WAVE of the Future?

[ATeam]

Truck design continues to evolve.

Story/photos here

Note that it will not be long until the driver part of this truck (the cab and sleeper) are made unnecessary because the truck will drive itself. And with that gone, the power train can be placed under the trailer make it not a self-driving truck but a self-driving container.

It seems to me that this design was not made with the driver in mind. It was made with the idea in mind to get rid of the driver altogether. Once the regulations allow self-driving trucks, it is a simple step to eliminate the top part of the tractor pictured here.

Drivers think about trucks when they think about the future. Shippers think about self-driving containers.

 

[zorry]

Posted 3/4 by Ragman under the title New Walmart Truck.

 

[danthewolf00]

I remember as a kid seeing a new fangled truck that had the trailer up over the cab....looked like a sports car pulling a 53 foot trailer!

 

[Doggie Daddy]

Sent from my SCH-I545 using EO Forums mobile app

 

[danthewolf00]

Yes that was it!

 

[greasytshirt]

Sent from my SCH-I545 using EO Forums mobile app

Wow, that thing looks like a deathtrap.

 

[zorry]

Wow, that thing looks like a deathtrap.

The evil Teamsters Union said our members will never drive that.

Otherwise the LTL Carriers might have been all over it.

 

[greasytshirt]

The evil Teamsters Union said our members will never drive that.

Otherwise the LTL Carriers might have been all over it.

I need a different explanation, considering I'm not a driver, nor am I familiar with the politics of trucking.

 

[Ragman]

I need a different explanation, considering I'm not a driver, nor am I familiar with the politics of trucking.

It was sarcasm at it's finest.

 

[zorry]

That truck was designed for volume shipments and a doubles operation.

Not what an O/O would consider.

The big freight LTL operations were typically union back then. Roadway, Yellow, CF, etc.

When the Teamsters said we'll never have our drivers drive those vehicles it took away the majority of the potential market.

The Evil adjective is sarcasm as most on here are anti-union. They deal with UAW members which is not a fair representation of ALL union members.

 

[ATeam]

Wow, that thing looks like a deathtrap.

Yes it does, when you think about a person driving it. But when robotic are applied and the unit drives itself, it looks like the future.

 

[zorry]

I'm not too worried about robotic trucks.

When I was a supervisor at Pepsi,we added to our warehouse. There was talk of automated forklifts..this was 30 years ago.

Didn't happen. They may be in isolated, controlled environments, definitely not mainstream.

We are so far from self driving trucks affecting our jobs that even the youngest here will be retired.

 

[ATeam]

I'm not too worried about robotic trucks.

When I was a supervisor at Pepsi,we added to our warehouse. There was talk of automated forklifts..this was 30 years ago.

Didn't happen. They may be in isolated, controlled environments, definitely not mainstream.

We are so far from self driving trucks affecting our jobs that even the youngest here will be retired.

Robotic trucks are being used right now in mines and military applications where the environments are neither isolated nor controlled. It is not the operating environment that keeps these trucks from being used, it is the regulations. When those changes, robotic trucks will quickly appear.

My guess is that cars will come first, and one of the first places may be to replace taxi cabs in cities. But that is just a guess. Once the initial hype dies down after robotic cars become used on public streets and highways, it will be a small step to bring trucks online too.

Videos:

Self-driving Trucks Tested in Japan

Driverless Truck

Self Driving Containers in Controlled Environment

Self-driving Military Trucks Tested in Texas

Why the Public Will Agree Self-driving Trucks are Better