Robot a slow alternative to drones

Two Skype co-founders behind a London start-up have unveiled their self-driving delivery robot. Photo / iStock

Amazon and Wal-Mart envisage a future where small drones delivering goods to people zoom above pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

But two Skype co-founders behind a London start-up have unveiled their self-driving delivery robot which bumbles along at about 6km/h.

That's slightly faster than a pedestrian but slower than a jogger.

Starship Technologies says the 18kg robot - which is 66cm long, 53cm wide and 55cm high - could make local deliveries in 30 minutes or less. The technology could be useful for neighbourhood restaurants and retailers. Because the robot requires almost no human involvement, Starship Technologies said it thinks the costs of delivering goods would drop. The slow speed and also removes some of the safety concerns with drone delivery.

A customer could follow the robot's progress on an app, and would be alerted when the delivery arrived. The customer would then use the app to unlock the cargo bay.

"The robots will cross the streets much like the humans do: stop, look both ways, and wait until it is safe to cross," Starship Technologies chief executive Ahti Heinla said.

The start-up says it will be conducting a pilot study next year in London and that it's in talks with several companies about using Starship. So far the prototype has been driven more than 120km in London, Boston, New York and San Francisco.

- Washington Post

Google plans drone deliveries from 2017

Internet giant Alphabet, the new holding company for Google, expects to begin delivering packages to consumers via drones sometime in 2017.

David Vos, the leader for Alphabet's Project Wing, said his company is in talks with the Federal Aviation Administration and other stakeholders about setting up an air traffic control system for drones that would use cellular and internet technology to co-ordinate unmanned aerial vehicle flights at altitudes under 152m.

"Our goal is to have commercial business up and running in 2017," he told an audience at an air traffic control convention near Washington.

Drone deliveries are not expected to take flight until after the FAA publishes final rules for commercial drone operations, which are expected early next year.

- AAP