Farewell trucks and bikes, hello drones and robots

Tech

Published: 18 Apr. 2022, 07:00

Farewell trucks and bikes, hello drones and robots

Image of Vroong World project that aims to make a digital twin of Vroong logistics service's logistics system [MESH KOREA]

Mesh Korea's deliveries depend on fleets of motorcycles and trucks. But the company plans on using newer technologies such as drones and robots as soon as it can.

Those futuristic modes of delivery should increase efficiencies when transporting goods to tricky destinations like high-rise buildings and apartment complexes. They might even get around the eternal problem of parking.

In February, the logistics service start-up announced a partnership with California-based Bear Robotics to use self-driving robots for the so-called last-mile delivery.

Bear Robotics is known for developing a food-serving robot named Servi that is fitted with three dimensional sensing technology.

In the e-commerce sector, robotics technology has been applied in logistics centers, but its use for deliveries is still at the pilot project stage.

“With the rise of the e-commerce markets, the complexity of logistics systems has increased,” said Kim Myung-hwan, Chief Technology Officer at Mesh Korea.

“Advanced technologies like artificial intelligence and autonomous driving will play a critical role in significantly improving delivery efficiency,” he said.

Mesh Korea says that self-driving robots can get rid of the human hassle of waiting for elevators and taking packages up to higher stories.

Drones are also moving in on the industry. In a government-funded project initiated last year, Mesh Korea is testing how drones and robots can carry out deliveries to public buildings and in residential areas from select regions including Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang.

The focus of the project is to verify whether aerial vehicles like drones can hand over packages to robots on the ground without human intervention.

“Robots and drones will be able to shoulder the burden of delivery workers by navigating challenging routes often avoided by delivery workers so that they can provide high-quality delivery services to neglected areas,” said Kim.
Given that commercial drone deliveries are still very experimental, they have been conducted in very specific and constrained situations around the world.

But the number of deliveries via drone is on the rise, according to McKinsey & Company. The consulting firm estimated that the number of parcels delivered through drones increased by 324 percent to 482,000 between 2018 and 2021. The number is expected to further jump by 192 percent to reach 1.4 million this year.

Korean law restricts deliveries by robots and drones, only allowing test operations or pilot projects approved by the government.

Mesh Korea plans to establish a digital twin of its logistics system built upon technologies supporting the metaverse and blockchain, where it can interact with its clients.

In a project dubbed “Vroong World,” the digitalized platform will be used as a marketing tool to promote the Vroong brand.

“At a time when Vroong is expanding its business, the metaverse is considered an ideal method to experiment with new services without constraints,” said Joo Sang-sik, chief data officer at Mesh Korea.

BY PARK EUN-JEE [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]