Self-Driving Test by DHL Completed at Heathrow
A Ford Mondeo fitted with technology from Oxa has successfully negotiated a 14-day pilot at the airport
DHL Supply Chain has completed a groundbreaking deployment of an autonomous vehicle (AV) at London’s Heathrow Airport.
A Ford Mondeo fitted with technology from U.K. company Oxa has successfully negotiated a 14-day pilot at the airport, safely racking up around 807 miles of autonomous driving.
It marks the first time DHL has used an AV at the facility, which was the world’s fourth busiest airport in 2023, behind Atlanta, Dubai and Dallas-Fort Worth, accommodating 79 million passengers over 12 months.
The project builds on DHL’s partnership with Heathrow, where it has provided baggage logistics and support services since 2020.
The pilot was exclusively carried out airside, where DHL is seeking new solutions for its inter-terminal baggage transfer service. There are four terminals at Heathrow, and DHL currently moves 60,000 bags a month between them.
However, it is seeking to do so in a more efficient, sustainable manner.
Before the pilot was launched, the AV, which was armed with an array of sensors as well as Oxa’s software stack, was subject to several “installation exercises” to ensure it would integrate seamlessly into Heathrow’s sizable, complex airside environment.
Right from the outset, the Mondeo was able to operate autonomously, with a safety monitor behind the wheel to oversee progress. Its performance was continually optimized over the two-week period, resulting in all the pre-set benchmarks being met.
Oxa, formerly known as Oxbotica, is pursuing a strategy for its software to be used on any vehicle to enable self-driving capability.
Although this project was carried out using a passenger car to demonstrate the potential of the technology, in the longer term DHL’s aim is to use vehicles specifically geared towards baggage transfer, such as electric vans and tow tractors.
DHL plans to use findings from the initiative to investigate other potential uses for automation at airports.
Hailing the Heathrow pilot as a success, Dan Peacock of DHL said: “Our priority is to deliver an exceptional service to our customers that meets their unique needs, and this project supports Heathrow by modelling an innovative solution which could really help drive capacity safely and sustainably.”
Gavin Jackson, CEO of Oxa, added: “There are huge opportunities to modernize airport supply chains with intelligent, self-driving vehicles that improve the entire customer experience. We are delighted to partner with DHL in order to support the use of autonomous vehicles within airside operations at Heathrow and around the world – working towards fully automated airside logistics at scale.”
Oxa has steadily been building up a portfolio of different use cases for its technology, including recent fitment to Ford E-Transit vans, self-driving shuttles produced in tandem with Austrian bus maker eVersum and an AV service at a college in Jacksonville, Florida, is associated with Beep.
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