A loading system for laterally loading and unloading an upper body structure onto and from a vehicle platform includes loading gear rails mounted on respective lengthwise ends of the vehicle platform, the loading gear rails configured to jointly extend and retract from the vehicle platform by moving in a lateral direction of the vehicle platform, each loading gear rail having first gear teeth gear-engaging with a correspondingly formed platform gear wheel rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform and second gear teeth configured to engage a correspondingly formed upper body gear wheel at a respective lengthwise end of the upper body structure, wherein the platform gear wheel actuates lateral movement of the loading gear rails to engage the upper body structure with the loading gear rails at the upper body gear wheels and to load the engaged upper body structure onto the vehicle platform or to load and unload the engaged upper body structure from the vehicle platform.

A deployment mechanism and a delivery container enabling unattended delivery of cargo by a vehicle navigating autonomously on both vehicle lanes and pedestrian ways. A trailer for an autonomous vehicle for hauling additional cargo and power supplies. A method for delivering and picking up goods using delivery trucks, autonomous vehicles, and trailers. The deployment mechanism can include a crane, a robot arm, a forklift, straps, and sails. The delivery container can include visible, partly visible, or hidden security features and grasping features, and can be foldable and stackable. The trailer can include a 4-bar linkage, the 4-bar linkage enabling consistent pitch between the trailer cargo and a cargo hold of the towing vehicle. The trailer wheels are decoupled from the 4-bar linkage, connected by swing arms and possible shock absorbers. The trailer can buffer fore/aft movement of the trailer.

A vehicle is electrically connected to one or more accessories. The vehicle includes at least one controller that may be configured to identify the accessory based on accessory identification information. The controller may also be configured to provide one or more commands to control an operation of the accessory.

A collapsible trunk for use with a vehicle having a wheel well. The trunk comprises a base wall and a side wall pivotally connected thereto. The side wall extends from the base wall and terminates at an upper edge. The side wall and base wall collectively define a storage cavity. The base wall and the side wall each have an expandable portion conformable to the wheel well in response to placement of the base wall and the side wall over the wheel well. The trunk is selectively transitional between a collapsed configuration and a deployed configuration. In the collapsed configuration, the base panels overlap each other, and in the deployed configuration, the plurality of base panels are co-planar to each other. The upper edge of the side wall moves away from the base wall as the trunk transitions from the collapsed configuration toward the deployed configuration.

Systems and methods for the modification of loading dock environments are provided that allow trailers and shipping containers on chassis' to park at a loading dock with closed doors and have these doors opened into the loading dock environment and resealed while the trailer remains at the loading dock. A resilient, semi-rigid protective panel can also be removably attached to cover part of the inside face of an opened trailer door, so as to protect it from impact by equipment or goods as they pass into and out of the trailer.

A vehicle has an automated storage and retrieval system, the automated storage and retrieval system including an area for storage of items and having locations, each location being suitable for holding one or more of the items; an inductor that receives and inducts the items into the automated storage and retrieval system; a conveyor that conveys the items from the inductor to the area; and an extraction station. When an item is designated for removal from the area, the conveyor delivers the designated item to the extraction station and, after receipt of the designated item from the conveyor, the extraction station delivers the designated item to a designated recipient for extraction of the designated item from the automated storage and retrieval system.

A method for controlling a package delivery sorting system onboard a vehicle includes loading, onboard a package sorting platform, a first package comprising a first fiducial marker, the package sorting platform disposed in a cargo hold of the package delivery vehicle, determining, via a processor, a package identity based on the first, fiducial marker, determining, via the processor and based on the fiducial marker, a first package pose comprising a first package position and a first package orientation with respect to the package sorting platform, defining, via the processor, a first package geometry associated with the first package, and causing the sorting platform to position the first package, via the processor, to a second first package pose.

Package sorting systems and methods of use are disclosed herein. An example system includes a platform of a vehicle, where the platform is arranged as a grid having a plurality of slots (including an open slot and a target slot). A plurality of slabs can be placed into the grid except for in the open slot. A slab moving assembly is used, to move the slabs in order to place a selected slab into the target slot on the platform.

The invention relates to a loading arm assembly for a load-handling vehicle, having a main arm, having an auxiliary arm, and having a gripping hook, wherein the loading arm assembly is configured for unloading and loading transportation containers having a hook, wherein a pivot arm part is disposed on the auxiliary arm so as to be pivotable by way of an articulation, wherein a gripping hook is disposed so as to be pivotable on the pivot arm part. The loading arm assembly is improved in that the pivot arm part in a transporting position engages in a clearance of the auxiliary arm.

The invention relates to a method for delivering mobile locker cabinets loaded with postal items to automatic parcel stations and for collecting empty mobile locker cabinets from automatic parcel stations by means of a delivery vehicle having a cargo space. In order to reduce the outlay associated with logistics of locker cabinets and thus to reduce the associated costs of logistics, depending on a delivery route, the locker cabinets loaded with postal items are arranged in a delivery sequence within the cargo space in such a way that a locker cabinet which forms a start of the delivery sequence and a locker cabinet which forms an end of the delivery sequence are accessible directly via a rear loading/unloading opening (8) of the cargo space.