That’s it, we’re there. Although we have long associated autonomous vehicles with science fiction films, they have indeed become reality and are now reaching our roads.
Moreover, since this technology is evolving in complete safety, we can expect to see more and more of these vehicles slipping onto the roads in the coming years.
Consequently, drivers who remain behind the wheel of their car will have to get used to seeing vehicles appear around them without anyone in the driver’s seat, and learn not to be afraid of them…
First steps towards an autonomous service
We can easily predict that autonomous vehicles will be adopted first of all by merchants who will be happy to get around the current problem: the famous labor shortage. Especially since this shortage is hitting hard in this particular niche and it has become extremely difficult to find drivers.
It is in this context that in August 2022, the Loblaw grocery chain put the very first fully autonomous delivery truck in Canada on the roads of Toronto.
Since then, five driverless trucks have crisscrossed the roads delivering groceries, deliveries taking place between the chain’s warehouses and grocery stores.
Of course, the company had done tests before leaving the driver’s seat completely free. Since 2020, in collaboration with the Californian company Gatik, a firm specializing in autonomous vehicle technology, Loblaw has tested autonomous driving technology on Ontario territory, taking care to leave a human on board to ensure full capacity. security. In this form, more than 150,000 deliveries have been made successfully, both in summer and winter.
PHOTO TAKEN FROM THE LOBLAW SITE
Loblaw rolled out the first fully autonomous delivery truck in Canada in August 2022.
It wasn’t until August 2022, four months after receiving approval from the Ontario Ministry of Transportation to operate fully autonomous vehicles, that the company took the step of leaving the driver’s seat empty, and without a chaperone.
To do this, the grocery chain had first consulted the various police forces and emergency services in the given territory, as well as municipal authorities in the regions surrounding Toronto. This is done so that all stakeholders understand the technology being tested and are ready to react if necessary.
For these tests, we still minimized the challenge, avoiding having the products delivered to the customer’s door, but instead relying on fixed routes and short distances to start.
That said, during all the delivery tests, no events were recorded, neither in terms of road safety nor in terms of any form of technological hacking.
We’re talking about Loblaw here because the tests took place near us, in Ontario, but Gatik also conducted tests in the United States with Walmart and a pulp and paper company, also with success.
Sensor battalion in operation
If everything went well within the delivery trucks, we owe it to six light detection and telemetry sensors; six radar sensors, as well as twelve cameras. All controlled by a computer located inside the truck, in a small black box placed between the driver’s seat and that of the passenger, similar to the one found in airplane cockpits. This is the arsenal which detects the smallest objects on the roads and which makes it possible to avoid any contact or accident.
For the delivery trucks used in the tests, we made things a little easier with routes that were often similar from one delivery to another, and therefore more predictable. It was also ensured that if an unforeseen obstacle appeared on the road, the truck was programmed to stop immediately, pull over to the side of the road and stay there until a supervisor sent instructions to distance for the rest of things.
The retail industry can be expected to quickly embrace the idea of autonomous trucks.
According to the Californian technology firm that carried out the tests, retail businesses are already patiently waiting for their turn to be able to put this technology on the road, resolve their labor concerns and, consequently, resolve their problems. Delivery.
As autonomous vehicles will soon arrive, it is comforting to know that all the tests carried out to date have been conclusive, both in terms of safety and efficiency.
Obviously, artificial intelligence will never completely replace humans, but if it can support them, we can only see it as an advantage.