Dog walker claims he was attacked by a Co-op delivery robot
Attack of the droids! Dog walker claims he was attacked by a Co-op delivery robot with a ‘mind of its own’ after it rammed into his German Shepherd
- Brian Dawson, 56, said the shopping bot rammed into his dog Pippa
A dog walker has claimed he was attacked by a Co-op delivery robot with a ‘mind of its own’ after it rammed into his German Shepherd.
Brian Dawson, 56, said a shopping bot rammed into his dog Pippa while they were walking on the pavement near a Co-Op branch in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire.
The robots are meant to be programmed to avoid collision but Mr Dawson, a Tesco delivery driver, said it went on to ram him in the leg, causing him to kick the droid to remove it ‘out of harm’s way’.
Footage from Mr Dawson’s neighbour’s doorbell camera, shows the shopping containing travelling at pace down the pavement before coming to an abrupt stop after colliding with the animal.
Infuriated by the crash, Mr Dawson shoved it onto its side which ‘triggered its alarm’ and made a ‘terrible racket’.
Brian Dawson, 56, said a shopping bot rammed into his dog Pippa during an incident near a Co-Op branch in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire
Footage captured on his neighbour’s doorbell camera shows the bot suddenly stopping when it has contact with the dog
The ‘furious’ man told The Sun: ‘It came towards me at considerable speed and hit Pippa, who’s 12 and a bit doddery.
‘I thought, ‘I’m not having that!’ and admit I gave it a bit of a kicking before taking my dog home out of harm’s way.
‘I was furious and went back out to make a note of its serial number or QR code. But it came straight for me again and hit my left leg.’
He then drove to make a complaint to the store, when the robot appeared, the alarm was still making a racket.
Mr Dawson added that he tried to complain to Co-op staff but was told by the manager that the robot was not his responsibility.
A Co-op spokesperson told MailOnline on Monday: ‘We are very sorry to hear of Mr. Dawson’s experience and we have raised this isolated incident with the robot’s operating company to ensure it is immediately investigated.’
The bots are operated by Starship Technologies, the robot company launched by the co-founders of Skype.
A spokesperson from Starship Technologies said: ‘Our robots make thousands of deliveries around the world every single day and the safety of these deliveries is taken very seriously. We are looking into the incident and are in contact with Mr Dawson.
Before the crash, the bot can be seen pootling along the pavement as it approaches Mr Dawson
The bots are operated by Starship Technologies, the robot company launched by the co-founders of Skype
‘The robots don’t travel at any great speed, 4mph or less, and the service has been operational in Milton Keynes for over 5 years now, where the robots have been widely welcomed by members of the community.’
Over the coronavirus lockdown, the popularity of the knee-high robots in Milton Keynes surged.
The robots, which allow the delivery of groceries in as little as 20 minutes, even brought food for free to NHS workers.
The shopping bots look like small white plastic boxes mounted on six wheels, kitted out with a bright orange flag that is lit up at night, so motorists and pedestrians can see them while they trundle around.
The delivery robots were spotted in December forming an orderly queue to use a pedestrian crossing – with one asking a passer-by to press the button for them.
Starship has previously said the robots are not ‘shy’ and are happy to ask strangers for help when they need it.
WHAT ARE STARSHIP TECHNOLOGIES’ DELIVERY ROBOTS?
The London-based company was created by Skype’s Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis in 2014.
The slow-moving delivery bots have already been trialled across the world, including in Hamburg, Washington and here in the UK delivering everything from groceries to takeout pizza.
They have travelled more than 100,000 miles in testing mode in more than 100 cities in 20 different countries.
Unlike robots designed to resemble humans, Starship’s bot is purely functional with a large compartment to hold deliveries, the equivalent size of two grocery bags.
Each six-wheeled ‘ground drone’ is completely self-driving.
Workers can drop a pin on a map (like Uber) to show their location and then select what food they want to order.
Each vehicle is 55cm (22 inches) high by 70cm (28 inches) long.
It has a secured compartment where parcels with a maximum weight of 10kg (22 pounds) can be transported, accessible to consumers via a link generated by a smartphone app.
They have six wheels and can travel at speeds up to 4mph (6.4kmh) per hour.
They travel mainly on pavements, can go up curbs and operate in the rain and snow.
The company has already carried out trials in a number of towns across England, including Cambourne, Milton Keynes, Northampton and Bedford.
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