7. The Ergonocracy transport and distribution Model
7.1 Community Delivery Box (CDB) network tunnels
Characterisation: Internet order deliveries take too much time
Currently, we observe the increasing use of the internet in the world of commerce, but only a small portion of all internet transactions are likely to be concluded immediately, i.e. after the consumer makes the payment for the order.
The only exceptions regarding deals that can be immediately concluded are certain intangible services like telecommunications services, software downloads, online betting, licensing sales, information provided by request, music, films, e-books and the provision of certain kinds of services.
Everything else that is ordered via internet - referring to all tangible assets and goods that exist in the physical world – requires delayed delivery, and in many cases, there is a long time gap.
This state of affairs, besides causing much inconvenience to consumers and loss of revenue to companies, is also a barrier to the development of electronic commerce over the internet.
In fact, in many cases clients opt to acquire goods from the traditional physical supplier after having elaborated their research over the Internet.
Those customers that opt to order via internet already know that they will have to wait for the ordered goods to be delivered. And when these goods are finally mailed to the residence, in case nobody was there to receive the order, this will imply an additional inconvenience, as the customer will have to pick up the delivery at his nearest post office in the next working day.
There is, therefore, a huge gap between a highly evolved and efficient information system and, on the other hand, a slow and archaic physical distribution system.
The previously detailed Ergonocracy Economical Model presents an organisation whose agents will have to be able to act in a highly streamlined and efficient manner. It is, therefore, important to have a distribution method that can facilitate and promote these purposes.
What is the aim of the “CDB tunnels” model?
Inevitably, a new, more efficient transport and distribution model needs to be created, which allows the immediate resolution of asset transactions involved in the process of internet commerce. If this is achieved new frontiers in the world of digital (and physical) communications will be establishing.
It is in this framework that it can be said that the aim of the Community Delivery Box (CDB) network tunnels - should be to allow the implementation of an immediate process for sending and receiving merchandise ordered via internet or sent between any individuals or companies for all types of transactions.
In this way, all kinds of goods could be delivered almost immediately after they had been ordered via internet and all transport details should be available for online monitoring by the client, including delivery status and delivery forecast.
So, the CDB system should become the final step in the electronic transaction cycle, and provide a new paradigm in the internet globalisation process. Barriers related to the limitations of the physical world should cease to exist, increasing the amount of digital purchases in the citizen’s day-to-day reality and allowing the following types of services:
o To be able to immediately receive all internet order packages and all mail deliveries.
o To send or receive gifts, samples, or messages to anyone. This will be useful either for companies or for personal clients.
In order to use LNS extra services, the client, will have to pay an extra monthly fee according to the cost of his defined package.
The CDB system could be open to other countries in order to make direct transactions with citizens and companies possible.
How would the CDB system work?
To better understand the CDB concept, let us think about the worldwide underground network for electrical, telecommunications, water and gas transportation that reaches almost all households. The CDB will simply be one more underground network of open tunnels. It is as simple as that.
This system of tunnels should be created to allow a local terminal at each residence and/or each company. In each home, this tunnel should end in the most suitable place: it may be in the kitchen, where the tunnel door could be shaped like an oven door, or it of having to pick up his package at the nearest post office the following business day.
The duration of these delays is not in keeping with the fast pace and working rhythm that citizens are used to. This information could be in the living room, in which case the tunnel door could resemble the glass door106 of a fireplace heating system.
Behind the door, there could be a cubic space, with standardised measurements, such as 40cmx40cmx40cm. The purpose of this free space should be to accept a moving mobile wagon container, called a "box-wagon", whenever the client receives a delivery, a package, an internet order, letters, groceries, etc.
It should be crucial for all measurements to be widely standardised in order to facilitate the supply and transport of goods and to allow the generalisation of the service, so that any client’s terminal could receive any box-wagon.
These small cubic box-wagons could circulate over rails along the numerous global network tunnels and each one of these devices could be equipped with a small quadrangular electric motor in its lower area, which should occupy as little space as possible. Its operation mode should be similar to that of electric trains, but it must have a set of axle wheels not only on the bottom of the vehicle, but also on the sides. This is to allow the vehicle to be able to climb upward in vertical107 tunnels, i.e. inside tunnels that will give access to buildings, called “last mile tunnels”. Also, these double rails should help to prevent derailments and allow each small wagon to achieve high speeds, especially around curves.
In fact, each of the homes should be connected to the rest of the world through a local tunnel. For instance, a store building should have a vertical last mile tunnel that will serve all residents, and should end in a local tunnel. This local tunnel will then terminate in the local neighbourhood storehouse (LNS), which should then be linked to the remaining CDB network.
Each LNS should consist of a Local Community shared warehouse equipped with community facilities and equipment that would provide their Local Community with a set of services, including a cluster of domestic services, which will be discussed in more detail later in this chapter.
The different tunnels will comply with a hierarchical framework, detailed in the following paragraphs:
All of this rail network construction will have to take into consideration the existence of lateral parking stations, which will have to be available every fifty meters or so, as temporary shelters for broken down box-wagons, where they could stay until help arrived to correct any mechanical problems.
The CDB control centre and the CDB expansion model
The coordination of this global transportation system will require high computer processing capabilities in order to ensure that all internet orders are filled as soon as possible. At the same time, it should guarantee that box-wagons will not crash into each other or go in the wrong direction. Each box-wagon will be equipped with a mobile device so that it could communicate with the CDB control centre. This mobile radio device should also serve to allow the CDB control centre to disclose the vehicle’s geographical position at any time.
There will be a single CDB control centre, managed by a Sub-Concessionary company chosen by the Concessionary Company holding the Public Function “6) Economic support”, and also by its Sub-Concessionary Company “Maintenance of Public structures”. This company will act as a regulator, defining construction standards, technical standards and also organising RFP’s for the construction of the various construction projects, coordinating this process with the various Local Communities.
In effect, the construction of the tunnels should be the responsibility of the following entities:
o Tunnels linking an LNS to a highway tunnel will have to be financed and run by an operator.
o Highway tunnels: These tunnels ought to be run by an operator.
o Backbone strategic tunnels: These tunnels should also be run by an operator.
This model will be a multiple competing operators (providers) business model. It should be similar to the business model that exists in sectors such as telecommunications and ISP’s (internet service providers) being defined by the regulator of basic functioning standards to ensure inter-operability.
There should be two types of operators:
Logically, CDB service should eventually replace the traditional postal and distribution service companies. Thus, it may make sense that, at the beginning, for this service to be operated by companies from these sectors.
All available links should be managed by a CDB control centre in such a way as to allow a consumer who ordered a certain item over the internet to be immediately informed of the time estimated for receiving the order. This delivery time will depend not only on the availability of items in stock, but also on the existence of long-distance tunnels between the residence and the company’s warehouse. Therefore, all of these systems should have to be integrated.
Standardised size deliveries and the usual delivery process
Once again, we recommend that product packaging be prepared and assembled in order to fit the CDB box’s standard 40cmx40cmx40cm measurements.
Of course, certain large, solid objects may never be able to be transported by this system. However, whenever possible, companies and factories that produce larger products could start to change the product’s assembly and packaging in order to allow the product to be divided into multiple CDB boxes so these parts could be dispatched in successive, sequential108 shipments to the recipient. In short, the package size need to be set to the box’s measurements.
Companies that received an order for an item, after checking that it was in stock, should immediately pack the item and place it in the first available CDB box-wagon109. Then the item should be shipped on its high-speed voyage directly to the client’s home CDB door, without any further delay. Finally, an audible bell will ring at the client’s home CDB door, indicating that he or she should open his CDB side door and pick up his delivery. Then, the box-wagon will move on to be available for the next client.
If the client was not at home, the wagon could simply leave the top container box with the item inside, and be used again for another shipment.
The biggest barrier to CDB implementation
In buildings that need to be built from scratch after the CDB era, all necessary CDB infrastructures should be planned and considered in the original project design phase so that each household could be supplied with a CDB box. In most cases, the only visible alteration will be to include a vertical column from the top to the bottom of the building connected to the “last mile tunnel”. In larger buildings there should be two columns, which could provide redundancy in case of failure, or come in handy in case of heavy traffic. All of these technical details will have to be properly studied and defined.
For the CDB system to be successful, the greatest barrier to its dissemination should be overcome, the fact that no existing buildings have been designed to incorporate this functionality.
To overcome this problem, as a transitional period solution, there should have to be shared local public CDB structures. These structures should serve a group of building residents, or all citizens that live in a group of nearby buildings.
To see how this could work, imagine a corridor full of lockers, such as the ones that exist at most bus or train stations. Each of these lockers should, in fact, be a CDB door box, which will allow each individual to pick up a delivery. To do so, a password will be required, which should have been previously provided to the individual.
The total number of CDB box doors should be much lower than the total number of residents, which may cause problems at the end of the workday in the unlikely case that everyone received a package. If this happened, people will need to wait their turn to use a locker.
This provisional system could work by way of different solutions:
If this isn’t possible, or if it is too expensive, the CDB public lockers will have to end in the street, preferably next to the building they are intended to serve.
If the sidewalks are too narrow, CDB public lockers will have to end in the nearest wide space available.
As mentioned before, these types of public CDBs will have to take safety into account and ensure that the recipient of the package is in fact the person to whom it has been shipped. This authentication could be done very simply, in two steps:
If the order was shipped to a private CDB system, the CDB control centre computer system should verify the way the CDB clients (family) configured their CDB:
If the family members had not previously configured a password requirement system, the CDB control centre will simply ship the order, and any member of the family should be able to pick it up.
If the family members had previously configured a password requirement system, the CDB control centre will have to issue and send a password to the designated person, so that only that member of the family could pick up the order.
If the order required authentication, the CDB control centre should issue an SMS or e-mail – whatever had been previously stipulated by the recipient - revealing the password and stating that the order at that moment was already at the client’s disposal. This should happen both for private CDBs and for public CDBs:
Revolutionary change in the consumer’s life - importance of the LNS
It is important to emphasise that the CDB system should be able to deliver any type of merchandise, not only internet item deliveries, but also any type of food, from a simple yogurt to a fully prepared gourmet dinner.
It should be the local neighbourhood storehouse (LNS) - the Local Community shared warehouse - that will supply the most frequently needed groceries and fresh produce, including bread, milk, yogurt and simple meals. Whenever the client wants to do his or her monthly extended shopping, he or she could also use the CDB service, though in this case the person will be better off placing the order through a hypermarket website since the LNS will not be prepared to furnish an extended line of products. The client should be allowed to indicate a delivery time in order to be at home to receive the CDB delivery.
This way, not only goods will be delivered, but also, and most importantly, this system should allow services to be provided. In fact, the CDB approach is for more than just simple delivery of goods. As each residence will be linked to its LNS, the residence should benefit from all existing community facilities, including storage supply space, microwave heating systems, industrial fridges, industrial laundry machines and industrial dishwashers, in order to meet all neighbourhood customer requests.
Thus, the CDB concept could bring about an added benefit, the possibility of doing away with all household kitchen equipment, as people may start using their LNS industrial equipment.
In fact, the traditional kitchen that for over a century imposed its presence may no longer be needed, as people could start putting their dirty dishes in the appropriate box sink inside their wagon-box. Then, these dirty dishes will be delivered to an industrial dishwashing centre at their LNS. When the dishes are returned, there could be two pre-configured options:
Other services could be provided. Imagine a client who wants to wash special, expensive tableware. In this case, the person should inform his LNS via the internet, and all the dishes should be carefully washed by hand, although this service may incur an extra fee per piece.
The same logic could be applied to a client’s dirty clothes. The person could simply have to place his or her dirty clothes inside a wagon-box and send them to the LNS. The process may take a week, especially if the client also requests that the clothes be ironed.
The family fridge concept may also become obsolete because clients could choose the option of a remote fridge service and have all of their ordered groceries and food stored in the LNS rented refrigerated space. Therefore, whenever they want to eat a yogurt, for instance, it will immediately be delivered.
For all these reasons, the CDB system and additional LNS services could potentially make all traditional kitchen equipment obsolete. However, this should only be an option, as every client will obviously have the right to choose whether he or she wants to own a traditional kitchen.
The same fate may be in store for stoves and microwave equipment, as food could easily be ordered online from any online restaurant supplier and delivered very quickly through the CDB system, kept hot in an enclosed special package. The sky is the limit and it is not difficult to imagine certain restaurants providing special services. For example, the client may send his favourite recipes, which should be strictly followed in order to achieve the intended final result, although this option may obviously come at a higher cost.
This cooking service may be provided by the LNS - it could be a business option made by the local Sub-Concessionary Company that manages it. The pricing and the services included in the flat rate fee could also be a commercial business decision.
Each LNS could be run by a Sub-Concessionary Company chosen in an RFP organised by the Concessionary Company that manages the Local Community. Each Local Community could have more than one LNS, depending on the size of the Local Community.
The advantages of this model
The advantages of this model are as follows:
7.2 Suggestion for a driverless autonomous vehicles model
Next, a suggestion for a model that is almost ready to be implemented, given today's state of the art. The following technology, apart from some fine-tuning required, will be presented and the framework is the following: each year, all over the world, thousands of people lose their lives in traffic accidents and many more are seriously injured.
This has led to an increasing trend in restrictions and obligations for drivers. This is in contrast to the spirit of Ergonocracy, as it sometimes seems that these citizens are treated as if they were criminals or second-class citizens. Among these measures included are police roadblocks, the prohibition of alcoholic beverages, the compulsory use of safety-belts, the prohibition of talking on mobile phones while driving, etc.
The reasons for these measures are understandable, as these actions are seen as well-meaning attempts to try to reduce the number of accidents, although the results achieved are negligible, proof that this problem is not being effectively handled.
Once again, there is a conflict of interest, as we have to accept that each person’s freedom must be curtailed following the principle that to exercise his or her right to freedom, an individual may end up sacrificing other people’s rights.
Of course it is understood that each person has the right to own his or her own vehicle and that it is a shame so many people have to pay a huge price due to other people’s mistakes or irresponsibility, but when observed in a wider context, one may ask: is this a reality that cannot be changed? Can’t anything be done to change this state of affairs?
The answer is: yes. Now, something can be done to change this, as we live in an era where technology is almost prepared to solve this problem.
The final aim
So, the final aim is to achieve a set of three simultaneous objectives:
How to solve this problem
As stated above, we are fortunate enough to live in an era where technology allows us to solve most problems, as long as there is the (political) will to turn words into actions. The solution to this problem should be in the use of automated self-driving cars (robotic vehicles or autonomous vehicles). An automated self-driving car is a vehicle equipped with an autopilot system, one that is capable of traveling from one point to another without the aid of a driver. Therefore the “driver” will instead be a passenger, as he or she will only have to indicate a pre-set destination and the vehicle itself will do the rest.
This is not science fiction, as half a dozen prototype projects have already been successfully carried out around the world in very different sectors, including the military and transport sectors. However, the final goal of safe door-to-door transportation in arbitrary environments has not yet been achieved111.
Thus, fully automated driving is not yet available, although some projects are already very close to achieving this goal.
More investment is needed in these projects in order to obtain the intended final result. For this to happen, there should have to emerge the necessary political will. Of course, Proponents of Ergonocracy should be willing to support and finance these types of projects.
This chapter deals with the belief that this goal is possible to achieve in the short or medium term. The purpose of this chapter is not to discuss technical scenarios, but essentially to define the overall model and general approach once the technical part is resolved. Therefore, the question focuses on “what?” instead of “how?”
This way, it should be possible to reduce the number of accidents and all citizens’ rights should be respected, including those of drivers. Also, even people who don't have a driver's license, may be able to use these automated cars.
Another advantage will b