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A drone drops a package to a self-driving robot. (GS Caltex) |
GS Caltex said Tuesday it has combined drones and self-driving robots to establish contact-free logistics platforms for islands and mountainous areas.
According to the South Korean refiner, it held a drone delivery test event at its gas station in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, to test the economic feasibility of the automated delivery service.
During the test, a customer living in a nearby island placed an order through a mobile app of GS25, a convenience store chain owned by GS Retail. Then, a drone parked at the gas station of GS Caltex took off with the package, flying 0.9 kilometer across the sea to connect with a self-driving robot standing by on the island. After taking the package, the robot safely delivered the package to the customer.
“Together with self-driving robots, GS Caltex will facilitate delivery services even in places where it’s difficult for drones to land,” a company official said.
GS Caltex and GS Retail are in the process of transforming their nationwide network of gas stations into logistics hubs for delivery services.
By Kim Byung-wook (
kbw@heraldcorp.com)
