- Similar to cars, automated ships are on the horizon.
- IoT connectivity is creating new age automated vessels.
- Rolls Royce has already developed a remote-controlled cargo ship.
It is the age of smart devices. From our phones to our cars – everything has become an automated self-driven device and this change is due to the internet. It has changed our way of living. It isn’t just something you use on a computer anymore – smart devices mean that connectivity is changing every aspect of the way we live our lives.
This enhanced connectivity is seen in field of goods transport as well. The growing network of connected devices is also changing the way we ship goods and travel from place to place. Driverless cars are just the beginning; soon air travel, freight shipping, and even public transport could be revolutionized by IoT used in combination with technologies like AI and Big Data.
Self-Driving Smart Cars
By 2020, there could be 10 million self-driving cars on the road. But that’s just the beginning; 250 million more smart cars may not be entirely autonomous, but will possess high-tech networking capabilities that could open up new navigational and safety possibilities for drivers. Many new cars being sold right now already come with features like lane-keep assist, automatic forward-collision braking, back-up cameras, automatic parking, and sign recognition that make driving safer and take some of the burden of transport off of the human driver.
Instead of the four front-facing seats found in today’s cars, driverless cars of the future may feature two sets of seats that face each other, so that passengers can socialize while the car does all the work. Car sharing is already a popular means of transport. In the near future, you don’t have to go look for a car, rather the car will come to you.
Air Taxis
Volocopter recently tested a flying taxi service in Dubai, which is similar to a helicopter. The project is still in the development phase; the initial test, with passenger Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, lasted only five minutes. But someday soon, residents and tourists in at least one city will be able to escape rush-hour gridlock in an air taxi.
Autonomous Freight Shipping
Rolls Royce has developed a remote-controlled cargo ship that can be operated entirely without human crew members. The ship is operated from a control room on land. The lack of a crew has increased cargo carrying space of the ship, thus making the ship more viable. The company expects to put a fleet of these ships into commission by 2020. Amazon’s Prime Air service is already going for a 30 minute delivery scheme with help of an unmanned drone.
Freight trucks, cargo ships, and front-door delivery is on its way to automation. Companies including Uber, Daimler Trucks, and Einride have already launched fully-autonomous freight shipping trucks. Some of these prototypes require a human operator to take the wheel when conditions become dangerous; others are entirely self-driving, and can be operated remotely. Self-driving truck platoons are expected to make freight shipping more efficient and sustainable.
So, the IoT connectivity is revolutionizing the ways of transport, making it more viable for a future laden in technology.
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Source: IoT Business News
