World's first self-driving container straddle carrier debuts in Shanghai

A Chinese-made self-driving container straddle carrier, said to be the first of its kind in the world, is now undergoing testing at a port in Shanghai, reports China Central Television.

A container straddle carrier is a freight carrying vehicle that carries its load underneath. It's used mostly in terminal ports for stacking and moving ISO standard containers.

A Chinese-made self-driving container straddle carrier being tested at a port in Shanghai, January 14, 2018. [Photo: jfdaily.com]

The self-driving container straddle carrier being tested in Shanghai has been jointly developed by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry and Westwell Lab.

Technician Zhang Bo says the self-driving straddle carrier is equipped with six cameras and millimeter-wave radar which act as the "eyes" of the machine.

Photo of the internal view of a Chinese-produced self-driving container straddle carrier at a port in Shanghai, January 14, 2018. [Photo: jfdaily.com]

"The automated straddle carrier is safer, and can operate 24 hours each day, and increases the operation efficiency of ports by 50 percent," said Zhang.

A Chinese-made self-driving container straddle carrier undergoes testing at a port in Shanghai, January 14, 2018. [Photo: jfdaily.com]

Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry hopes to have the new self-driving straddle carrier in operation by June. The company hopes to have a full fleet operational by the end of this year.