The invention replaced multi-purpose mailboxes
The creator of this innovation, the prestigious École Polytechnique in France, is graduated by engineer and inventor Šarūnas Barauskas, who has spent most of his life, but will not find a place there.
“I started a career in banking, finance in France, but I realized that this was not my place. Tadas to Lithuania, I tried to return to many different activities until I understood the local market, the people and got the right opportunity.
I saw post machines pop up. And when I started working for a telecommunications company that was developing a narrowband connection and looking for a way to adapt it, “the stars came together” so I got a good chance to start this new business, “he said.
It is interesting that ATMs are manufactured only in Lithuania – even metal is bent in Vilnius, electronics are manufactured in Kaunas, and Š.Barauskas most programmed the platform.
“There were already people who did similar things, they just needed to tie everyone together and adapt their activities to the overall project, and that’s how this new thing came about. I wouldn’t have done anything alone, “smiles the inventor.
Instead of mailboxes
According to Š.Barauskas, although these devices look like post offices, they are intended for apartment buildings and their residents. The idea for an engineer to build a home came from seeing mailboxes gradually become obsolete and more shipments replacing letters, the growth of which was further accelerated by the pandemic.
“The apartment can be used only by the residents of the apartment building where it stands. This makes it much easier to manage parcel flows and will almost always have space in them, unlike in corporate post offices. The main advantage is that the residents receive the parcel directly to their homes, ”said Š.Barauskas.
The first “ATM” ATM, which does not belong to any courier company, is a commercial building in Vilnius, Bajorai, Salaspilio St., because there are no centers nearby and therefore it is not worthwhile for companies to build traditional ATMs. “It simply came to our notice then.
When we built, a local resident wrote to me on Facebook asking what was available here and if it was available. I replied that yes, there are even instructions on it. But because it is an innovation, it is still very difficult for people to understand everything, ”the engineer smiles.
And the vending machines are working, Š.Barauskas, like this: when a courier calls the customer and asks when the customer will be at home so that the parcel can be delivered, the customer can answer: “I will not be at home, but I will download a code send me there. “
The resident then sends a single letter to the ATM number indicating the size of the compartment – choosing what size compartment the parcel will need: small, large or medium. When you send that letter, the system responds by sending a code that will open that section of the ATM.
When a courier leaves a parcel, the resident receives a confirmation from the system that the parcel has been left for him and his code to pick it up.
The goal of Š.Barauskas and his team developing this invention is for each apartment building to have such housing in Lithuania and Latvia. When there are quite a few of them, there would be a contract with courier companies that they can make regular bookings at ATMs without calling a person.
Then the customer would just receive that the shipment has arrived – no more waiting for a courier call and being at home. “We think about how students take food out on bicycles, so I can take out a shipment now,” says the inventor.
Such an ATM costs about 5 thousand. and is sold as a service, as it still needs to be supervised by a specialist. Installed in half an hour
Can be built anywhere
According to Š.Barauskas, the ATM needs very little energy. “Today’s post offices were usually invented 30 years ago and focused on the processes of parcel operators. They have built-in laser barcode scanners, screens that can do a lot of things, but now very smartphones, “internet in your pocket” and those things are no longer needed.
And when they are abandoned because they are redundant – people need to put and pick up a shipment and information about it on the server – that mail machine needs very little energy.
As a result, it no longer needs to be connected to the network, a battery is enough, which can open the door and communicate with the server up to 5 thousand. together. If the ATM is heavily loaded, the battery should be replaced every 2-3 months, ”he said.
Getting rid of the need to connect housing to the network greatly simplifies its operation and maintenance, the inventor assures, some certificates are no longer needed, so it is necessary to build almost anywhere – no more pouring foundations, digging a ditch to drain the wires.
“Almost all current post offices use a 3G connection, which requires a lot of electricity because it is designed to transmit a lot of information.
Since the simplification of the operation of the ATMs no longer requires the transmission of a lot of information, we have switched to the so-called narrowband communication technologies, which have been developed on the Internet of Things, realizing that this is a completely new niche, ”says Š.Barauskas.
Will adapt to libraries
Although the project launched in June 2019 before the pandemic had already entered – there are prototypes, coordinated projects with real estate developers, apartment administrators, but after the pandemic, all plans collapsed, says Š.Barauskas.
“During the pandemic, libraries first recovered, because they really needed some solution to give books to visitors in a contactless way. And in order to survive and develop this invention, we have started working with libraries, which is how the bookstore was created, ”he said.
Now ATMs can be found in libraries in Panevėžys, Palanga, Tauragė, Kalvarija, Vilnius near the Academy of Sciences, Mickevičius libraries, 11 of them will soon appear in the Central Library.
People use them willingly in libraries – especially during quarantine, the bookstore in Mickiewicz’s library was adapted as the main channel for publishing books. The books could be picked up even after library hours.
In addition, after the construction of bookshops, outdoor libraries implement one of the European Union directives: improve the accessibility of services for the disabled, Š.Barauskas assures.
Although it now receives inquiries from businesses that want to set up such pick-up points near their stores, the engineer believes it is necessary to focus on one activity first.
“Even book vending machines were such an unforeseen departure from the goal, because we thought of home vending machines first. But during the quarantine it was necessary to survive, to “ignite” the production processes, “he said.