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Amazon ( AMZN ) unveils advanced eyeglasses for delivery workers

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Robotic arm Blue Jay aims to reduce injury rates

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AI system to manage warehouse operations, reduce hiring

needs

By Greg Bensinger

MILPITAS, California, Oct 22 (Reuters) - In its

relentless drive to bring everyday items to customers faster,

Amazon ( AMZN ) has shifted expectations from two-day delivery to

same-day and even within an hour. Now, with robots, artificial

intelligence and even eyewear, it is working to pare seconds off

each delivery.

On Wednesday, Seattle-based Amazon ( AMZN ) showed off advanced

eyeglasses for delivery workers for the first time publicly

after Reuters exclusively reported the company was developing

them last year. Known internally as Amelia, the glasses have a

small screen that gives turn-by-turn directions, scans package

codes and takes photos for proof of delivery.

The glasses could replace the bulky handheld Global

Positioning System devices drivers use today and give helpful

navigation tips like which way to turn when leaving an apartment

elevator or how to avoid an aggressive dog at a customer's home.

The glasses rely on a paired controller placed in a driver's

vest and Amazon ( AMZN ) solved the challenge of battery life by having

swappable battery packs, the company said.

The announcements made at Amazon's ( AMZN ) annual "Delivering the

Future" logistics event are part of the firm's particular focus

on the "last 100 yards," which contribute to the expensive final

steps in a delivery's journey to customers. Last year, it

unveiled a delivery van scanner to direct drivers to packages

for each stop by shining a green spotlight on them, shaving

seconds off time usually spent reading labels. And in June, it

showed reporters new digital maps that gave far more detail

about neighborhoods, building shapes and obstacles, than, say,

Google Maps.

Also on Wednesday, the online retailer showed off a robotic

arm that it says can work in concert with warehouse employees

picking items off shelves and sorting them for faster and more

accurate order fulfillment. Amazon ( AMZN ) claimed the robot, dubbed

Blue Jay, could reduce injury rates and work in a smaller space

than equivalent robots that previously required three separate

stations.

The robot is in use already at a warehouse in South

Carolina, Amazon ( AMZN ) said, and it plans to roll it out to more

facilities in the coming months, particularly what are known as

sub-same-day sites focused on delivery in a few hours or less.

Additionally, Amazon ( AMZN ) said it plans to deploy an artificial

intelligence system at warehouses, starting at one in Tennessee,

that can help manage operations at a high level, to prevent

gridlock and other challenges that can slow operations. It was

not immediately clear how Amazon ( AMZN ) planned to institute the

software or who would have access to it.

The company's expansion of warehouse robots is expected

to reduce its U.S. hiring by 160,000 workers over the next two

years, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. Amazon ( AMZN ) said it

planned to hire 250,000 temporary workers for the holiday

season.