Over the past one hundred and twenty-five days, the British firm Starship Technologies, which manufactures robotics, has been testing its new brainchild - a unique electric courier, which in March this year will begin to travel the streets of the Borough of the English capital Greenwich, delivering parcels and valuable goods to Londoners. …
The authors of the development are Janus Friis and Ahti Heinl, who, by the way, are one of the creators of the popular Skype program. Experts are convinced that their robotic courier will be in demand primarily in small businesses. The device can become indispensable for delivering parcels weighing up to nine kilograms to customers. The robot has a cargo compartment, the volume of which is approximately equivalent to two grocery bags.
Equipped with six wheels, the car has a low height and reaches an adult's knees, but has a long antenna for communication with the call center. Moving along the sidewalk, an electric courier can reach speeds of up to three kilometers per hour. Using a connection to a satellite navigation system, it operates autonomously, but in the event of any unforeseen situation, the operator takes over the control of the robot.
Testing has shown that within Greenwich, such a device delivers goods in just five to thirty minutes. The robot, among other things, has a system of protection against intruders. Its cargo hold is securely closed until it arrives at the recipient. If someone wants to damage the electric courier or take possession of someone else's parcel, the device will instantly warn the operator about this and record the actions of the criminal on the camera.
According to the leadership of Starship Technologies, the tests are far from complete. First, it is necessary to release such machines on the streets of fourteen British cities and observe their work for a long time. By the end of this year, the authors of the development plan to make the robots ninety-eight percent autonomous. In total, a hundred of such couriers will appear in the United Kingdom.
The project cost is twenty five million euros.