Launch HN: Azalea Robotics (YC S24) – Baggage-handling robots for airports

Post by bombcar » Thu, Dec 12, 2024, 4:06 PM UTC

dmillard wrote: post #27

hemloc_io wrote: post #23

> Unfortunately for airlines, passengers don’t package their luggage in nicely uniform cardboard boxes. If they did, then the airlines could benefit directly from the recent takeoff in manipulator tech for warehouses. But airline luggage is way more wacky and irregular. If robots are going to handle it, they need to reason about how to grasp each item, handle its deformability, stack it in a stable way, and do all of…

Operational changes for airlines are quite tricky - one of our bets is that most of the value for customers here is in handling "brownfield" deployments where you drop into an existing process, and that intelligence (or at least, good perception and reactive planning) really unlocks this ability from the robotics side. For widebody planes, bags are already loaded into Unit Load Devices (ULDs), which are large semi-tr…

Post by killjoywashere » Thu, Dec 12, 2024, 4:56 PM UTC

bombcar wrote: post #70

rokhayakebe wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why don't they just push the loaded rack into the airplane?

Weight of the rack is "wasted weight" on the flight, and that costs money. Each plane is different, so the racks either waste space or have to have tons of different ones. Many planes don't have easy big doors for racks (the ones you've probably seen are for designated cargo jets - like this: https://www.aircargo.ups.com/media/Containers-Pallets/upsair... ) And now even if you solve all the above, you still have to l…

Post by V99 » Thu, Dec 12, 2024, 6:34 PM UTC

killjoywashere wrote: post #73

bombcar wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Weight of the rack is "wasted weight" on the flight, and that costs money. Each plane is different, so the racks either waste space or have to have tons of different ones. Many planes don't have easy big doors for racks (the ones you've probably seen are for designated cargo jets - like this: https://www.aircargo.ups.com/media/Containers-Pallets/upsair... ) And now even if you solve all the above, you still have to l…

Why not rear-load like military aircraft and avoid that 90º turn? Then you could have a hull-shaped hopper to drop the bags in, so they are tetris'd together in the right geometry before you get to the ramp. Roll the hopper in, have a pez-despenser style pusher so as you withdraw the hopper, the bags are left behind in the aircraft?

Post by bombcar » Thu, Dec 12, 2024, 6:51 PM UTC

killjoywashere wrote: post #76

V99 wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Step one would be "get Boeing or Airbus to design, build, certify, and sell thousands of a significantly different airplane model". That's a big hurdle for an airline to start climbing now to someday maybe start saving money on bag loading in many years.

surely someone thought of this before though. There must be a "why not" answer already.

Post by hemloc_io » Thu, Dec 12, 2024, 9:33 PM UTC

dmillard wrote: post #27

hemloc_io wrote: post #23

> Unfortunately for airlines, passengers don’t package their luggage in nicely uniform cardboard boxes. If they did, then the airlines could benefit directly from the recent takeoff in manipulator tech for warehouses. But airline luggage is way more wacky and irregular. If robots are going to handle it, they need to reason about how to grasp each item, handle its deformability, stack it in a stable way, and do all of…

Operational changes for airlines are quite tricky - one of our bets is that most of the value for customers here is in handling "brownfield" deployments where you drop into an existing process, and that intelligence (or at least, good perception and reactive planning) really unlocks this ability from the robotics side. For widebody planes, bags are already loaded into Unit Load Devices (ULDs), which are large semi-tr…