In what’s believed to be a first of its kind event in Europe, a package has been delivered to a customer with a driverless autonomous vehicle.
The driverless autonomous vehicle, manufactured by Cleveron Mobility, made the delivery in the Estonian capital Tallinn, but a larger-scale parcel delivery service based on robot couriers will be launched in cooperation with delivery company DPD in Viljandi in the near future.
The robot couriers drive on public roads and work in the radius of about three miles (five kilometres), within which it is able to deliver parcels between different destinations. The companies say the autonomous robot courier platform can be fitted with various applications to serve different business needs. For example, it can be adapted to deliver different sized parcels and ready-meals or be a mobile vending machine.
According to the CEO of Cleveron Mobility, Arno Kütt, robotic couriers can transport goods to several destinations just like conventional vans but without the need for a driver. That, the company says, creates more efficient ways of delivery and provides relief for the rapidly growing input costs in the parcel delivery sector.
“The e-commerce market is continuing to grow rapidly in the developed world. And it requires more and more transportation to meet the demand,but with the steady decline of drivers, we see that autonomous solutions are key in satisfying last-mile deliveries globally. Cleveron Mobility definitely wants to be among the world leaders in this field and achieve the position of the market leader,” Kütt explained.
Remo Kirss, CEO of DPD Estonia, added that sustainable smart urban logistics is also one of the cornerstones of DPD and the introduction of electric vans is already one of the measures that the company is successfully implementing today.
“We see that the introduction of autonomous robotic couriers in parcel delivery is a very important next step among environmentally friendly delivery methods. We are extremely pleased to be the first parcel delivery company in Europe to launch a parcel delivery service with a driverless autonomous courier robot in a public urban space. This will allow us to continue to introduce innovative solutions through practice to the general public and to encourage residents and consumers to make environmentally conscious decisions when choosing services and products,” he said.
(Picture – DPD)
