Takeaway meals and coffees could soon be sent to your home by self-driving vehicles in a shift that may spell the death of the delivery driver.
Ford is trialling a delivery service in Miami using vans fitted with touchpad-activated storage lockers.
Users are guided to the right locker via lights and speakers on the vehicle and access their food using a special code, meaning there is no need to collect it from a driver.
Although the vans are currently driven by humans, Ford said the current trial is a key step toward its goal of deploying a fully self-driving delivery service by 2021.
Takeaway meals and coffees could soon be sent to your home by self-driving vehicles in a shift that may spell the death of the delivery driver. Automaker Ford is trialling a food and drinks delivery service in Miami using vans fitted with touchpad-activated storage lockers (pictured)
‘Ultimately, we are testing how businesses and consumers interact with a self-driving vehicle,’ Ford wrote in a blog post.
‘The focus of our research is on the first and last mile of the delivery experience. We are developing our self-driving technology in separate test vehicles.’
The automaker has paired up with Deliveroo-style food courier service Postmates as part of the trial, which boasts more than 70 participating businesses.
These include restaurants and hardware stores around Florida’s Miami and Miami Beach areas.
Residents ordering something through the Postmates app may see an option to have it delivered by a Ford deployment vehicle.
When the vehicle arrives, users receive a text message letting them know.
![Users are guided to the right locker via lights and speakers on the vehicle and access their food using a special code, meaning there is no need to collect it from a driver](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/14/4D282DA700000578-5834853-image-a-32_1528810922492.jpg)
Users are guided to the right locker via lights and speakers on the vehicle and access their food using a special code, meaning there is no need to collect it from a driver
They then head outside and type in a four-digit code into a touchpad on the van that grants access to compartments at either the side or front of the vehicle.
Voice instructions blurted from a small speaker tell recipients how to access their package, while a set of lights helps guide them to the right locker.
Each van is equipped with a variety of locker sizes to accommodate anything from a small meal to a large piece of hardware. Some even come with coffee cup holders.
![While the vans are currently driven by humans, Ford said the current trial is a key step toward its goal of deploying a fully self-driving delivery service by 2021](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/14/4D2831FD00000578-5834853-image-a-34_1528810966308.jpg)
While the vans are currently driven by humans, Ford said the current trial is a key step toward its goal of deploying a fully self-driving delivery service by 2021
![The automaker has paired up with Deliveroo-style food courier service Postmates as part of the trial, which boasts more than 70 participating businesses. Employees load your delivery into a car using a special code (pictured)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/14/4D28320C00000578-5834853-image-a-40_1528811033994.jpg)
The automaker has paired up with Deliveroo-style food courier service Postmates as part of the trial, which boasts more than 70 participating businesses. Employees load your delivery into a car using a special code (pictured)
The cars are designed to look fully autonomous, but a fully-trained driver is behind the wheel at all times.
Thanks to the locker system users will never need to speak to the driver, as part of Ford’s efforts to see how customers interact with ‘autonomous’ delivery services.
The company has already tested this faux self-driving service once, this time in Michigan, as part of a pizza delivery partnership with Dominos earlier this year.
During the pilot, Ford found ‘customers enjoyed the voice instructions that played over speakers mounted on the outside of the vehicle to explain how to get their pizza out of the self-driving vehicle upon arrival at their house’, the firm said.
![The cars are designed to look fully autonomous, but a fully trained driver is behind the wheel at all times. Thanks to the locker system users will never need to speak to the driver, as part of Ford's efforts to see how customers interact with 'autonomous' delivery services](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/14/4D28320500000578-5834853-image-a-47_1528811218643.jpg)
The cars are designed to look fully autonomous, but a fully trained driver is behind the wheel at all times. Thanks to the locker system users will never need to speak to the driver, as part of Ford’s efforts to see how customers interact with ‘autonomous’ delivery services
![Residents ordering something through the Postmates app may see an option to have it delivered by a Ford deployment vehicle. When the vehicle arrives, users receive a text message letting them know (pictured)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/15/4D282BED00000578-5834853-Residents_ordering_something_through_the_Postmates_app_may_see_a-a-1_1528813924355.jpg)
Residents ordering something through the Postmates app may see an option to have it delivered by a Ford deployment vehicle. When the vehicle arrives, users receive a text message letting them know (pictured)
The automaker has partnerships with Dominos and ride-hailing service Lyft as well as its joint venture with Postmates in Miami.
The city has become a hot-bed for Ford’s autonomous trials since it shifted its self-driving operations to the city in February.
Ford won’t say how many vehicles it has on the road in Miami-Dade, but claims it will be Ford’s largest test bed for autonomous vehicles by 2019.
Self-driving start-up and Ford partner Argo AI already has a fleet of cars in the area making the highly detailed maps that are necessary for self-driving services.
![Upon arrival of the van, users head outside and type in a four-digit code into a touchpad on its side that grants access to package compartments](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/15/4D282BE900000578-5834853-Upon_arrival_of_the_van_users_head_outside_and_type_in_a_four_di-a-2_1528813924369.jpg)
Upon arrival of the van, users head outside and type in a four-digit code into a touchpad on its side that grants access to package compartments
![Each van is equipped with a number of different sized lockers to accommodate anything from a small meal to a large piece of hardware. Some even come with coffee cup holders](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/12/14/4D28321D00000578-5834853-image-a-46_1528811106561.jpg)
Each van is equipped with a number of different sized lockers to accommodate anything from a small meal to a large piece of hardware. Some even come with coffee cup holders
Ford also plans to establish its first-ever autonomous vehicle terminal in Miami, where it will learn how to service and deploy its test fleet.
More services will likely be introduced as the partnership goes on, including Chariot, an app-based shuttle service owned by Ford.
It’s all part of Ford’s effort to find viable business models for fully autonomous vehicles and get them on the road by 2021.
‘This is, I think, the future of any automotive company or mobility company. If a majority of the world’s population is going to be living in cities, we need to understand how to move those people around,’ John Kwant, Ford’s vice president of city solutions, who inked the deal with Miami-Dade, said in February.
![Ford is making Miami-Dade County its new test bed for self-driving vehicles. The automaker and its partners - Domino's Pizza, ride-hailing company Lyft and delivery company Postmates - are starting pilot programs to see how consumers react to autonomous vehicles](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1/2018/02/27/16/wire-2393754-1519748946-945_634x357.jpg)
Ford is making Miami-Dade County its new test bed for self-driving vehicles. The automaker and its partners – Domino’s Pizza, ride-hailing company Lyft and delivery company Postmates – are starting pilot programs to see how consumers react to autonomous vehicles
![Ford will establish its first-ever autonomous vehicle terminal in Miami, where it will learn how to service and deploy its test fleet. File photo](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1/2018/02/27/16/wire-2393756-1519748948-552_634x359.jpg)
Ford will establish its first-ever autonomous vehicle terminal in Miami, where it will learn how to service and deploy its test fleet. File photo