By G9ija
- Starship Technologies’ robot can carry out a delivery in just 30 minutes
- The boxy drone can ‘walk’ at 4mph, cross the road and avoid obstacles
- Ground bots will deliver Hermes parcels in London as part of worldwide trial
Self-driving ‘Starship’ robots from the makers of Skype are trundling along the streets of London delivering Hermes parcels as part of a trial to test the technology.
The slow-moving delivery bots have already been trialled across the world, including in Hamburg, Washington and California, delivering everything from groceries to takeout pizza.
Now the boxy ground drones will offer a helping hand to the UK delivery service Hermes by bringing packages to people living in the capital.
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A Starship robot waits for a London bus at the crossing. Small and sturdy robots from the makers of Skype will soon trundle along the streets of London delivering Hermes parcels
The robot was invented by Skype co-founders Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis who hope their machine will be appealing for small businesses who could send up to 20lbs (9kg) of goods to local customers.
Unlike robots designed to resemble humans, Starship’s bot is purely functional with a large compartment to hold deliveries, the equivalent size of two grocery bags.
The idea is that consumers could call for a delivery, which is carried to their door by a robot in between five and 30 minutes, for as little as 60cents.
Each six-wheeled ‘ground drone’ is almost completely self-driving, but to begin with will be half controlled by a human operator.
Hermes first put the robots to work in Hamburg last year.
Their new trial is a follow-up to see how quickly they can distribute parcels out for collection.
‘The self-driving delivery robots offer a viable alternative to drones, especially in highly developed cities, towns and suburbs where strict aviation laws are in constant operation,’ a spokesperson from Hermes said.
The slow-moving delivery bots have already been trialled across the world, including in Hamburg, Washington and California, delivering everything from groceries to takeout pizza
‘Each vehicle is 55cm [22 inches] high by 70cm [28 inches] long and incorporates a secured compartment where parcels with a maximum weight of 10kg [22 pounds] can be transported, accessible to consumers via a link generated by a smartphone app.
‘They have six wheels and can travel at speeds up to 4mph per hour.’
The robot constantly connected to the internet, using 3G technology to find its way to the customer’s address.
‘Walking’ on the pavement at about 4mph (3km/h), robots can complete local deliveries within five to 30 minutes from a local hub or retail outlet.
