Shift Robotics aimed to get folks walking faster back in 2022, with a Kickstarter project for strap-on powered wheels called Moonwalkers. Now the Carnegie Mellon spinoff is launching a business-specific variant called the Moonwalkers X.
That said, given how poorly warehouse workers are treated, this application seems like it will only exacerbate demands upon workers, driving them harder and for longer hours. I’m left wondering why it’s the case that warehouses cannot just rearrange their operations so that workers don’t have to walk as far, thereby forestalling the need for walking enhancement altogether.
Brand new warehouses are probably good for this. What about the warehouse that has been around for 50+ years with cracks and settled concrete everywhere. It’s like Google Glass: an innovation with no real world problem to solve.
Considering my previous comments about these (and the earlier thread as a whole), I’m fairly impressed they’ve found a use case which has the smooth, level floors needed for this to work well.
That said, given how poorly warehouse workers are treated, this application seems like it will only exacerbate demands upon workers, driving them harder and for longer hours. I’m left wondering why it’s the case that warehouses cannot just rearrange their operations so that workers don’t have to walk as far, thereby forestalling the need for walking enhancement altogether.
Brand new warehouses are probably good for this. What about the warehouse that has been around for 50+ years with cracks and settled concrete everywhere. It’s like Google Glass: an innovation with no real world problem to solve.
Put in those human conveyor belts like they have at airports.