Construction equipment manufacturer Cat has showcased the capability of its autonomous machines in a video featuring footballer DaMarcus Beasley.
Cat pitted Beasley against self-driving machines, including a massive 794 dumper truck, on a Cat-themed obstacle course.
While Beasley, the only US man to appear in four World Cups, weaves his way through smaller obstacles, the Cat 794 steers its way past smaller Cat machines, all without a driver in the cab.
Increased productivity
Cat said it wanted to highlight how easily autonomous and semi-autonomous machines could manoeuvre.
Autonomous Cat trucks already operate in the mining industry in Australia, South America and North America.
The manufacturer claims that a fleet of 70 Cat autonomous trucks in Australia has achieved productivity increases of 30% at reduced costs.
The current Cat autonomous truck fleet is primarily composed of Cat 793F trucks, which carry a 227-tonne payload. But the range of truck models is expanding: Caterpillar has developed and is now deploying autonomous Cat 797F (363-tonne payload) and Cat 789D (181-tonne payload) trucks.
