As a result of the update, the rovers received a more spacious compartment for ordering, and their battery life
Yandex.Rover uses the same algorithms as self-driving cars adapted for the new platform. In early February, the autonomous delivery program reached a new milestone: 4,000 deliveries since April 2020. During this time, robots delivered thousands of documents, food packages, orders from restaurants, and much more.
Robots move along sidewalks at a speed of 5-8 km/h. They are completely autonomous: they recognize surrounding objects, predict the behavior of pedestrians and cars, and plan their route.
Rovers began making regular deliveries at the end oflast year. Based on the experience gained during the first months of active use in the service, which also occurred during a snowy winter, the robot was improved. First of all, it has become more spacious - now it can fit even the largest pizza in a thermal bag, so that the order arrives to the buyer still hot. Energy consumption has also been improved so that the updated Rovers can work up to 10 hours on a single charge, even on cold days. Also in the updated version, the cargo compartment lid opens and closes automatically.
Algorithms are constantly being improved, but separatelyIt is worth highlighting the changes in the speed planner and also the increase in torque. This allowed robots to more effectively climb snowy or icy areas of sidewalks.
Also designed for the snowiest daysa special suspension adaptation system, when peculiar tracks are put on top of the two rear pairs of wheels. Tracks themselves are not a universal solution for a number of reasons, including lower travel speeds and faster wear. Therefore, they appeared in robots as an improvement to the standard wheelbase, which can be used exactly on those days when it is needed.
During regular use in the service, Rovers encounter new traffic situations and scenarios. Therefore, in the future, other changes in the design may appear.
Now the delivery park of "Yandex" has about35 robots, most of which deliver to four Moscow districts and the city of Innopolis. Several more robots are being used to test and map new delivery locations, Polishchuk said.
Yandex plans to soon test the service in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which will be the company's first autonomous delivery location in the United States.
In addition to Ann Arbor, project manager DmitryPolishchuk, said Yandex is sending ATVs to Israel and South Korea to test autonomous delivery. In the future, robots will appear on e-commerce platforms for order fulfillment and delivery, or in their own warehouses and data centers for transporting goods. According to Polishchuk, Yandex is now actively negotiating partnerships with companies in Russia and abroad.
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