Create a free Manufacturing.net account to continue

Manufacturing Minute: Bulldozers Guided By Drones

In this episode, driverless, drone-led bulldozers take over construction sites.

Driverless, drone-led bulldozers take over construction sites. Welcome to your Manufacturing Minute.

Japanese construction company Komatsu has found a creative way to cope with a labor shortage.

With the help of American drone company Skycatch, Komatsu recently launched a new service called Smart Construction, featuring a fleet of robotic vehicles directed by drones.

The drones survey the area in real-time and send the data directly to the heavy-duty machines below. What would take humans two weeks can be done by these drones in as little as 30 minutes.

Since the drones map the surface in 3D, they can also track the volume of materials carted around the site.

Although the system can be operated remotely, a few humans still stay onsite for safety.

What Do You Think?

Would you trust a driverless bulldozer to do its job? Could manufacturers use this technology?

Email us or leave your comments below.

Thatโ€™s all the time we have for today, but tune in every weekday for your next Manufacturing Minute. 

More in Industry 4.0