It takes a lot to get a package from a manufacturer to a warehouse to your door. Logistics is full of repetitive, time-consuming tasks like unloading a trailer full of boxes, making it an ideal place to use robots.
Read also: 6 Innovative Techniques to Maximize Trailer Space Utilization
Trailer-unloading bots aren’t necessarily common yet, but a few companies have developed models in the past few years. In most cases, they completely automate loading and unloading so people don’t have to. A new solution from Anyware Robotics changes things by working with humans instead of taking their place. That’s good news for everyone involved.
How Robots Help Humans Unload Boxes Faster
It’s easy to see why logistics companies want to automate trailer unloading. They moved more than 21 billion packages in 2023 alone. Moving all those boxes in and out of trucks takes a lot of time, and anyone who’s ever moved before can also tell you it strains your back.
Letting robots do the heavy lifting is faster and safer. Machines can do repetitive work people don’t like to do anyway, while humans focus on things that require more creativity. Because pneumatic arms can achieve up to 2-millimeter precision, they may also be less likely to break anything they move.
The new unloading bot from Anyware — dubbed Pixmo — takes things a step further. It sits inside a trailer and places boxes on a conveyor. This conveyor slides the packages to the back of the truck, where workers can take them wherever they go next.
Pixmo’s setup lets robots do what they do best — perform small motions quickly — while humans do what they excel at — creative thinking and adaptation. The result is unloading speeds as high as 1,000 boxes an hour and workers not having to stretch or bend much to carry anything.
What It Means for You
You’d appreciate the help from these bots if you’ve ever worked in a warehouse. Overexertion is one of the most common injuries in the workplace, so letting a robot do most of the unloading saves workers from getting hurt. Let’s face it — unloading is also boring. These bots make the job more engaging by doing the most mundane parts.
What about everyone who doesn’t work in logistics? Chances are you still order things online. That means you benefit directly from faster and safer trailer loading and unloading. When these things take less time and have fewer interruptions, you can get your packages sooner.
That’s great news if you’re one of the 90% of consumers who expect two- to three-day delivery to be standard. Achieving that speed is hard when one of the most basic tasks in the process takes hours and can injure workers. Using robots and humans together where each can work to their strengths means shipping times can shrink without risking anyone’s health.
The Future of Robots Lies With Humans
In many ways, automation is the future of industries like logistics — and the future of automation is humans. Bots and people can achieve more when working together rather than being pitted against each other.
Robots like Pixmo show how human-robot collaboration benefits everyone from the CEO to the laborer to the customer. As tech like this becomes more common, it’ll mean faster, safer shipping for everyone.
