The first thematic areas and disciplines that are at the top of the ranking are computer science,
engineering and biochemistry, genetics, and molecular Biology, respectively, with 29%, 23%, and 6%
of publications. Furthermore, the other disciplines identified for which applicative findings are found
are considered transversal to the first three disciplines and this is a consequence of I4.0. In terms of
the percentage contribution, the first three areas cover about 60% of the papers considered.
Considering the top 20 research areas, given the frequency of the research areas’ distribution,
Figure 5 shows a higher level of concentration in the disciplines indicated above.
In fact, in terms of the percentage contribution, the first five areas cover about 70% of the papers
considered. Regardless, by only counting research areas found once, there is a total of 27.
This means two things:
• The large number of fields in which this kind of research is involved; and
• Most papers have a transversal approach, that is, the object of each research crosses more
than one field of application, thus involving more research areas.
This confirms the wide interest in these subjects from several fields.

Figure 5. Top 20 research areas contributions.

3.2.5. Top Source Journals Analysis

In this section, the top 20 sources or journals that were published most frequently were extracted.
A journal is a time‐bound publication with the objective of promoting and monitoring the
progress of the discipline it represents.
In this specific case, the total source journals detected from the documents is 74, but, considering
the top 20, given the frequency of the source journals’ distribution, only the first 13 sources have more
than one paper published, with a total percentage contribution of 43% of the total.
After analyzing the sources separately, the results obtained in the two databases were found to
not be the same. In WoS, the top source journal was IEEE Access with two publications while in
Scopus, the top source journals are Procedia Computer Science, Matec Web of Conferences, and Machine
Learning with four publications, which contribute 5% of the total.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 10 of 24

Aggregating the data collected from the two databases, the ranking moves to that obtained by
Scopus, making sure that IEEE Access is no longer first in the standings, but only eighth, and that the
former are precisely those of Scopus: Procedia Computer Science, Matec Web Of Conferences, and Machine
Learning, with the same number of publications. Next, the 10 source journals have a 3% publication
contribution while the rest have a one‐to‐one relationship (1%) with the corresponding source
journal.
The low level of concentration of the sources suggests that there is a great deal of interest in these
topics from several scientific journals. As a matter of fact, it is foreseeable that specialized sector
sources (AI Magazine and Machine Learning) are among the first 13; however, it is interesting to note
that other sources are involved, such as Sustainability Switzerland or BMC Bioinformatics and Nuclear
Engineering and Design.
Figure 6 shows the top 20 source journals contributions.

Figure 6. Top 20 source journals contributions.

3.2.6. Country Analysis

The results that emerged through research on the two databases are consistent with each other.
In both cases, in fact, the countries that give the greatest contribution to the research are China and
the United States (Figure 8). The result is obvious since in China and the United States, more than 1.3
billion and 0.3 millions of people live, respectively, and so there are more researchers than in the
single European nations. Focusing on Europe, Germany published more papers than any other
European country. This is not a random result: I4.0 was born in Germany, so this outcome was
expected. However, the following observation cannot be ignored from this data: The USA and China
carry the first two places in the list while it is not the same for European countries. Europe, despite
its talents and resources, has lost ground. Presenting its report on artificial intelligence, the French
deputy and mathematician Cédric Villani declared that, “Europe must be able to compete with China
and the United States while protecting its citizens and pointing the way to go on ethical issues”. If
we are not careful, the 21st century rules will not be defined in Brussels, but in Shanghai. Artificial
intelligence is also a land marked by intense geopolitical rivalry that could redefine global power
relations.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 11 of 24

Even so, regarding Europe, it is worthy to also note that since 2017, France, Germany, and Italy
have intensified their trilateral cooperation to promote digitizing the manufacturing industry. In this
regard, in the near future, we expect a significant evolution of smart production initiatives and
therefore an increase in scientific research.
Figure 7 shows the country contribution distribution.

Figure 7. Top 20 countries contributions.

3.2.7. Affiliation Analysis

The total number of affiliation detected from the 82 papers is 153. Also, in this case, considering
the top 20, the frequency of the affiliation distribution shows that most papers have a one‐to‐one
relationship with the corresponding affiliation. Only the first four affiliations have three papers (2%
of the contribution) and the second four have two papers (1.3% of the contribution). This result gives
us information about the wide interest on this subject from several universities and research centers
all over the world. Then, the affiliation analysis confirms the result of the country analysis (Figure 8).
In fact, if we try to sum the first eight affiliations by their own country, the outcome is:
• Nine papers from China;
• Six papers from Germany; and
• Five papers from the USA.
In September 2018, the most important event on artificial intelligence was held in Shanghai.
China is very determined to focus on future technologies.
For some months, China has become the world’s leading power in terms of scientific
publications. Late in the 20th century technologies, China chose to do what the English‐speaking
people call a “frog jump” and focus on 21st century technologies.
China, with its 800 million Internet users and without any privacy protection policy, has access
to more personal data than the United States and Europe.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 12 of 24

Figure 8. Top 20 institute affiliations contributions.

3.2.8. Top Keywords Analysis

Through NVivo 12, the top 20 keywords were extracted directly, which are those that always
appear in association with each document.
Starting from this classification, the graphic representation, a word cloud shape, of the keywords
(Figure 9) was extracted. It can be noted that the most used term is precisely “machine”, “learning”,
and “intelligence”, which the software represents with greater characters than all the other terms.

Figure 9. Top 20 keywords cloud contribution by NVivo 12.

The font size describes how much the keyword is indexed. Another mode of representation is
the tree words (Figure 10). Also, in this case, the most indexed words are those represented in the
larger boxes.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 13 of 24

Figure 10. Top 20 keywords tree contribution by Nvivo 12.

As expected, the most indexed words are obviously “learning”, “machine”, and “intelligence”,
with high numbers. It is logical that among the first results, words that recall the technology itself
were obtained, but it is interesting to note that words referring to other fields of AI applications are
also indexed. The reason is to be found in the fact that AI and ML are technologies that cross all the
sectors involved in I4.0 and that, therefore, do not remain circumscribed.
Specifically, words, such as “data”, “neural”, “decision”, and “management”, are very or
average indexed, demonstrating the fact that AI also extends to many other sectors.
Another tool for the analysis for keywords is the UCINET software, through which social
networks analysis is carried out.
Social network analysis (SNA), which is also often called social network theory, is a modern
technology of social relations.
SNA finds application in various social sciences, and has recently been used in the study of
various phenomena, such as international trade, information dissemination, the study of institutions,
and the functioning of organizations. The analysis of the use of the term SNA in the scientific
literature shows that in the last five years, there has been exponential growth of the use of this mode
of computable representation of complex and interdependent phenomena. The software returns a
graph representing a socio‐metric network (Figure 11), which draws the relationships that exist
within the class. Each relationship is represented by an oriented arrow.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 14 of 24

Figure 11. Keywords Network by UCINET Software.

In Figure 11, nodes and leaves can be identified. The nodes are represented by red circles and
are correspond to the most common keywords, where the words “machine”, “learning”, “artificial”,
and “intelligence” have been united to form the key words “machine learning” and “artificial
intelligence”.
The leaves, on the other hand, are represented by blue squares and correspond to the articles.
To facilitate reading, the document titles were not inserted, but the (Identification) ID count for each
of them is shown in the Appendix A.
The first thing that can be noticed is the isolation of many leaves that are not connected to the
nodes. This means that the corresponding documents are not described by the keywords represented
by the nodes. Really, they are characterized by keywords that have a frequency of the order of units.
Another thing that easily jumps to the eye is a density that is larger around the keywords
“machine learning”, “decision”, “data”, “algorithm”, “system”, “artificial intelligence”, “method”,
and “optimization”. This density is reflected in the cloud and the box chart produced by NVivo 12.
Therefore, we can say that those are the words that most often appear in the documents analyzed,
emphasizing, once again, that they include terms that do not just refer to the technology object of
study but also to other fields of application.

3.3. Phase 3: Discussion

3.3.1. Benefits of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Industrial Contexts

From the analysis of the research carried out, the first information that emerged is that there is
a growing importance of innovation and digitalization in products, services, and processes.
Consequently, it means that the adoption of advanced manufacturing technologies, such AI and ML,
is an emerging issue. In other words, AI/ML algorithms represent an opportunity to handle high
dimensional problems and data. The interest in the subject is extended to all scientific sectors, but
with a focus on computer science and engineering.
The most significant benefits of using AI and ML in industrial sectors include: 1) Greater
innovation, 2) process optimization, 3) resources optimization, and 4) improved quality.
After all, AI with ML is one of the most important technologies today and is transforming the
economy and society, as demonstrated by the over 340,000 patent applications filed since the 1950s.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 15 of 24

Other information that emerged is about the authors and affiliation. Many of these are in a 1:1
ratio compared to the selected documents and this supports the fact that there is no interest in
technological applications in one direction, but that, once again, the interest is very wide in the
scientific community.
Furthermore, it can be said that the countries most interested in scientific research are the USA,
China and European countries. This result is not a surprise.
In terms of investment, the effort currently being deployed by the United States and China to
acquire dominance in the AI sector is far superior to that of other countries. More specifically, China
has clearly stated its ambition to become a world leader in AI by 2030 [31]. Among the Chinese plans,
of absolute interest is the “Made in China 2025” plan, dedicated to the manufacturing sector; the
“Internet +” plan is also dedicated to smart manufacturing and innovation.
A direct consequence of the above considerations could be having new generations of
researchers who will contribute to future comparisons, accompanied by new questions for
investigations.

3.3.2. Emerging Trends of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Sustainable

Manufacturing
From the perspective of sustainability, the analysis highlighted that the new paradigm of smart
manufacturing has the potential to bring fundamental improvements in the industry by addressing
the issue of scarce resources and improving productivity.
In fact, the survey pointed out a growing interest on applications related to green manufacturing
and sustainable development, proving that AI/ML play an important role in increasing sustainability
through the intelligent utilization of materials and energy consumption (i.e., reduction of energy
consumption and pollutant emissions, environmental footprint monitoring and evaluation, etc.).
Furthermore, it emerged that AI/ML algorithms present a wide array of applications that
provide an opportunity for sustainable development, which will involve several stakeholders from
different countries and sectors, including inventory and supply chain management, predictive
maintenance, and production.
In particular, Pérez‐Ortiz, Jiménez‐Fernández, Gutiérrez et al. [32] reviewed the most important
classification algorithms applied to renewable energy (RE) problems. The main use of algorithms is
as a tool for predictive analysis and consequently for data preprocessing, result interpretation, or
evaluation in order to improve energy and resource management.
In this context, it also emerged that AI/ML have been successfully utilized in various processes’
optimization, applications in manufacturing, and predictive maintenance in different industries.
The work published by Lieber, Stolpe, Konrad et al. [33] represents a good research within steel
industry production. It proposes an approach for automatically preprocessing value series data to
improve the quality of the process and products. It means that AI/ML techniques were found to
provide promising potential for improved quality control optimization in manufacturing systems.
Appropriate adoption of AI/ML technologies will promote sustainable manufacturing and the
formation of a new generation of intelligent manufacturing, including all areas that characterize a
sustainable process, ranging from the supply chain management to quality control, to predictive
maintenance, to energy consumption.
Table 5 summarizes the main areas in sustainable manufacturing, their respective key objectives,
and the main AI/ML applications.

Table 5. Main areas in sustainable manufacturing.

Main Areas in
Key AI/ML
Sustainable
Objective Applications
Manufacturing
Improves transparency, accelerates
Supply Chain Ready product available in the
decision‐making, and produces
Management appropriate place at a specific time
accurate demand forecasting
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 16 of 24

Recognize the early signs of

potential production failures within
Improves the response time and
Quality Control the shortest terms in order to save
allows eliminating possible failures
resources and sustain operational
efficiency
Detects possible production Creates accurate forecasts as to
Predictive
malfunctions that may cause when the machinery must be
Maintenance
product quality issues repaired
Improves excessive use of certain
materials, redundant production
Energy Recommendations that will strike a
scrap waste, inefficient supply chain
consumption balance in energy use
management, logistics, and unequal
distribution of energy resources.

However, the relationship between I.4 technologies, AI/ML, and sustainability demands a more
conceptual and empirical investigation. This is corroborated by an article recently published in Nature
Sustainability by the director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Jeffrey Sachs, and other
experts, and the so‐called Fourth Industrial Revolution (made of artificial intelligence and other
digital technologies) is even cited as one of the six transformations necessary to achieve the
sustainable development goals [34].

4. Conclusions
This research focused on the study of the state of the art of AI and ML applications, selecting
literature on what has now become a particularly hot topic in scientific research. The literature
available on any subject is now wide and a complete coverage of all the documents published with
respect to a particular topic can be challenging or even impossible. Therefore, a systematic selection
of the most relevant literature was implemented. This document provides a systematic review of
applications in various scientific fields using ML techniques. For the selection of documents, objective
and clear methods of investigation were used, independent of the experience of the researchers.
Among the objectives of the document, it aimed to not only provide a comprehensive framework on
the literature on the research of AI and ML but also a starting point for integrating knowledge
through research in this area and to suggest future research paths. It is important to underline that
this document was produced using only two databases, i.e., WoS and Scopus, in which only
documents with open access were included. There are, therefore, many other documents with
restricted access and other indexing databases, such as Google Scholar, that could be integrated for
future research.

Author Contributions: All authors contributed equally to this work. All authors have read and agreed to the
published version of the manuscript.

Funding: This work has been conducted under the framework of the Italian project “Linee Guida per I4.0‐
Campania”—funded by Regione Campania within POR FSE 2014–2020 Asse IV “Capacità istituzionale e
amministrativa” objectives 18 (RA) 11.3 and 21 (RA) 11.6.

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 17 of 24

Appendix A

ID Research ID
Year Title Authors Source Title TC
Count Source doc
Larrañaga, P.; Calvo, B.; Santana, R.; Bielza, C.;
1 SCP 2 2006 Machine learning in bioinformatics Galdiano, J.; Inza, I.; Lozano, J.A.; Armañanzas, Briefings in Bioinformatics 298
R.; Santafé, G.; Pérez, A.; Robles, V.
Data‐driven modelling: Some past
2 WoS 62 2008 Solomatine, D.P.; Ostfeld, A. Journal of Hydroinformatics 160
experiences and new approaches
Learning from imbalanced data: Open
3 SCP 26 2016 Krawczyk, B. Progress in Artificial Intelligence 119
challenges and future directions
4 WoS 63 2001 Computer go: An AI oriented survey Bouzy, B; Cazenave, T Artificial Intelligence 114
Structured machine learning: The next Dietterich, T.G.; Domingos, P.; Getoor, L.;
5 SCP 6 2008 Machine Learning 75
ten years Muggleton, S.; Tadepalli, P.
Machine learning in manufacturing:
Production and Manufacturing
6 SCP 28 2016 Advantages, challenges, and Wuest, T.; Weimer, D.; Irgens, C.; Thoben, K.D. 52
Research
applications
Machine learning paradigms for next‐ Jiang, C.; Zhang, H.; Ren, Y.; Han, Z.; Chen,
7 WoS 64 2017 Ieee Wireless Communications 50
generation wireless networks K.C.; Hanzo, L.
Machine learning techniques in disease
8 SCP 3 2006 forecasting: A case study on rice blast Kaundal, R.; Kapoor, A.A.; Raghava, G.P.S. BMC Bioinformatics 48
prediction
A comparison of machine learning
algorithms for chemical toxicity Judson, R.; Elloumi, F.; Woodrow, R.W.; Li, Z.;
9 SCP 4 2008 BMC Bioinformatics 45
classification using a simulated multi‐ Shah, I.
scale data model
A review of intelligent driving style
10 SCP 19 2015 analysis systems and related artificial Meiring, G.A.M.; Myburgh, H.C. Sensors (Switzerland) 33
intelligence algorithms
A machine learning framework for gait
classification using inertial sensors: Mannini, A.; Trojaniello, D.; Cereatti, A.;
11 SCP 21 2016 Sensors 31
Application to elderly, post‐stroke and Sabatini, A.M.
huntington’s disease patients
Application of machine learning in SNP Matukumalli, L.K.; Grefenstette, J.J.; Hyten, D.L.;
12 SCP 1 2006 BMC Bioinformatics 30
discovery Choi, I.Y.; Cregan, P.B.; Van Tassell, C.P.
Beam search algorithms for multilabel
13 SCP 10 2013 Kumar, A.; Vembu, S.; Menon, A.K.; Elkan, C. Machine Learning 29
learning
Burke, Robin; Felfernig, Alexander; Goeker,
14 WoS 65 2011 Recommender Systems: An Overview Ai Magazine 29
M.H.
Biomedical informatics for computer‐
15 SCP 11 2013 aided decision support systems: A Belle, A.; Kon, M.A.; Najarian, K. The Scientific World Journal 27
survey
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 18 of 24

Application of machine learning to Tixier, A.J.P.; Hallowell, M.R.; Rajagopalan, B.;

16 SCP 23 2016 Automation in Construction 21
construction injury prediction Bowman, D.
Quality prediction in interlinked
manufacturing processes based on Lieber, D.; Stolpe, M.; Konrad, B.; Deuse, J.;
17 SCP 12 2013 Procedia CIRP 18
supervised & unsupervised machine Morik, K.
learning
Semantic framework of internet of
18 SCP 29 2016 Zhang, N.; Chen, H.; Chen, X.; Chen, J. Sensors 17
things for smart cities: Case studies
Support vector machines in structural Çevik, A.; KURTOĞLU, A.E.; Bilgehan, M.; Journal of Civil Engineering and
19 SCP 20 2015 15
engineering: A review Gülşan, M.E.; Albegmprli, H.M. Management
A review of classification problems and Pérez‐Ortiz, M.; Jiménez‐Fernández, S.;
20 SCP 25 2016 algorithms in renewable energy Gutiérrez, P.A.; (...); Hervás‐Martínez, C.; Energies 15
applications Salcedo‐Sanz, S.
Artificial intelligence (AI) methods in
Mata, J.; de Miguel, I.; Durán, R.J.; (...); Jukan, A.; Optical Switching and
21 SCP 43 2018 optical networks: A comprehensive 15
Chamania, M. Networking
survey
Fault diagnosis of automobile gearbox Praveenkumar, T.; Saimurugan, M.;
22 SCP 14 2014 Procedia Engineering 14
based on machine learning techniques Krishnakumar, P.; Ramachandran, K.I.
Improving active Mealy machine
Aarts, F.; Kuppens, H.; Tretmans, J.; Vaandrager,
23 SCP 16 2014 learning for protocol conformance Machine Learning 11
F.; Verwer, S.
testing
Strategies and Principles of Distributed
24 WoS 66 2016 Xing, E.P.; Ho, Q.; Xie, P.; Wei, D. Engineering 11
Machine Learning on Big Data
Recent advances on artificial intelligence
Eurasip Journal on Wireless
25 WoS 67 2015 and learning techniques in cognitive Abbas, N.; Nasser, Y.; El Ahmad, K. 11
Communications and Networking
radio networks
Artificial intelligence (AI) methods in
Mata, J.; de Miguel, I.; Duran, R.J.; Merayo, N.; Optical Switching and
26 WoS 68 2018 optical networks: A comprehensive 9
Singh, S.K.; Jukan, A.; Chamania, M. Networking
survey
A big data driven sustainable
Journal of Computational Science
27 SCP 40 2018 manufacturing framework for condition‐ Kumar, A.; Shankar, R.; Thakur, L.S. 8
27, pp. 428–439
based maintenance prediction
Research and Application of a Novel
Hybrid Model Based on Data Selection
28 WoS 69 2017 Yang, W.; Wang, J.; Wang, R. Entropy 8
and Artificial Intelligence Algorithm for
Short Term Load Forecasting
Context Aware Process Mining in
29 SCP 33 2017 Becker, T.; Intoyoad, W. Procedia CIRP 7
Logistics
Applications of machine learning
30 SCP 24 2016 methods to identifying and predicting Marasco, D.E.; Kontokosta, C.E. Energy and Buildings 6
building retrofit opportunities
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 19 of 24

Operational Demand Forecasting in

District Heating Systems Using Johansson, C.; Bergkvist, M.; Geysen, D.; (...);
31 SCP 37 2017 Energy Procedia 6
Ensembles of Online Machine Learning Lavesson, N.; Vanhoudt, D.
Algorithms
Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision
32 WoS 70 2018 Making for Sustainability: Modeling and Shen, K.Y.; Tzeng, G.H. Sustainability 6
Applications
Frontiers of Information
Hybrid‐augmented intelligence: Zheng, N.N.; Liu, Z.Y.; Ren, P.J.; Ma, Y.Q.; Chen,
33 WoS 71 2017 Technology & Electronic 6
Collaboration and cognition S.T.; Yu, S.Y.; Xue, J.R.; Chen, B.D.; Wang, F.Y.
Engineering
Lecture Notes in Computer
Science (including subseries
Performance evaluation of the NVIDIA
Lecture Notes in Artificial
34 SCP 5 2008 GeForce 8800 GTX GPU for machine El Zein, A.; McCreath, E.; Rendell, A.; Smola, A. 5
Intelligence and Lecture Notes in
learning
Bioinformatics) 5101 LNCS(PART
1), pp. 466–475
A review of artificial intelligence International Journal of Electronics
35 SCP 7 2011 Bilski, A. 5
algorithms in document classification and Telecommunications
Proceedings of the ACM SIGKDD
An architecture for agile machine International Conference on
36 SCP 18 2015 Schleier‐Smith, J. 4
learning in real‐time applications Knowledge Discovery and Data
Mining
Machine learning in agriculture: A Liakos, K.G.; Busato, P.; Moshou, D.; Pearson, S.;
37 SCP 52 2018 Sensors 4
review Bochtis, D.
Application of Information Processes
38 SCP 22 2016 Applicative Modelling to Virtual Zykov, S.; Shumsky, L. Procedia Computer Science 3
Machines Auto Configuration
Geometry‐aware principal component
39 SCP 34 2017 analysis for symmetric positive definite Horev, I.; Yger, F.; Sugiyama, M. Machine Learning 3
matrices
A Fuzzy Least Squares Support Tensor International Journal of Emerging
40 SCP 17 2015 Zhang, R.; Zhou, Z. 2
Machines in Machine Learning Technologies in Learning
Nuclear energy system’s behavior and Gomez Fernandez, M.; Tokuhiro, A.; Welter, K.;
41 SCP 36 2017 Nuclear Engineering and Design 2
decision making using machine learning Wu, Q.
Application study of machine learning
42 SCP 9 2013 Qiu, T.; Zhang, S.; Zhou, H.; Bai, X.; Liu, P. Information Technology Journal 1
in lightning forecasting
WOWMON: A machine learning‐based
43 SCP 30 2016 profiler for self‐adaptive Zhang, X.; Abbasi, H.; Huck, K.; Malony, A.D. Procedia Computer Science 1
instrumentation of scientific workflows
An event search platform using machine Proceedings of the International
44 SCP 31 2017 Rodrigues, M.A.; Silva, R.R.; Bernardino, J. 1
learning Conference on Software
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 20 of 24

Engineering and Knowledge

Engineering, SEKE
Automated business process
management‐in times of digital
45 SCP 32 2017 Paschek, D.; Luminosu, C.T.; Draghici, A. MATEC Web of Conferences 1
transformation using machine learning
or artificial intelligence
Application of machine learning
methods in big data analytics at
46 SCP 42 2018 Valpeters, M.; Kireev, I.; Ivanov, N. MATEC Web of Conferences 1
management of contracts in the
construction industry
Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews:
Data mining and machine learning in
47 SCP 48 2018 Yildirim, P.; Birant, D.; Alpyildiz, T. Data Mining and Knowledge 1
textile industry
Discovery
Big Data Analytics, Machine Learning,
Kibria, M.G.; Kien, N.; Villardi, G.P.; Zhao, O.;
48 WoS 72 2018 and Artificial Intelligence in Next‐ Ieee Access 1
Ishizu, K.; Kojima, F.
Generation Wireless Networks
8th International Workshop
Quantum neuromorphic hardware for
49 WoS 73 2017 Prati, E. Dice2016: Spacetime ‐ Matter ‐ 1
quantum artificial intelligence
Quantum Mechanics
International Conference on
Exploiting Computational intelligence
Communications, Management,
50 WoS 74 2015 Paradigms in e‐Technologies and Said, H.M.; Salem, A.M. 1
and Information Technology
Activities
(Iccmit’2015)
International Conference on
Sentiment Analysis of Products Using
51 WoS 75 2012 Unnamalai, K. Modelling Optimization and 1
Web
Computing
Taxonomy development and its impact Faliagka, E.; Karydis, I.; Rigou, M.; (...); IFIP Advances in Information and
52 SCP 8 2012 0
on a self‐learning e‐recruitment system Tsakalidis, A.; Tzimas, G. Communication Technology
Research on adaptive multi‐filtering
53 SCP 13 2013 Cao, X.F.; Kang, W.; Shi, Q.; Shi, F.F. Information Technology Journal 0
model of network sensitive information
Grade: Machine‐learning support for
54 SCP 15 2014 Waters, A.; Miikkulainen, R. AI Magazine 0
graduate admissions
Leveraging linked open data Turkish Journal of Electrical
55 SCP 27 2016 information extraction for data mining Mahule, R.; Vyas, O.P. Engineering and Computer 0
applications Sciences
Rapid prototyping IoT solutions based Rizzo, A.; Montefoschi, F.; Caporali, M.; (...); ACM International Conference
56 SCP 38 2017 0
on Machine Learning Burresi, G.; Giorgi, R. Proceeding Series
Towards automatic learning of Electronic Proceedings in
57 SCP 39 2017 heuristics for mechanical Vigueras, G.; Carro, M.; Tamarit, S.; Mariño, J. Theoretical Computer Science, 0
transformations of procedural code EPTCS
Application of artificial intelligence Zajačko, I.; Gál, T.; Ságová, Z.; Mateichyk, V.;
58 SCP 41 2018 MATEC Web of Conferences 0
principles in mechanical engineering Wiecek, D.
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 21 of 24

Artificial Intelligence in Medical Chan, Y.K.; Chen, Y.F.; Pham, T.; Chang, W.;
59 SCP 44 2018 Journal of Healthcare Engineering 0
Applications Hsieh, M.Y.
A semantic internet of things framework
ACM International Conference
60 SCP 45 2018 using machine learning approach based Ding, P.W.; Hsu, I.C. 0
Proceeding Series
on cloud computing
A Survey on Machine Learning‐Based
Wireless Communications and
61 SCP 46 2018 Mobile Big Data Analysis: Challenges Xie, J.; Song, Z.; Li, Y.; (...); Zhang, J.; Guo, J. 0
Mobile Computing
and Applications
Big Data and Machine Learning Based
62 SCP 47 2018 Kaur, P.; Sharma, M.; Mittal, M. Procedia Computer Science 0
Secure Healthcare Framework
Discovering discontinuity in big ACM Transactions on
63 SCP 49 2018 Tuarob, S.; Strong, R.; Chandra, A.; Tucker, C.S. 0
financial transaction data Management Information Systems
Introducing children to machine IDC 2018 ‐ Proceedings of the 2018
64 SCP 50 2018 learning concepts through hands‐on Hitron, T.; Erel, H.; Wald, I.; Zuckerman, O. ACM Conference on Interaction 0
experience Design and Children
Machine learning for software Proceedings ‐ International
65 SCP 51 2018 engineering: Models, methods, and Meinke, K.; Bennaceur, A. Conference on Software 0
applications Engineering
Machine Learning in IT Service
66 SCP 53 2018 Zuev, D.; Kalistratov, A.; Zuev, A. Procedia Computer Science 0
Management
Research and application of computer
67 SCP 54 2018 control system based on complex neural Yang, R. MATEC Web of Conferences 0
network
Interdisciplinary Journal of
Text classification techniques: A
68 SCP 55 2018 Thangaraj, M.; Sivakami, M. Information, Knowledge, and 0
literature review
Management
A Machine Learning Method for
Sun, S.; Zhang, J.; Bi, J.; Wang, Y.; Moghaddam, Journal of Advanced
69 SCP 56 2019 Predicting Driving Range of Battery 0
M.H.Y. Transportation
Electric Vehicles
An empirical comparison of machine‐
Munkhdalai, L.; Munkhdalai, T.; Namsrai, O.E.;
70 SCP 57 2019 learning methods on bank client credit Sustainability 0
Lee, J.Y.; Ryu, K.H.
assessments
Comparison of multiple linear
regression, artificial neural network,
Niu, W.J.; Feng, Z.K.; Feng, B.F.; (...); Cheng,
71 SCP 58 2019 extreme learning machine, and support Water 0
C.T.; Zhou, J.Z.
vector machine in deriving operation
rule of hydropower reservoir
Development and evaluation of a low‐
cost and smart technology for precision Computers and Electronics in
72 SCP 59 2019 Partel, V.; Charan Kakarla, S.; Ampatzidis, Y. 0
weed management utilizing artificial Agriculture
intelligence
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 22 of 24

Identifying known and unknown mobile

Security and Communication
73 SCP 60 2019 application traffic using a multilevel Zhao, S.; Chen, S.; Sun, Y.; (...); Su, J.; Su, C. 0
Networks
classifier
Optimized Clustering Algorithms for
Wohwe Sambo, D.; Yenke, B.O.; Förster, A.;
74 SCP 61 2019 Large Wireless Sensor Networks: A Sensors 0
Dayang, P.
Review
FPGA‐Based Accelerators of Deep
75 WoS 76 2019 Learning Networks for Learning and Shawahna, A.; Sait, S.M.; El‐Maleh, A. Ieee Access 0
Classification: A Review
A quantum machine learning algorithm
76 WoS 77 2018 Gao, X.; Zhang, Z.Y.; Duan, L.M. Science Advances 0
based on generative models
Machine Learning for Network
Journal of Optical
77 WoS 78 2018 Automation: Overview, Architecture, Rafique, D.; Velasco, L. 0
Communications and Networking
and Applications
A wireless sensor data‐based coal mine
gas monitoring algorithm with least
International Journal of
78 WoS 79 2018 squares support vector machines Chen, P.; Xie, Y.; Jin, P.; Zhang, D. 0
Distributed Sensor Networks
optimized by swarm intelligence
techniques
Nuclear energy system’s behavior and Fernandez, M.G.; Tokuhiro, A.; Welter, K.; Wu,
79 WoS 80 2017 Nuclear Engineering and Design 0
decision making using machine learning Q.
Automated business process 8th International Conference on
management—In times of digital Manufacturing Science and
80 WoS 81 2017 Paschek, D.; Luminosu, C.T.; Draghici, A. 0
transformation using machine learning Education (Mse 2017)—Trends in
or artificial intelligence New Industrial Revolution
27Th International Conference on
The Evaluation of Resonance Frequency
Flexible Automation and
81 WoS 82 2017 for Piezoelectric Transducers by Chang, F.M. 0
Intelligent Manufacturing, Faim
Machine Learning Methods
2017
From Extraction to Generation of Design
Information Paradigm Shift in Data International Conference on
82 WoS 83 2017 Chiba, K.; Nakata, M. 0
Mining via Evolutionary Learning Computational Science (Iccs 2017)
Classifier System
Sustainability 2020, 12, 492 23 of 24

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