Japan Post is the first company in Japan to start a demonstration experiment of an autonomous driving robot that can handle package collection at an office building in Higashi-ku, Nagoya.
With this robot, when a building resident wants to send mail or parcels, they can call the distribution center in the building and they will come to the office to pick it up.
When the postal worker who receives the call operates the tablet, the robot departs, automatically calls the elevator, gets on and off, and heads for the sender.
The sender enters the PIN code given in advance into the robot, opens the lid, and puts the package in it.
According to Japan Post, the client is often absent in the collection and delivery work, so further work efficiency can be expected by entrusting it to robots instead of people.
Regarding self-driving delivery robots, the procedures for driving them on public roads will be relaxed by spring next year, and not only Japan Post but also online shopping companies such as the Rakuten Group are working to put them into practical use. The movement is accelerating.
Masaru Nishijima, General Manager of Operation Reform at Japan Post, said, "Robots can be flexibly used late at night or early in the morning according to customer requests, so we would like to conduct experiments with the aim of improving services."