ATLANTA-Skywire Corp. and Federal Express Corp. have signed a multiyear agreement to provide FedEx with thousands of SmartBoxes.
The SmartBox continually monitors the status of its contents and lets the company know when it needs to be visited via wireless networks, said Skywire. FedEx plans to put the drop boxes in place throughout the United States during the next five years.
The SmartBox is equipped with a system of low-profile sensors and an advanced wireless modem, said Skywire. The system automatically senses when a package is placed in a drop box, when the box is full and each time it is opened and closed by a courier. Skywire said the information is transmitted over Skywire’s wireless network, the private AlarmNet network, directly to the FedEx dispatch station serving that area. In the future, data will be transmitted using a variety of data networks, including RAM Mobile Data USA L.P.’s system and Cellular Digital Packet Data systems. The information is processed by SmartBox software through a map-based geographic database that associates the information from each drop box to its location on a digital map. Additionally, outdoor SmartBoxes are powered by solar panels so that their locations are dictated by customer need rather than available power, said Skywire.
The first SmartBoxes were rolled out during a trial conducted last fall in Memphis, said the company. Hundreds of Atlanta-area boxes were equipped in time for the Olympic games.
