Beginning at NYU in Jan 2013 within the context of a Patents Translation course delivered online, this blog seeks to uncover the patents that rock our daily lives....
The distinctive-looking
features of the Starship Technologies delivery robots are filed in a
series of Canadian Industrial Design Registrations at the Canadian Industrial
Property Office (CIPO), per the provisions of the Canadian Industrial Design Act.
Industrial Design Registration in
Canada, protects the way an object looks, in contrast to the way the object
works, what it is made of, or how it is made. Protection may be obtained for
the whole finished product, or parts of it, for a period of up to 15 years.
For example, the following Canadian Industrial
Design Registration CA167756 protects the
ornamental features of the Starship Technologies delivery robots. The Figure 5 photo, on file as part of this Canadian Industrial Design Registration CA167756, is included below.
In response to the surge of online commerce, especially during the cautious re-opening of the economy, following the height of the COVID 19 pandemic, Starship robots are delivering contactless
parcels, medicines, groceries, and take-out food. Deliveries that include
temperature-sensitive items, both piping hot and freezing cold. The Starship Technologies utility
patent US10005609B1, titledDevice and system for insulating items during delivery by a
mobile robot, addresses the problems of spillage, stain
and/or persistent odor of the prior art of food delivery insulation and
storage. Prior art that consisted in insulated
compartment walls with various layers of insulation materials, alternatively
the insertion of gel packs into indentations of the storage compartment walls.
The
inventive solution disclosed in the Starship Technologies patent consists in a
removable insulated bag, designed to reduce heat exchange inside the robot’s
payload compartment. The removable bag has a 50 to 80-liter capacity. The bag
“fits snuggly”, vs. sealed, into the robot’s payload compartment. It is
secured to the compartment, and the robot lid, with Velcro (preferably),
alternatively with tape, snaps, button fasteners or suction cups, so that when
the robot lid is unlocked and opened, the insulated bag is also opened.
The
insulated bag has several advantages. It protects the robot’s electronics
from spills. It is also removable for washing and sanitation, thereby
preventing odors, stains and potential microbiological hazards. The insulated
bag may optionally be designed with several horizontal or vertical, separating
walls to compartmentalize the contents transported. For example, the bag
compartments might be used to separate drinks from food, in view of preventing
exchanges between liquids and solids, in addition to promoting thermal
insulation between items.
The
insulated bag is made of an inner layer, and a preferably detachable/removable outer
layer. The bag inner layer, measuring preferably between 4 to 6 mm, may comprise foam-insulating material, aerogel, air or vacuum-based insulation, providing a
thermal conductivity k-value, ranging between 0.03 to 0.05 W/mK. The bag outer layer, made of polymer material, such as polyamide or polyester, is
hydrophobic, in case of spills The outer layer of the insulated bag, preferably secured via a zipper,
is also removable to facilitate regular cleaning.
Additionally, the bags may comprise an intermediate layer, comprising material with a high reflectance
coefficient (e.g., a foil or aluminum laminate) designed to reduce radiative
heat transfer between the bag cavity and ambient surroundings. In some
embodiments the Starship insulation bags also comprise insulated flaps that fold to open and close, adding an extra layer of insulation
where the lid meets with the bag cavity, at a juncture that is particularly
vulnerable to heat exchange with ambient surroundings.
In general,
temperature exchange will vary according to such factors as the thickness and
type of bag insulating materials, ambient temperature, and the mass of the
temperature-sensitive items transported. Roughly, the thicker the insulating
material, the lower the temperature exchange, ideally between 1 and 5◦
C, over a period of 30 minutes. Thus, the Starship robot insulated bags come in two
thicknesses, which are each used, depending on the delivery turnaround, and the
temperature sensitivity of the items transported.
The payload
compartment might also comprise heating or cooling elements, secured to the
bags. Likewise, the payload compartment might also be equipped with one or
several sensors. Preferably two sensors are included, one to detect the compartment
temperature, the other to detect the compartment humidity. The sensors are thus designed to enable the monitoring of temperature-sensitive items, in view of guaranteeing that the items
retain their temperatures during the last-mile delivery process.
The abstract
of the invention is included below, together with the patent Figure 3.
The patent Figure 3 shows an embodiment of the insulated
bag 1 for transportation of items within its cavity 26,
fitted inside a rigid compartment, or bin 100, within the
mobile Starship robot 1000. The
rigid compartment 100 is recited as an additional barrier
between the robot’s electronics and the payload, serving as extra protection against
spillage, while also preventing customers from accessing the robot's electronics. The bin 100,
with insulated bag attached 1, might also be used to store the payload in a Starship Robovan (mothership), before
loading into the mobile Starship robot 1000 for delivery. The
patent Figure 3 further depicts the mobile Starship robot body or frame 1010,with
6 wheels 1020,adapted for land use, especially
pedestrian walkways. The patent figure 3 also depicts the
insulated bag lid 4, secured to the mobile robotlid 1040 with
a securing element 40, leaving some space between the inner
surface 1042 of the robot lid, and the outer surface of
the insulated bag 44. The insulated bag 1 is also depicted with
flaps 6, providing extra insulation from ambient conditions at the
juncture between the lid 1040, and the mobile robot body 1010.
A corresponding image of the marketed mobile Starship robot, with its lid open, showing
the insulated bag, is also included below.
An insulated bag reduces heat exchange between temperature-sensitive items and ambient surroundings. The insulated bag has a bag body, which can be covered by a bag lid. The bag lid is provided with a first portion of a securing element. The insulated bag is suitable for insertion into an item space of a mobile delivery robot. The mobile robot has a robot lid provided with a complementary second portion of the securing element. After the insulated bag is inserted into the item space, the two portions of the securing element are connected. Thereafter, when the robot lid is opened, the bag lid is also opened, permitting access to its contents. [Abstract US10005609B1]
One of the
main advantages of using delivery robots, to solve the last mile logistics of transporting goods, is
that robots can operate 24/7 without mandatory resting periods, or extra pay. Last mile robotic deliveries thus already appeared as quite an atractive solution, considering the surge of ecommerce and online deliveries, even before the pandemic, a forciori during the
pandemic, and the gradual re-opening of economies.
However, for
robots to moonlight (pun intended) at
no extra costs, they also have to be able to navigate in low-light conditions.
Easier said, than done. How does a
camera sensor capture the image of an objet that is no longer visible?
How can terrain be mapped accurately and efficiently at night? The StarshipTechnologies patent WO2019086465A1, titled Visual localization and
mapping in low light conditions, precisely adresses this issue.
The patent discloses a SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping)
method where the robot can estimate its own position on a map, while simultaneously
creating the map, enabling it to continue its route autonomously. The method
relies on data collected by a wide variety of sensors, such as GPS, Lidar,
gyroscope,cameras, odometer, accelerometer and magnetometer. At
sundown, when the sun is astronomically positioned between 0 and 6 degrees below the
horizon, a twilight map is created. The twighlight map has the advantage of
having both daytime features (e.g. ; straight lines) and night time
features (e.g.,urban lights) features. Thus,
the twilight map, in fact, bridges the visibility gap by mapping the position
of nighttime features onto a daytime model. In turn, position relative to visibility
is triangulated with data incoming from other sensors, and mapping is adjusted
accordingly. Otherwise captured images might also be downsized to bring blurry or
jagged lines into sharper focus, during mapping. Likewise roads and buildings might be tagged
relative to daytime and night time features to facilitate localization.
The abstract of the invention is included below, together with the patent
Figure 4 showing a twighlight map with night time visual features (e.g., urban lights)
2T, and day time visual features (e.g., lines) T1, extracted during twighlight time, when the sun
was positionned astronomically between 3 and 8 degrees below the horizon.
The present invention relates to a method comprising generating a map comprising day-time features and night-time features, wherein the position of night-time features relative to the day-time features is determined by at least one image captured during twilight. The present invention also relates to a corresponding processing unit configured to execute such a method. [Abstract WO2019086465A1]
Most of the time, all goes well. The 99% autonomous Starship robots fullfill their missions, delivering goods at extended hours, seven days a week, to happy customers. For example, according to the Youtube video incuded below, Starship Robots fulfilled 2500 deliveries during their first week of operation at the Univesrity of Houston, TX, in 2019. However, on occasion the robots get stuck. The following Youtube video shows how a Starship robot was rescued by a University of Houston student, in the middle of the night. Equipped with voiced interaction routines, the Starship robot even gratefully thanked the student, after being rescued.
The Mercedez-Benzrobovan has been called the Starship
robotmothership(Vincent, 2016). An adapted Mercedez-Benz
Sprinter van, the Mercedez-Benzrobovan ferries eight Starship robots for 99%
autonomous parcel delivery, directly to clients, on an algorithm-optimized
route. Eight Starship robots enter the van from the rear, using a ramp, and
exit the van from the side, also using a ramp. The Starship robots deliver goods
within a 2-mile radius. The goods, stored in robovan bins above the robots, are
manually loaded into the robot’s payload compartment. After delivery of the
goods, directly to customers, the Starship robots return back autonomously to
the mothership, where they can dock to recharge, and be refilled with a new
payload. The robovan mothership, together with its fleet of eight Starship
robots, makes an estimated 400 deliveries per 9-hour day, which solves the
last-mile logistics of delivering goods, efficiently and cost-effectively (Burgess, 2017). Especially in response to the surge in demand for online and contactless
deliveries, during and post, pandemic.
The YouTube video
below shows the Mercedez-Benzrobovan, together with the Starship delivery robots.
The robovan mothership
invention is recited in a family of three patents.
The patents reciting
the Starship mothership vehicle invention are surprisingly wider in scope
than the Mercedez-Benzrobovan embodiment. Looking at the British patent, for example,
the definition of the term “vehicle” is extended to:
Likewise, the definition of the term “delivery robot” has a
much wider definition, understood in particular to mean:
a self-driving delivery robot, a self-flying delivery robot (drone), a self-controlling floating vehicle, etc..” [0007]
Otherwise, the delivery
robots are described as autonomous vehicles, able to charge or refuel autonomously inside
the mothership hold. The robots are also described as preferably fully autonomous.
Thus, the robots are equipped with navigation and positioning means, as well as
a robot-guidance system, a 2D/3D guidance route, and sensors to collect
recordings of the environment, for evaluation in regards to existing obstacles. Equipment
ultimately designed to enable the delivery robots to locate a customer’s
address and to return to the mothership, without the assistance of a human
operator.
The mothership vehicle
is equipped with automated mechanical clamping means to secure the robots in
place within the vehicle’s hold. Such automated mechanical clamping means are
also described as partially inflatable, in order to accommodate different design
contours or angles of the individual delivery robots, loaded into the vehicle
hold.
Communication between the vehicle and the robots is Bluetooth® enabled. For example, communication to monitor loading and unloading of the robots, to transmit the recipients’
delivery addresses to the robots and instructions for remitting the payloads to the
recipients, to launch automated routines, as well to transmit information to a communication
center and/or to the vehicle driver, for monitoring and oversing the condition and
activity of both the mothership and the robots.
The mothership vehicle is also equipped with accumulators, able to interface with each individual delivery robot, for the purposes of charging or refueling, particularly during vehicle travel. Advantageously, charging might be designed contactless via induction. In any event, charging occurs without human intervention.
To optimize the vehicle’s automated handling of the delivery robots, the cargo hold is also equipped with sensors, able to communicate information in regards to the number of robots in the hold and their position. Likewise, the vehicle is also equipped with means to record and perform the loading and unloading of the robots into the vehicle hold, whether loading and unloading invoke ramps, platforms, and/or a docking interface.
The British patent abstract of the Starship vehicle invention is included below, together with the patent Figure drawings 1a & 1b of the mothership vehicle, loaded with delivery robots. In Figure 1a, the vehicle (1) is further depicted with a non-inflated fixing device (12) for securing the robots (50) in the hold (10). In Figure 1b the fixing device (12) is shown inflated, and actively securing the delivery robots in place, in the cargo hold (10).
The
invention relates to a vehicle (1) for accommodating a number n ≤ N of delivery
robots (50) in a cargo compartment (10) of the vehicle (1), where N is the
maximum number of delivery robots (50) which can be accommodated in the cargo
compartment (10) and n is the number of delivery robots (50) currently in the
cargo compartment (10). The vehicle (1) has the following: - a fixing device
(12) for the automatic individual fixing of N delivery robots (50) in the cargo
compartment (10), - a communication interface (14) for communication between
the vehicle (1) and the n delivery robots (50), and - a number N of charging
interfaces (16) for the individual automatic charging of energy stores of the n
delivery robots (50) in the cargo compartment (10) [Abstract GB2573382A].
____________________
Notes
(1) A Patent Cooperation Treaty [PCT], United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization [WIPO] patent, filed in German, by StarshipTechnologies. (2) A British patent, filed in English, byStarship Technologies (3) AGerman patent, filed in German, byDaimler AG
One hundred years ago, on August 18th1920, the 19th
Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified, granting all American women the
right to vote. The Amendment states:
"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not
be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
The 19th
Amendment, voted by Congress a year earlier, on June 4, 1919, was the culmination of an almost 70-year struggle led by the US suffragette movement. The milestone marked the institutional onset of gender equality in the US. However, in practice, many historians concur that suffrage for Black women
(and men) in the South would have to wait for the Civil Rights Movement of the
60s, almost 40 years later, when Jim Crow Laws were abolished (Waxman, 2020). Indeed, Jim Crow Laws, such
as literacy tests for voting and polling taxes, continued to effectively, and efficiently, disenfranchise both black men and
women, as well as other disadvantaged minorities, such as immigrants and the
poor. Together with local and state laws that upheld the “separate but equal” 1896 Supreme Court ruling, making it possible to prevent blacks from accessing transportation
and public places, including schools, Jim Crow laws collectively functioned to segregate the South. Segregation laws that consolidated the malevolent
legacy of White Supremacy, with justice in lynchings,
that still fuels racial violence, and
hatred, to date. A deep cleavage in American society, now clearly documented,
unmasked, and condemned, anew, in the Black Lives Matter movement, a movement incidentally founded by three fearless women: Opal
Tometti, Alicia Garza and Patrisse Kahn-Cullors.
Looking back at the 100 years since ratification of the 19th
Amendment, The Washington Post columnist Monica Hesse points out that while much has been gained in extending
suffrage to women, much more still needs to be achieved in the struggle for
gender equality. Interestingly, she states: “The history of women voting is
still a history of having representation without being represented”. Indeed, Hesse informs us that the 19th
Amendment was voted by an all-male Congress. Fifty years later, just one
senator and 10 representatives were female. In 2020, an all-time high of 127
women are representatives in Congress, which still comprises just one-quarter
of the votes.As a result of the absence of parity, laws concerning women issues, such as abortion, maternity
leave and childcare, are still being voted (or rejected) by a majority of men, even
if the 19th Amendment also produced women legislators on all sides
of the political spectrum, both conservative and liberal.
Looking at positive change,
for all, resulting from the 19th Amendment vote, Hesse cites studies showing that the extension of suffrage to
women corresponded to an increase in public health spending, as well as in
health-related education campaigns for infectious diseases, such as diphtheria
and typhoid fever. Thus, child-mortality rates also declined at that time.
Likewise, education budgets increased, keeping children in school for longer
periods of time. Indeed, according to Hesse, “spending increased and the government
got bigger.”
However, on August 18, 2020, one hundred years post-ratification of
the 19th Amendment, another defining event should be recorded. A stimulating possibility that the 19th century
Suffragettes no doubt had foreseen as a perfectly logical consequence of
universal suffrage. Indeed, the nomination of Kamela Harris, a black and Asian-American
woman as Vice-President (potentially the second-in-command of the United States Executive) in
the Biden 2020 presidential campaign, arises both as an extraordinary “first” and a natural consequence of the 19th Amendment—even if it is
just a bit overdue.
To test your knowledge of the brave and daring 19th
century Suffragette movement, take the tests at the Women’s Vote Centennial Initiative website, QUIZ1, QUIZ2 and STATE QUIZZES. Also, remember to celebrate! Today is indeed a special day.
Brought to
you by the Finnish founders and designers of SKYPE, Starship robots are small 99%
autonomous vehicle robots, able to operate within a 4-mile radius. These
elegant little robots, equipped with sophisticated obstacle-avoidance
technology, Lidar sensors, cameras and voiced interaction capacity, roll around
sidewalks on 6 wheels, at pedestrian speed. They are 99% autonomous because
their routes are always monitored by human remote operators, just in case
something went wrong.
Starship robots deliver goods, food and packages, usually in less than 15 minutes, directly to ordering customers in those areas where vendors have contracted the fleets. This way, for example, at a corporate campus, no one wastes time waiting in line, or having to go to a restaurant. The robot meets the customer, upon demand, at a pinned location to deliver orders, sending notifications of estimated arrival time and arrival, via the Starship app, which also handles orders, payments, route tracking, and unlocking of the robot to access the payload. Alternatively, Starship robots also offer a sustainable ecommerce delivery option that decongests roads, where too many delivery vehicles are circulating to meet the ever increasing demands of online customers. In other words, in solving the “last mile” logistics of moving goods efficiently, and cost-effectively, the little electric vehicle robots also do their part to reduce global warming.
The YouTube video below shows an example of a Starship robot delivery.
Prepandemic,
the Starship fleet of 150 robots had driven more than 9000 miles, in 53 cities,
in 16 countries, where they met with more than 1.2 million people. In the US,
Starship also partnered with DoorDash, specialists in delivery services.
During
the pandemic, the demand for delivery robots such as the Starship robots skyrocketed,
according to Forbes.com contributor, Bernard Marr, on May 29, 2020. Social distancing orders and the lockdown were
the primary reasons for the exponential increase in demand, since the driverless
robots (which never get sick) can deliver contactless service (e.g.; groceries,
take-out food, prescriptions, or small parcels etc.) directly to clients, sheltering-at-home.
Considering the convenience, Marr even predicted that Starship robots, and other
similar delivery robots, would be here to stay as part of the new-normal post-pandemic. Likewise, The
New York Times correspondent Cade Metz and business journalist Erin Griffith,
reached the same conclusions, when they stated: “The sudden usefulness
of the robots to people staying in their homes is a tantalizing hint of what
the machines could one day accomplish — at least under ideal conditions.“ The only caveat will be obtaining municipal
clearance for the increased number of vehicle robots circulating everywhere on
sidewalks and streets.
All aspects the Starship robots and delivery
system are patented. From insulation capacity of the payload container, to
therobotics of obstacle avoidance, edge
finding and navigation in low-light conditions, including systems and methods
of freight delivery and distribution.Approximately
100 patents have been granted to cover all the inventive aspects and components
of the Starship Robots.
The
following is an exemplary and non-exhaustive list of the Starship patents, including
World Intellectual Property Oganisation (WO- Patent Cooperation Treaty) patents,
United States (US) utility patents, Canadian (CA) patents, British (GB) patents and European (EP - European Patent Convention) patents:
US10005609B1 Device
and system for insulating items during delivery by a mobile robot
In 2018,
observers were already predicting more robots everywhere, whether in kitchens, restaurants, warehouses, or surgery rooms (Marston, 2018; About Da Vinci). Within the
context of the COVID-19 pandemic, robots are in even greater demand, for reasons
not entirely unforeseen. For example, robots have long been used for performing
tasks dangerous to humans, such as working in radioactive environments, in deep
space or deep in the ocean, and for fire-fighting (Matthews, 2018; Iborra et al., 2003). Thus, it comes as no huge
surprise that robots, which never get sick, might now
be sought for working in the highly contagious situations of the COVID 19 pandemic (Albrecht, April 24, 2020). At
the end of the day, what is interesting is the diversity of ways in
which robots are indeed becoming increasingly instrumental, within the specifically
unprecedented context of the COVID 19 pandemic.
For
example, the demand for food delivery robots, is increasing. For shuttered
restaurants, permitted only to retain “take-out” activity, delivery robots
expand the client base to similarly shuttered clients. Likewise, for the newly
mandated “socially-distant modes of interaction”, delivery robots reduce both
interactions among humans, and the number of people in contact with food (Albrecht, May 13, 2020). If delivery
robots solved “the last-mile delivery problem” (i.e.; an estimated 41% of the logistics costs for moving goods) prior to the pandemic (Dolan, 2018), they now solve the last
mile with bonuses. Robots are far easier to control for sanitation than human hand-washing, or the absence of fever and symptoms. Indeed, robots are in. More than welcome, they
are a blessing. On the upside of drastic “stay-at-home” orders, sidewalks are
now clear of pedestrians, which also facilitates robot navigation.
Kiwibots are an example of a robot-based food-delivery
system that charmed campuses, prior to the pandemic. Kiwibots
were not only cute because they delivered burritos or pizza from participating
restaurants and stores, with a wink and a smile -- right to your
doorstep or location. The company Kiwi
Campus Inc., developed a business model that relied on robotics-loving
student groups to scale up the delivery service at new campuses.
Robotics-loving students themselves, originally hailing from The University of the Andes in Bogota, Columbia, the Kiwi Campus Inc., founders,Felipe Chávez Cortés, Jason Oviedo and Sergio Pachón, now based at UC Berkeley, banked on others with the same aspirations, keeping
the whole enterprise in the hands of people who were truly enthusiastic and
committed. As a result, the company was managing 10,000 deliveries a day, in
2019, just two years after its inception (Coldeway, 2019). Now, as campuses are closed, the company continues to expand, partnering
with Ordermark the online ordering management company for restaurants, and Shopify, a cloud-based multichannel
commerce platform for small and medium-sized companies, both having agreed to include on
their platforms, an option for a Kiwibot fleet, delivering food and goods. New partnerships for Kiwibots that are now being launched in the San José, California, downtown and Buena Vista areas (Korosec, July 2020).
Kiwibots
are semi-autonomous vehicles, which
means that they rely on sophisticated sensor technology to navigate sidewalks on their itineraries, in coordination
with a team of human teleoperators, based in Bogota, Columbia. The supervising bogotanos manage all of the Kiwibot sidewalk crossings, for example, and are on standby to respond to any emergencies that might arise (McDonald, 2019). Such a team of teleoperators was included because autonomous kiwibots were not quite 100% safe, which was not good enough, according to the company (Coldeway, 2019).
Below, a Youtube
video, showing A day in the life of a kiwibot, from the perspective of the robot.
A visualizing functionality also available to customers, using the kiwibots app for tracking their deliveries.
If you are
in downtown San José,
for one reason or another, remember to keep an eye out for one of the cute Kiwibots, which might be sharing
sidewalks for delivering their payload to happy customers!
The second volume of Patents on the Soles of Your Shoes has doubled in size. From Isotoner® slippers that fit like gloves, to Frank Gehry’s woven-lattice furniture; from Roomba®, the autonomous floor-cleaning robot, to the Australian Blue Lizard®, UV-sensing Smart Bottle® for sunscreen, and Google's heart hand-gestures, this volume covers some extraordinary inventions that rock the most diverse aspects of our daily lives. Approximately 250 patents are cited in this volume, together with patent abstracts, and square QR Codes, enabling to connect to the source patents, directly from the pages of this book.
