External airbags to protect pedestrians, Nuro’s latest crazy idea for its autonomous delivery robots

In the not-too-distant future, some of your home orders may arrive on autonomous robots. As the popularity of these types of vehicles grows, some companies prepare to provide better safety for pedestrians.

Nuro, a startup founded in 2016 by two former engineers from Google’s self-driving car project, think it’s a good idea to include an external airbag in their next-generation autonomous robots. According to them, this feature would help reduce the impact on pedestrians in the event of a collision.

Thinking about pedestrian safety

Although his name is not as well known in the sector, Nuro has already launched its first two models, including R2, which is used by Domino’s Pizza for delivery in Houston. For their third generation proposal they wanted to focus on pedestrian safety with a very innovative idea.

As you can see in the images, Nuro’s new robot will come with a front airbag. The appearance of this feature honestly doesn’t go unnoticed as it looks like an inflated mattress strapped to the front of the robot. Nevertheless, the firm trusts its usefulness.

“It is optimized to reduce the force of the impact and the number of injuries in the event of a collision.“, says the Nuro team in a blog post, although unfortunately they do not provide more details about its operation.

Bearing in mind that Nuro’s vehicle can reach a maximum speed of 72 km/h, the safety measures for pedestrians are very well received. The model will have a network of sensors that work together to provide a 360º view of the environment in which it is located.

The firm ensures that the robot can perceive “from the difference between a pile of leaves and a pet to how many pedestrians are standing at a crosswalk in dense fog“. It is understood that these sensors would be able to identify the moment in which the airbag should be activated.

As for the other features, the company claims that this model will be 20% smaller in width than average cars. It will also be prepared to work in coexistence with other motorized vehicles and in “diverse climatic conditions throughout the year.”

Nuro says its new delivery vehicle its new Nevada plant will be produced. However, the facility is still under construction but is expected to be fully operational by the end of this year.

Images | Nuro