Sewer Robot Frees Up Streets

Posted by: Tim Halbur

31 July 2009 - 9:00am

The Urban Mole is a proposed package delivery robot that uses existing sewer tunnels to deliver packages underground, taking delivery trucks off of the streets.

"Able to move parcels as large as a shoebox, the Mole fully encapsulates its contents from surrounding waste water. In other words, the phrase “duty free shipping” will take on a whole new meaning.

The Urban Mole placed second in the VisionWorks contest, a logistics competition sponsored by Bayer MaterialScience (yes, they spell it one word like that) that asked participants to envision transportation solutions for 2020. The Urban Mole came in second to a building that grows food on its walls. Yeah, that’s cool, but it’s no undergound robot."

Full Story: Robot Design Delivers Packages Through Sewers

Source: Wired, July 30, 2009