Just a few weeks ago, Florida native and comedian Lil Duval taught us to never chase the bag but to let the bag chase you, literally. He went viral on social media after showing the world his auto-follow suitcase that made it around his hotel (but didn’t make it down the stairs.)
Traveling through the airport with your heavy and/or bulky luggage can be a tad bit troublesome, but self-driving suitcases are the latest trend working to upgrade your airport experience.
It’s no longer enough to have stylish or designer luggage with brands like ForwardX, Away, Bluesmart and more now at the head of innovative luggage. Aside from a GPS tracker, these suitcases have other cool features like creative designs and built-in USB chargers.
Travelmate’s Robotics suitcase is controlled through a mobile app and rolls at your same walking pace.
Cowarobot’s carry-on luggage syncs to a wearable bracelet in order to follow you around.
Lil Duval was followed around his hotel by one of the world’s smartest suitcases. The ForwardX’s Ovis will follow by your side or from behind using a real-time GPS tracker and artificial network algorithms.
Traveling at a speed of six miles per hour, the suitcase comes with a built-in TSA-approved digital lock the unlocks itself when near security. It also holds enough power to last through two round trip flights, not sure if that counts for international flights.
No more hassling with airlines about where your bag is and whether or not it made it on your flight. Computer vision technology is used to allow the ForwardX suitcase to navigate around people and objects, according to a press release. Don’t worry, if you go too far away, you can sound the anti-lost alarm to find it.
It’s worth noting that in 2018, smart bags were banned from airlines due to being powered by lithium batteries. As a result of having this power supply, airlines felt they posed a risk of catching fire or possible explosion. Fortunately, if your bag comes with a removable battery, taking the battery out will allow you to travel with it. The battery will also have to remain out of the suitcase throughout the flight. However, once you’ve landed safely, you can reinstall your battery and stroll as usual.
