INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightAmazonImage caption
Scout will deliver goods ordered for same-day, one-day or two-day delivery
Amazon is experimenting with delivery robots, starting with a little truck called Scout which is taking to the pavements in Washington
State.Six of the autonomous electric trucks will deliver parcels "at walking pace" round Snohomish County.The robots will only operate
during the day and will be accompanied by an Amazon employee initially.It is the latest in a series of trials of pavement robots, seen as
being a good alternative to road deliveries."We developed Amazon Scout at our research and development lab in Seattle, ensuring the devices
can safely and efficiently navigate around pets, pedestrians and anything else in their path," said Amazon vice-president Sean Scott on the
company's blog.The truck is shown in a promotional video delivering a parcel, with a lid automatically lifting when the customer comes out
of their house to retrieve the package
Details of how exactly this will work are not given
Neither is there any explanation for what happens if the customer is not in at the time of delivery.Amazon will not be alone in making such
Robotics firm Starship Technologies has also just announced a fleet of two dozen autonomous robots that will deliver coffee and pizza to
college students in Virginia.The robots can be requested via an app to deliver goods across the campus of George Mason University.San
Francisco has had delivery robots on its streets for several years, with tech start-ups, including Marble and Starship, leading the way.But
there has been something of a backlash, with some living there describing the robots as a menace and questioning how safe it was to share
the pavements with them.In 2017, city supervisor Norman Yee introduced legislation to restrict their use, including capping the number of
permits issued at three per company and requiring the delivery bots to only operate within certain neighbourhoods
They must also be accompanied by a human at all times.
