Ford UAVs will deliver pizza and sendings to residents of Miami

2018: Commercial project on delivery of pizza UAVs

In February, 2018 the Ford company announced start of the first commercial project with participation of autonomous cars. Pilotless Ford will deliver pizza and sendings to residents of Miami (highway Florida, the USA). In Miami the first terminal for autonomous cars where maintenance, repair and cleaning of UAVs will be performed will also open.

Ford UAVs involve in delivery of pizza across Miami

Miami, according to the recent global research Inrix Global Traffic, takes the 10th place in the list of the cities of the world with the most loaded roads, and the fifth in the list of the most "plug" cities in the USA. Car owners spend to Miami in traffic jams on average 64 hours a year, or nearly 10% of all time driving. At the same time the city actively tries to solve the transport problems.

For understanding of how residents of the district will apprehend service with participation of autonomous cars, the project will be originally concentrated on the goods delivery by UAVs. This service will be implemented together with partners of Ford — Domino's Pizza company and delivery service of orders Postmates. The experience got during the project is going to be made use during creation of the autonomous car of unique construction which Ford is going to release in 2021.

Autonomous cars of Ford will carry Domino's pizza and orders of Postmates

During the experiment the company intends to answer a number of questions, important for business development with participation of autonomous cars further, including to find optimal loading procedure and extraction of goods and to define advantages of use of such service to the end customer. Obvious advantages of "pilotless" delivery observance by autonomous cars of rules of a stop and the parking (they will not get up the second row, creating noises to the movement) and also economy of money by clients at the expense of a tip which will consign to the past seem so far.

Important aspect of business with participation of autonomous cars is care of them — repair, maintenance, washing of a body and cleaning of salon. For these purposes of Ford creates the first terminal for autonomous cars integrating functions of dispatching office and service station in Miami. It is supposed that afterwards repair and service of Ford UAVs will be performed with involvement of local dealers.

In parallel with it development of technology of autonomous driving in partnership with Argo AI company will continue. Cars with artificial intelligence from Argo already make trips around streets of Miami, creating the detailed map of roads and accumulating knowledge which will help them with perfection to move on the city. Testing of the Ford cars with artificial intelligence from Argo is going to be expanded from year to year with adding of cars and increase in the square on which pass tests.

The pilot project on delivery of pizza in partnership with Domino’s Pizza is already started, since March, 2018 years residents will be able to order the goods delivery and sendings by UAVs through Postmates service.

2017: Testing of UAVs as pizza delivery systems

The companies Ford Motor Company Domino's Pizza announced also on August 29, 2017 start of the first in the industry joint project. The producer of pizza and car maker intend to study a possibility of use of autonomous cars for delivery of pizza.

The autonomous car with the hybrid power Ford Fusion Hybrid drive will be involved in an experiment of Ford and Domino's

Project Tasks

During the experiment representatives of both companies investigate reaction of the buyers who ordered delivery of pizza for need of interaction with the autonomous car. Such research is important for both companies which try to understand the relation of users to future transition to autonomous cars in the field of delivery of food.

In process of expansion of business Ford in the field of autonomous cars carrying out joint surveys with such companies as Domino’s, will allow to guarantee that new technologies will increase customer service quality, are convinced of the company. Ford is going to begin production of autonomous cars in 2021 therefore the car maker looks for already now solutions for business which will meet requirements of both the partner companies, and their clients.

All of us are more convinced of commercial prospects of use of autonomous cars for transportation of people and goods therefore we are glad that Domino’s will join us on this important process step of development — Cherif told Sherif Marakby, the vice president of Ford for the autonomous and electrified cars. — Being the company concentrated on customer satisfaction, Domino’s separates our vision of the future in which the cars allocated with intelligence work in "the smart environment" to increase quality of life of people.

Experiment course

In the following several weeks in a random way the selected clients of Domino's in the city of Enn-Arbor (highway Michigan) will have an opportunity to take away the order from the experimental autonomous car with the hybrid power Ford Fusion Hybrid drive. For security on a driver's seat there will be an engineer of Ford, researchers from both companies will also become passengers of the car. The clients who agreed to participate in a research will be able to keep track of location of the car of delivery on GPS using the advanced version of service for tracking of the order of Domino's Tracker. In arrival time of the car they will also receive Sms with the instruction how to get pizza from the special warmed compartment Heatwave Compartment in Ford using the unique code.

Ford and Domino’s will deliver pizza on UAVs

It is interesting to us to learn that people think of such delivery type — Russell Weiner, the president of the American division of Domino's noted. — The majority of our questions concern the last 15-20 meters on a route from a pizzeria to the buyer. For example, how our clients will treat that they will need to leave the house to take away the order? It is necessary to think over all process of interaction with the car, to make it simple and clear. It is necessary to understand as far as experience of the client will differ if the car parks not at a main entrance, and at the sidewalk. All our pilot studies are concentrated on one purpose: make delivery using autonomous cars thought over and convenient for our clients.

It is possible to get pizza from the special warmed compartment Heatwave Compartment in Ford using the unique code

The local partner of the project, the Roush Enterprises company, made pizza container for the experimental Domino's Heatwave Compartment car taking into account experience of development of the car of delivery of Domino's DXP in 2015. Ford and Domino’s already completed preliminary tests of the car in a standalone mode in Mcity, the full-scale model of the city on the area of the University of Michigan. City authorities of Ann-Arbor were supported carrying out tests in this urban environment.