Data-Driven Approaches to Detecting Misdeliveries in Truck Logistics using GPS Data

Misdelivery in logistic services leads to increased costs and degradation of packages. For deliveries using trucks, erroneous deliveries are prevented by checking identification numbers on packages as the packages pass through delivery points. In recent years, it has become possible to monitor real-time location by attaching GPS receivers to packages, but few concrete efforts have been made to detect anomalies using truck transport data. This study introduces a basic framework for the detection of misdeliveries and a summary of the problems in actual truck misdelivery using special medical supply delivery data provided by a major Japanese logistics company. It is shown that the system can detect erroneous deliveries with high accuracy, even for actual delivery data with coarse resolution owing to the cost of installing the equipment. This study has the potential not only to improve logistics and reduce costs, but also to solve various social problems such as driver shortages.