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Title: Amazon's newest fulfillment robot has a sense of touch

Date: Wed, 07 May 2025 12:00:50 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/amazons-new...

Amazon has deployed over 750,000 robots to its fulfillment centers over the
last decade or so, but now there's a new, shall we say, more sensitive
addition. The company has announced Vulcan, its first robot with a sense of
touch. It's one in a series of new robots introduced today at Amazon's
Delivering the Future event in Germany.

Vulcan uses force feedback sensors to monitor how much it's pushing or
holding on to an object and, ideally, not damage it. ΓÇ£In the past, when
industrial robots have unexpected contact, they either emergency stop or
smash through that contact. They often donΓÇÖt even know they have hit
something because they cannot sense it.ΓÇ¥ Aaron Parness, Amazon director,
applied science, stated in the release. "Vulcan represents a fundamental leap
forward in robotics. It's not just seeing the world, it's feeling it,
enabling capabilities that were impossible for Amazon robots until now."

Of course, there's an AI component, with Amazon training Vulcan's AI on
physical data around touch and force. Vulcan also uses algorithms to
determine what it can handle, identify different products and find space in
the fulfillment center. The machine has "tackled thousands" of objects and
tasks, like moving electronics and picking up socks. The system can also
learn from its mistakes, with Amazon stating the robot will become more
capable as time goes on.

Amazon, which has faced continual reports of endangering worker safety, also
claims it's introducing Vulcan for efficiency and worker safety. The robot
should focus on inventory in the top rows of storage pods, about eight feet
in the air, and just above floor level. Theoretically, this means less time
employees need to spend on ladders or crouching down, and more time working
with product at their level. Amazon says the robot is already in use in
Spokane, Washington and Hamburg, Germany.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-
tech/amazons-newest-fulfillment-robot-has-a-sense-of-touch-
120050449.html?src=rss

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