back

by ortusdux·10y ago·view on hn ↗
I wonder if they will load the trucks using kiva robots.

I've loaded and unloaded trucks for about a year. Being able to load and unload autonomously would save plenty of time and money.

2 comments
First thing I thought when I saw this was autonomous trucks. I think this could be a good way for them to ease into a position where they have enough trucks on the road so they can justify working toward autonomous shipping. Right now they are making huge savings in their warehouse with kiva, I'm sure they want to expand that to other parts of their operation.
Maybe a new model Kiva that has larger wheels that can make it across the door-trailer gap. If there's a ramp and a height difference, the goods (presumably on a pallet of some kind) can't tip over.
I would change how the trailer docks.

Right now the weight is still on the wheels and each additional load strains the suspension. Most trailers have pneumatic load balancing, so the bed drops with the load and then slowly pumps back up. Because of this a free-floating hydraulic ramp is needed. These interfaces are finicky and an unnecessary bottleneck. I've managed to get a 5 ton lift stuck on the ramp before.

I would put anchor points akin to trailer hitches on the back corners of the bed. The driver backs up to the bay, aligns the posts over the hitch, and hydraulics lift the hitches until they mate with the posts. Next they would lift up the truck bed, pull the truck back towards the bay, and set it down in a grove so the bed and warehouse floor are perfectly aligned. It would be similar to how a u-haul ramp mates with the truck bed (https://youtu.be/Ch7ukPPtZOI?t=46s), except you would be mating the truck bed with a building.

You could also have a giant drawbridge style ramp that lowers down and anchors to the back of the truck bed. It could double as the bay door. You could also add in outriggers that hold the bed at one height during loading. Alignment would be tough. Possibly the outriggers could sink into divots in the ground and shift the bed into position.

Both of these would also add a full width mating, which would allow for multiple bots to load at the same time.

Heck, I like the idea of having 4 hydraulic lifts, one for each corner of the bed, and have them lift the trailer up until it is flush with the warehouse. This would allow for the added perk of making taller, 2 story trailer beds and loading in two sets of shelves.

There are infinite possibilities, but I would be many of them are cheap enough to be worth the investment. One this is for sure, operating a lift is boring and I have way to much time to think on the job.

At that point, why not switch to a 40' container? It already has the lift points on the corners. Not sure if the doors swing 180 degrees.