Meet Sue, Randall, Colin and Bobby, four of the most reliable workers at the FedEx SuperHub in Memphis, TN. Each clocks eight hours a day of steady work, sorting around 1,300 packages an hour from bins onto a conveyor — four hours on the day shift and another four at night. They work tirelessly and are still learning on the job. They regularly call on coworkers in the facility for help. The four blue, shiny workers are actually industrial robot arms, handled remotely by human supervisors who help them find their bearings and get back to work quickly. The human supervisors are also known as Crew Chiefs.
“They’re the first arms of their kind to ever appear in a FedEx facility, and among the earliest examples of the day-to-day use of this technology anywhere in the world.” said Christopher Mims Logistics robots arms from Yaskawa Motoman are powered by a 3D and AI vision software system that acts as the robot’s eyes. Read how it’s working for FedEx in Memphis — Wall Street Journal
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