Cargotec to develop autonomous tractor for intermodal terminals
Kalmar, a subsidiary of the Finnish manufacturing group Cargotec, will accelerate the development and implementation of robotic solutions in handling operations at the intermodal terminals. Together with Coast Autonomous, the U.S.-based start-up, it will develop a self-driving terminal tractor. This will enhance the safety and efficiency of container terminals all over the world.
To make robotic technology ordinary for the logistics sector, Kalmar become a minority shareholder of Coast Autonomous, the California-based start-up that is focused on self-driving solutions. This will allow the subsidiary of the Finnish group to speed up the development of the autonomous driving functionality of the Kalmar RoboTractor, an autonomous terminal tractor. Coast Autonomous has already developed a proprietary autonomous vehicle system that includes mapping and localisation, robotics and artificial intelligence, fleet management and supervision. Both partners will implement the system for intermodal terminals.
Kalmar Robotic Portfolio
The Kalmar RoboTractor is a part of the company’s Robotic Portfolio, which was unveiled in mid-December 2021. With the planned range of intelligent, flexible and autonomous mobile equipment solutions, Kalmar intends to improve safety, eco-efficiency and productivity of cargo and material handling in ports, terminals and distribution centres. Besides an autonomous terminal tractor, the portfolio includes three other products as the RoboLifter, RoboStacker and RoboHandler. “All the equipment in the Kalmar Robotic Portfolio will be built on a standardised platform, meaning it will be simple and cost-effective to deploy with the help of cloud technologies as well as being fully compatible with Kalmar automation solutions,” the Finnish company specified.