Dextrous Robotics creates robot to unload trucks: Here’s how it works – Commercial Appeal

The Dextrous Robotics lab in Crosstown Concourse looks like something out of a spy movie. The floor-length tinted windows reveal vague shadowy figures moving around inside, and the door is sealed with an electronic keypad next to it, no intercom.

From the outside you would never guess that the company makes robots for moving packages. But thats exactly what the DX-1, Dextrous main project, is for. The robot was made to help unload trucks and shipping containers with human-like dexterity.

CEO Evan Drumwright and his team found inspiration for the robot from an unlikely source.

We were inspired by human chopsticks to get this strategy of being able to select all these different objects and shapes, sizes, materials, weights, in all different kinds of environments,he said.

The DX-1 is slated for release in the spring of 2023. Dextrous is already in talks with several logistics companies about leasing the machine and implementing it in warehouses and distribution centers, though they were not at liberty to give specifics about which companies.

Drumwright, who has been working in robotics for more than 20 years, started Dextrous three years ago with the goal of developing robots that can do dangerous and physically demanding tasks currently done by humans. Now, he has built a robot that can perform these tasks withsuper-human speed and efficiency.

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In the pseudo-warehouse space at the back of the lab, the team has built a testing area for the robot filled with dozens of different-sized boxes. To the side of this area are several monitors and a keyboard that Chief Technology Officer Sam Zapolsky uses to control the robot.

Once Zapolsky fires it up, the DX-1 starts by scanning a package and building a digital 3-D model to estimate its dimensions, orientation and location. Then, it creates a plan of movements needed to lift and move the package and executes it using two thin, pointed arms, which Drumwright aptly calls "chopsticks."

Currently, the robot must be remotely operated by a person, but the plan is for it to become fully automated and capable of operating independently.

Looking at the numbers, the DX-1 averages 2,000 parcel picks per hour at maximum speed and lifts up to 100 pounds. In comparison, a human worker will average up to 300 with the use of a conveyance system, as a 2017 white paper from Westernacher Consulting found.

Dextrous' release comes as many large logistics companies, including FedEx, are investing more and more in robotics for various reasons including hiring shortages and to cut labor costs.

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However, Drumwright sees the DX-1 going beyond just the logistics industry. He said the technology could eventually be implemented in many different industries such as agriculture and manufacturing.

"These are things that people are essentially trading their physical effort for money, which is really not sustainable in the long-term because its just something thats going to be replaced by a machine,he said.

Niki Scheinberg is the FedEx and logistics reporter at The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at monika.scheinberg@commercialappeal.com.

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Dextrous Robotics creates robot to unload trucks: Here's how it works - Commercial Appeal