Vespa scooter maker unveils cargo bot that carries your shopping home for you

A helpful new spherical robot could make struggling home with the weekly shop a thing of the past.

Created by Vespa scooter maker Piaggio, Gita – Italian for short journey – can carry up to 40lb of goods.

This means the user can keep their hands free while they walk, run pedal or skate around, leaving the ‘carbo robot’ to do the heavy lifting, learning and remembering new routes as it goes along.

Made by Piaggio Fast Forward (PFF) – a startup within the main company – the 26-inch tall robo-ball is designed to run continuously for eight hours.

According to its maker, it can travel at speeds of up to 22 miles per hour.

The contraption is “designed to match the full range of human mobility, with speeds that extend from a crawl to a sprint and a zero turning radius,” according to PFF.

Gita links up to sensors on a belt worn by its human master, enabling it to follow them around, mapping and remembering new routes along the way.

It is equipped with various scanners and cameras with an ultrasonic range-finding system enabling it to avoid obstacles.

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The built-in cargo bay requires a fingerprint scan and a security code to open it.

Gita will be tested in a series of trials in U.S. towns and college campuses over the next six months.

The round robot could eventually be used to help carry luggage or to assist workers with carrying around heavy tools and other industrial equipment.