Your groceries, pizza and medicine can now be delivered in robotic vehicles if you live in California, as Nuro received the state’s first commercial license for autonomous delivery.
The streets of San Francisco and Silicon Valley have been filled with autonomous vehicles by a number of companies for years. But these vehicles only received licenses for tests on public roads. Now, robotics startup Nuro has the official seal of approval to start its paid service, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
“Issuing the first deployment license is a significant milestone in the evolution of autonomous vehicles in California. We will continue to keep the safety of the automotive public in mind as this technology develops,” said Steve Gordon, director of the DMV, in a statement. .
In 2017, California granted Nuro approval to test its vehicles with safety drivers inside. In April 2020, he said the company could start testing without drivers.
Nuro in traffic.
Nuro
Now, the Mountain View-based company, which raised $ 500 million earlier this year, can deploy its vehicles for paid deliveries.
It will begin service with modified Prius vehicles configured in fully autonomous mode and then launch its fleet of R2 vehicles, which do not have driver seats, said David Estrada, legal and policy director, in a blog. The Nuro, in early 2020, obtained permission from the U.S. government to abandon the mirrors of its R2 fleet because, well, they have no seats or steering wheel.
“R2 was purposely designed for safety, with a design that prioritizes what’s outside – the people we share the roads with – what’s inside,” said Estrada. It has a top speed of 35 mph and a small four-foot structure. It operates with thermal images, radar and 360-degree cameras for driving on public roads.
Deliveries will begin in two communities close to Nuro’s headquarters.
The company said driverless deliveries would have a “major impact” on Californians, both during and after the pandemic. They will help people who cannot drive and help simplify the lives of large, busy families, said Nuro.
“We are excited to see these benefits grow in the daily lives of people in our communities, in places we also call home,” said Estrada.
The company has ambitions beyond the delivery of local food. Nuro announced last week that it was acquiring Ike, an autonomous truck startup, for an undisclosed amount.
Among the several patents filed by Nuro is one detailing how ads can work on the side of an autonomous vehicle.
The patent describes how an autonomous vehicle’s sensor would collect information about its surroundings and then serve an ad on the side of the vehicle based on that entry. If it is raining, say, the vehicle may display an umbrella advertisement.