According to DPD, Cleveron Mobility, a company developing the technology of driverless autonomous vehicles, and DPD Estonia are the first in Europe to deliver a package to a customer with a driverless autonomous vehicle. Equipped with flexible cargo capacity and the capability of driving on public roads, it’s able to offer an alternative to fossil fuel vans.
The driverless autonomous vehicle, manufactured by Cleveron Mobility, is developed as a robotic courier with the aim to deliver goods and equipment in a more efficient, flexible, and environmentally friendly way for both people and businesses.
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. This creates more efficient ways of delivery and provides relief for the rapidly growing input costs in the parcel delivery sector.
Autonomous and electric-powered robotic couriers make cities significantly more environmentally friendly by reducing CO2 emissions and noise pollution. Remo Kirss, CEO of DPD Estonia, said 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 implementing today.
The first parcel delivery by a driverless autonomous vehicle in Europe was performed in Tallinn, but a larger-scale parcel delivery service based on robot couriers will be launched in cooperation with DPD in Viljandi. According to Remo Kirss, the companies can start sending parcels with robot couriers to its customers as well as private individuals to other private individuals within the city of Viljandi.
The robot couriers drive on public roads and work in the radius of about 5km, within which it can deliver parcels between different destinations. 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.
“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.
Source: DPD
