Lingnan University develops AI smart trolley that reduces pushing force by up to 90 per cent

With the rapid growth of Hong Kong’s logistics and delivery services, frontline movers and delivery workers have to cope with physically demanding labour over long periods of time. The United Nations University Hub on Humanitarian Innovation and Technology at Lingnan University (UNU Hub at Lingnan University), the first UNU Hub in Asia and jointly established by Lingnan University and the United Nations University (UNU), recently developed the “IntuCREW – Intelligent Power Assist System”, an AI-powered smart trolley solution that upgrades conventional handcarts into intelligent, power-assisted transport platforms. The system can reduce the pushing effort required to move loads of about 200 kilograms by up to 90 per cent, a force comparable to pushing a 20-kilogram load, significantly easing the physical strain on logistics and delivery workers.

The AI smart trolley integrates advanced Edge AI and haptic sensing technology, enabling the trolley to collect data and process calculations instantly without requiring an internet connection. By detecting the user’s pushing force and direction, the built-in electric drive acts as a mechanical power assist, automatically providing corresponding support. Users need only push, and the system immediately increases the force to move heavy loads forward.

Experimental testing has shown that the AI smart trolley can lessen pushing effort by up to 90 per cent, even on slopes, around corners, and in narrow passageways, while maintaining smooth and stable movement, largely overcoming the difficulties of transporting heavy goods. Built on the design concept of “the greater the pushing force, the greater the reduction in effort”, the system can further reduce the required pushing force by approximately 96.4 per cent when users push the trolley uphill on a 15-degree slope. In addition, the system is equipped with a safety braking mechanism that activates immediately when the handle is released, reducing the risk of the trolley surging forward or sliding backward.

Prof Albert Ko, Founding Director of the UNU Hub at Lingnan University, said that the concept behind the AI smart trolley derives from another Lingnan University innovation originally designed for conventional wheelchairs, the “CREW Intelligent Wheelchair Control System”. Through AI algorithm enhancement and increased load-bearing capability, the technology has evolved into the “IntuCREW – Intelligent Power Assist System” for industrial and logistics applications, representing a cross-sector breakthrough, and extending technology initially designed to assist elderly mobility and relieve caregivers’ physical burden to commercial and industrial use.