Deployment of Autonomous Vehicles in Amazon Logistics
Autonomous vehicles are the technology that is emerging at a rapid pace, and popular organizations like Amazon are undertaking the usage of the same for the purpose of their logistics operations. This report will present the ways in which autonomous vehicles will be deployed in Amazon. In addition to this, the implications of autonomous vehicles will be identified for Amazon, along with the benefits as well as challenges. Amazon is one of the leading e-commerce businesses, and with the utilization of autonomous vehicles, the firm will be impacted in many ways, which will be both positive as well as negative.
The autonomous vehicles will be deployed for different operations in the logistics of Amazon. They will be used for loading, unloading as well as transporting goods from the areas of the Amazon warehouse by undertaking connections between one another and as a result of the same, forming a flexible conveyor belt (Rossolov, 2021). The operations will also require advanced sensors along with vision as well as geo guidance technology. In the logistics, the different areas where the autonomous technology shall be deployed includes harbours, airports and yards. The future of Amazon logistics with the deployment of autonomous vehicles will include the large autonomous trucks that shall deliver goods. Thus, the deployment of autonomous vehicles in Amazon logistics shall include lowering of fright as well as costs associated with logistics for the purpose of improving the efficiency of fuel and reduction in the delivery time.
Autonomous vehicles can also be deployed for the indoor logistics of Amazon. The process of handling material is regarded as an essential activity for the distribution as well as production sites of the firm (Katoch, 2021). Long autonomous vehicles can be utilized for cross-docking stations, production plants, distribution centres as well as warehouses for increasing the efficiency of activities related to material handling. This manner of structured, controlled as well as simple indoor logistics settings can assist in creating the environment of the firm ideal for autonomous vehicles. The utilization of autonomous vehicles within the indoor logistics settings is said to be one of the most developed applications for the practices of autonomous vehicles and, as a result of the same, acquainting the industry of logistics with autonomous vehicles.
Autonomous vehicles can be further deployed in the controlled outdoor environment of the Amazon. The autonomous vehicles must be deployed on outdoor terrains like airports, harbours and the courtyards of logistics. Like the indoor settings, the vehicles can be applied in outdoor settings (Uluta? et al., 2021). This will help in the reduction of the errors that are caused by humans. The process of providing the materials to the customers of Amazon will be done in a fast and effective manner. In addition to this, long-haul freight transport of the Amazon can be deployed with autonomous vehicles. The processes of highway trucking along with platooning can also make use of autonomous vehicles. The carriers will be required to take the information related to the platoon at the time of scheduling as well as routing the trips, which will be undertaken by autonomous trucks. The border of the firm will also be required for cooperation at the time of routing and scheduling for gaining all the benefits of platooning (Crainic et al., 2021). When the drivers of the trucks shall perform other options at the time of riding on the highway, the operations can also be switched for the purpose of utilizing the time in other operations of the firm rather than wasting time by sitting ideally. In this manner, autonomous vehicles can be deployed for the logistics of Amazon.
Benefits of Deploying Autonomous Vehicles
The logistics operations of Amazon shall gain a vast amount of benefits with the utilization of autonomous vehicles. The different benefits that can be gained with the deployment of autonomous vehicles are as follows,
- Lower Freight Costs: With the help of autonomous vehicles, the costs of freight shall be decreased in the logistics operations of Amazon (Janné & Fredriksson, 2019). The requirement for providing money to the carrier company for transporting goods from one location to another will be eliminated, which shall be a major aspect of lowering the freight cost.
- Improved Truck Utilization: Autonomous trucks can travel in a more efficient manner during the off-peak hours, and as a result, the traffic congestion shall be reduced during the busiest hours of the day. The autonomous trucks will not require to take breaks in between the journey. In addition to this, the rate of accidents caused due to drivers will be reduced. All these will result in the improvement of truck utilization.
- Reduction in Logistics Cost: The cost associated with logistics shall be reduced with the help of autonomous vehicles (Guney & Raptis, 2020). With the reduction in logistics cost, the experience of customers shall be improved because the operations that will be undertaken by autonomous vehicles will help in providing goods and services in a fast manner along with quality standards.
- Improved Fuel Efficiency: As autonomous vehicles are driven in a smooth manner, therefore the efficiency of fuel gets improved. In addition to this, the improved fuel efficiency will provide the benefit of a reduction in the emission of carbon dioxide and other pollutants.
- Reduction in delivery times: The autonomous vehicles are fast and do not require any breaks in between the journey, which can result in the reduction of time required for delivering items (Julius Fusic et al., 2021). By reduction in delivery time, the satisfaction level of Amazon customers will also improve, which is regarded as one of the major benefits for the firm because the customer base will become strong and, at the same time, increase with the help of autonomous vehicles utilization.
The different implications that are associated with the utilization of autonomous vehicles by firms like Amazon are as follows,
- The cost associated with the transportation of goods and services will be dropped because of the rise in fierce competition.
- The flow of traffic will become smooth with the increase in the number of autonomous vehicles, and furthermore, traffic congestion shall be reduced (Masoud & Jayakrishnan, 2017). This will be also beneficial for saving money as well as the time of commuters.
- The energy cost will be saved because autonomous vehicles will help in the maximization of efficiency in terms of driving.
However, there are certain challenges that can be faced by Amazon at the time of deploying autonomous vehicles for logistics. The challenges are as follows,
- Road Conditions: The conditions of the road are highly unpredictable and are not the same in different places. Some area is broad highways, whereas in other areas, the condition of roads has deteriorated, and there are no marking of lanes (Tijan et al., 2019). The lanes are not defined in a proper manner and furthermore consist of potholes, tunnel roads as well as mountainous roads in which the external signals for the purpose of directions are not clear. In such cases, autonomous vehicles cannot operate in a proper manner, which is a major challenge.
- Weather Conditions: This is another challenging factor for autonomous vehicles. The weather can either be sunny and at the same time clear, but the weather can also be stormy as well as rainy (Monios & Bergqvist, 2020). Therefore, it must be ensured that autonomous vehicles work in all types of weather conditions. Furthermore, there is no scope associated with the downtime or the failure of the vehicles, which can be a challenging aspect for organizations utilizing it.
- Traffic Conditions: Autonomous vehicles are required to drive in all types of traffic conditions, which is considered to be challenging for them. There can also be a requirement for them to drive on the road with other autonomous cars along with humans (Patricio & Mendes, 2020). Traffic is said to be self-regulated and, at the same time, highly moderated. However, there can be instances when people tend to break the traffic rules, which may result in the arrival of an object unexpectedly in front of the autonomous vehicle. In addition to this, in case of high traffic, the people cannot wait for the traffic to get cleared automatically. In case all the cars wait on the road for the purpose of getting the traffic clear, this can lead to traffic deadlock.
- Accident Liability: The essential aspect which is considered within autonomous vehicles is the liability of accidents. Software is considered the major element for autonomous vehicles, which drives the car and shall further make all essential decisions (Tang & Veelenturf, 2019). On the basis of the nature of autonomous vehicles, the occupant who will be occupied at the seat will be least bothered about the traffic conditions around the vehicle, and by the time they act to a certain circumstance, it might be too late for the vehicle. As a reason for all this, accident liability is said to be a major challenge for autonomous vehicles.
- Radar Interference: Radar, as well as lasers, are utilized by autonomous vehicles for the purpose of navigation. The lasers are mounted upon the rooftop of the vehicles, while the sensors are included in the body of the vehicle (Abosuliman & Almagrabi, 2021). The principle of radar functions by undertaking detection of reflections of the radio waves from the objects surrounding it. When the vehicles are on the road, then radiofrequency waves are emitted on a continuous basis, which in return is reflected by the surrounding cars as well as objects present on the road and near to the vehicle. The time which is undertaken for the reflection process is measured for calculating the actual distance of the surrounding object or vehicle from the autonomous vehicle. In case the same technology is utilized by hundreds of cars, then the autonomous vehicle will become inefficient in understanding and distinguishing the signal between its own or the other vehicle. These can lead to radar interference and, furthermore, cause challenges for autonomous vehicles.
In order to manage autonomous vehicles, it is essential to integrate new sensors as well as channels of communication for the purpose of dealing with the complexities of the driving environment. Furthermore, sophisticated approaches shall be required for capturing as well as interpreting information received by autonomous vehicles. Thus, for managing autonomous vehicles, Amazon must ensure to fulfil the following points,
- Implementing the processes of decision making that shall be considered by autonomous vehicles.
- The responsibilities of the firm must be divided in an appropriate manner between the manufacturers, operators as well as other parties of Amazon on the basis of clear technical requirements rather than abstract goals of Amazon.
- Initiatives must be undertaken for correcting and updating the policies related to decision making for autonomous vehicles on a regular basis.
- Approaches related to user-centred design must be adopted for ensuring that autonomous vehicles play the role of human-machine interactions.
- Autonomous vehicles come along with high complexity, and as a reason for the same, Amazon will require architectural methods for keeping the cost of the vehicles manageable along with making the safety assurance plausible (Wo?niakowski et al., 2018).
- Test approaches will be required because they shall assist in supporting massive as well as properly characterized test programmes.
- Evidence that will be gathered from a vast range of assurance methods shall be further utilized for managing autonomous vehicles.
The different social, business, technical, legal and ethical implications that are faced by the IT professionals are as follows:
- The social implications involves that are faced by IT professionals involves interpersonal conflicts and issues related to communication. Increasing the productivity in respect to work undertaken by them is also a social implication.
- The different legal implications that are faced by IT professionals involves the following of rules as well as regulations associated to autonomous technology. The autonomous technologies must be utilized for legal purpose only and this aspect is regarded as a major legal implication.
- The technical implications involves the affect on the wages and employment of the workers at the time of using autonomous technology. The technical aspects that are integrated into technologies must not be intended for hacking purposes by the IT workers.
- The ethical implications ensures that the workers are required to abide by the norms of the organizations, which is the usage autonomous technology. The environment of the workplace must be maintained by the IT workers.
Conclusion:
With the utilization of autonomous vehicles in Amazon, several benefits will be gained by the firm with respect to its logistics operations. This report has highlighted the ways and areas in which autonomous vehicles shall be deployed in Amazon. In addition to this, the benefits, implications as well as challenges associated with autonomous vehicles have been highlighted. The different ways in which Amazon can manage autonomous vehicles are also documented in the report that shall be effective for the firm in utilizing the same for its logistics operations.
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