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An Austin-based Michigan-based company and local restaurants can now ship their grocery deliveries in a semi-autonomous machine.
AUSTIN, Texas – New semi-autonomous robots are taking over some streets of Austin to make grocery deliveries as the capital struggles with rapid growth and traffic jams.
Refraction AI, a Michigan-based company, recently expanded in Austin, bringing 10 delivery machines to South Congress, Travis Heights, and some parts of downtown Austin.
“You don’t need a 4,000-pound high-carbon vehicle to bring you a pizza or a cheeseburger or something bigger,” said Luke Schneider, CEO of Refraction AI.
How do these robots work?
The company’s REV-1, a light weight, low power consumption machine, uses cameras, lidar, radar, and ultrasonic sensors to move, similar to the technology used in autonomous vehicles. The robot travels up to 15 miles per hour.
“It’s cleaner,” said Schneider. “It helps us to design our cities in such a way that they are more easily accessible on foot. This allows traffic to flow more freely. And in general it’s just a more efficient solution. “
Customers order food as usual. When a restaurant uses the robots for delivery, it can send the coordinates to the robot and call it for pickup. The robot plans a route and drives to pick up the food before it is loaded by staff and sent to the customer’s delivery location, Schneider said.
CLOCK: How Austin’s new grocery delivery robots work, and why some are commenting on it
A remote operator monitors the robot while it is driving behind the scenes. In the initial phase, while the robots are learning the city, a human on an electric scooter follows them on the journey.
“Every new church we arrive in is always about safety. And that’s why we want to be sure that we have them really well under control, ”said Schneider. “They’re also primarily there to watch robots interact with restaurant staff and consumers, because that’s something new. And you know that the human-machine interface is something that needs to be refined and further developed over time. “
Refraction AI deployed robots on the streets of Ann Arbor, Michigan in December 2019. Several restaurants use the machines to deliver food there. Schneider called Austin an ideal place for expansion.
Will grocery delivery robots help Austin’s traffic?
“If you look at Austin in a broader sense, it just grows very quickly. There is a real need to manage the traffic, ”he said.
Data from the Austin Department of Transportation shows that prior to the pandemic, when traffic peaked, there were more than 1.8 million weekly trips on the city’s streets.
RELATED: Austin traffic is almost back to pre-pandemic levels
The robot deployment fits into Austin’s strategic mobility plan, which has a 50/50 share of transportation by 2039 – meaning 50% of journeys are people traveling alone, while the other 50% of journeys are all other modes of transport combined – like Transit or bike, said Jacob Culberson, director of mobility services at ATD.
“We’re really trying to move away from traditional automobiles, especially single-person vehicles, towards more environmentally friendly alternatives. And this is definitely one of those alternatives that could replace a lot of car trips, ”said Culberson.
A measure approved by Austin City Council in 2017 enabled personal delivery robot projects on sidewalks in the capital. Two years later, Texas lawmakers passed SB 969, which gave companies like Refraction AI the go-ahead for expanded operations in the Lone Star State.
Because of this, robots can now drive in vehicle or bicycle lanes – a problem that preoccupies the Austin bicycle community.
Austin’s bicycle community opposes delivery robots
“We really don’t have nearly as much bike infrastructure on our roads today as we need,” said Chris Riley, CEO of Bike Austin. “There are legitimate concerns as to whether there is still enough space for four people to ride bicycles, scooters or otherwise use these cycle paths.”
Still, Riley said the smaller robots are a better option than large trucks blocking bike lanes while making a delivery in an urban downtown setting.
The topic was brought up for discussion on Tuesday at the city’s bicycle advisory council meeting, where one person raised the issue that while a fleet of 10 robots can have minimal impact, a larger fleet could create more problems for cyclists to get into to move around the city.
If Refraction AI or similar companies decide to expand in Austin, the city could put in place new policies or procedures to regulate operations.
The company is already targeting more growth in Austin, and not just in the neighborhoods.
“The second piece is actually expanding into other delivery categories. While we will focus heavily on food and meal delivery in the future at the South Congress, we will see more grocery delivery, retail item delivery, pharmacy and the like being included in the plan, ”said Schneider.
Currently, Southside Flying Pizza is the only restaurant using the robots for delivery, but the company announced to KVUE that more restaurants will be online soon.
ATD urges anyone who comes across an incident with the robots or has questions about it to contact the Austin 311.
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