Warehouse operators who want to maximize the use of space usually have higher shelves. As more and more operations hope to automate warehouse operations, this height may become an obstacle to effective storage and retrieval of items, especially in an e-commerce environment where the retrieval of individual items dominates the picking process.

Welcome to this 26-foot-tall warehouse worker.

The global autonomous mobile robot (AMR) company Geek has launched a 26.24-foot-long robot-RoboShuttle RS8-DA-with flexible arms and suitcase picking capabilities that can retrieve items that are difficult to reach.

“As e-commerce and warehouse rents soar, companies need flexibility and space utilization that traditional automation cannot provide. Liu Kai, co-founder and vice president of Geek smart warehouse products, said in a statement: “Our engineering team continues to develop Innovative solutions to meet this need allow our customers to remain competitive while providing a safe working environment for their employees. ".

RoboShuttle is compatible with all kinds of shelves, handbags, cartons and boxes of various sizes. The company says that robotic solutions can increase space utilization by up to five times. The robot uses a slim and sturdy chassis design with a flexible door frame and double-deep telescopic wishbones. It can retrieve items as low as 11 inches and as high as 25.6 feet.

Geek said that the robot is equipped with a smart depth camera and high-precision sensors, and the arm can be adjusted to select boxes of different sizes to optimize the overall shelf space. When connected to a warehouse management system, RoboShuttle can transfer up to eight containers between workstations.

"As a long-term automation partner with strong R&D capabilities, we believe that we have the responsibility to promote the various transformations companies may face when using flexible robotics," Kai said. "Our AMR solution is tailored to meet the industry-specific challenges facing logistics operators today."

Founded in 2015, Geek not only provides autonomous robots, but also provides technology aimed at automating logistics operations. AMR is an evolved version of Automated Guided Vehicles (AGV) and has been used in the industry for decades. AGVs are often used for repetitive tasks in warehouses, such as relaying materials and extracting products. AGVs are not intelligent and therefore rely entirely on humans to determine their routes. 

However, AMR uses artificial intelligence to intuitively understand warehouse floors and update its database in real time according to the continuous changes in inventory. AMR can work with other intelligent warehousing systems to help warehouses operate smoothly even in peak demand seasons.

The Geek product line includes goods-to-person picking robots, box-to-person RoboShuttles, and sorting, moving and lifting robots.

In June 2020, Geek announced the completion of a US$200 million Series C investment led by Jiyuan Capital, D1 Capital Partners and Warburg Pincus. According to Crunchbase data, the company's six rounds of financing totaled $439.4 million. In July of this year, it announced that it had sold more than 20,000 robots worldwide.

Click to view more articles by Brian Straight.

The drone is flying into the weather data desert. Can they be stopped?

Navigating the COVID-19 transportation chaos: finding capacity and serving customers

Do you need a warehouse? You may have to wait 9 months

Your email address will not be published. Required places have been marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time you comment.

Provide services for the global freight industry with the world's fastest and most comprehensive news insights and market data. our story

Sign up now for a free FreightWaves account to have unlimited access to all our latest content

By logging in for the first time, I agree to FreightWaves sending me event updates and news. I can unsubscribe from these emails at any time. For more information, please refer to our privacy policy.