What's the news?
At the Hannover Motor Show today (19 September 2018) Renault takes the wraps off its vision of the future of 'last-mile' goods delivery, or delivery vans to you and me. Actually, that's doing Renault's EZ-PRO a disservice, as the concept is more a delivery system and network rather than a single vehicle. And while the whole thing centres around efficient autonomy, delivery people of the world should relax in the knowledge that there'll still be a place for a human being.
The 'human concierge' sits in the leader pod, though isn't expected to worry themselves with any driving, as that's done completely anonymously. Instead, they 'supervise', plan and sometimes get involved with in-person deliveries where appropriate - for fragile items for example. Linked up with this leader pod is a fleet of driverless robo-pods, of a modular design that can be tailored to the needs of the company in terms of storage and access. Renault even tied up with DPD, Lomi Coffee, Piper-Heidsieck and Patrick Roger to demonstrate how the EZ-PRO system could be deployed in reality. Browse through the extensive gallery and you'll see examples of automated delivery and even pop-up catering.
It's all about efficiency, so the robo-pods can follow their leader around seamlessly or move independently when needs be, at times controlled by that human concierge by use of a joystick. That's made possible by in-wheel electric motors and four-wheel steering. Naturally, the whole system is powered by electricity.
Anything else?
Renault quotes a 2017 study carried out in France, which estimates that as much as 30 per cent of traffic in cities in made up of 'last mile' deliveries. Nonetheless, it stops short of suggesting how much of that could be reduced by the use of a connected system such as EZ-PRO. A last word on the concept by Laurens van den Acker, Senior Vice President, Groupe Renault Corporate Design: "With EZ-PRO, we continue our exploratory work around urban shared mobility of the future. Focused on delivery solutions, this autonomous, connected and electric concept represents the ideal tool, being both a creator of opportunity for professionals and a facilitator of services for all its users, direct or indirect. "