Robotic Remote Picker

The Idea
Substitute human warehouse pickers (individuals who pick from the warehouse shelf) with robotic pickers operated remotely by a human.

Origins

In my job, I have heard warehouse managers complain about the vicissitudes of managing U.S. workers in the distribution center: attendance problems, on-time arrival, union rules and other workforce management problems. Some show interest in solutions solely because they provide leverage in negotiating with employees.

How It Works

Using the Crown motorized pallet jack or other similar interfaces that already allow for remote operation, build a robot that sits on the "standing area" part of the walkie-rider and has two robotic arms that reach out to grab items from the pick location. Build a software interface to see the pick locations and the front of the forklift in a remote screen. The concept is to have a remote, low-wage worker replace a high-wage warehouse worker by piloting the robot and pallet jack from their computer screen.

Resources Needed

Supply chain management experience, robotics expertise, software and machine vision expertise, capital investment for the robotics development required.

Sustainable Competitive Advantage (If Any)

A distribution center that tries the robotic warehouse worker could upgrade to an automated guided vehicle and eventually to a completely autonomous robot. The significant technical barriers would prevent competition, and the high switching costs would prevent customers from switching to another solution.