RealSense Depth Cameras Enable Cartken’s Autonomous Robots in Industrial Logistics and Last-Mile Delivery
The challenge
Autonomous robots face a complex set of perception challenges when moving between indoor and outdoor environments. To operate safely in this range of conditions, Cartken needed a sensing solution that could withstand a wide range of environments while providing precise, real-time perception.
The solution
To enable reliable operation in outdoor and industrial environments, Cartken’s approach combines specifically designed camera models, robust packaging and advanced AI integration.
The results
With RealSense at its core, Cartken has expanded from last-mile delivery to industrial automation at scale.
Spotlight on Cartken
Cartken is an AI-powered robotics company building autonomous robots for industrial logistics and last-mile delivery. From its earliest days, Cartken built its autonomy stack on RealSense depth cameras.
Robots That Seamlessly Navigate Complex
Environments
Autonomous robots face a complex set of perception challenges when moving between indoor and outdoor environments. Sidewalks are uneven. Ramps and curbs require three-dimensional awareness. Weather conditions — from rain to snow to desert heat — can interfere with sensors. And in industrial facilities, robots must navigate unpredictable, high traffic environments while maintaining near-perfect reliability.
Outdoor Readiness and Ruggedization
RealSense depth cameras are the core of Cartken’s vision-based navigation system. Its autonomous robots utilize RealSense cameras D455 and D456, known for their outdoor performance and sturdy enclosures. The cameras include a built-in laser safety mechanism that prevents overheating or freezing damage by shutting off the laser outside safe ranges.
AI and Sensor Fusion
RealSense depth imagery feeds into Cartken’s advanced visual SLAM system, which fuses monocular and stereo features with semantic recognition to create robust, real-time 3D maps. AI-powered navigation algorithms use this data for obstacle avoidance and safe path planning in unpredictable environments.
Reliability at Scale, in Any Environment
Cartken continues to innovate with RealSense as it scales into heavier industrial robots, including forklifts and pallet trucks. The team is especially excited about RealSense’s forthcoming
safety-certified cameras, slated for 2026, which will be critical for operating larger payloads in industrial settings.
“RealSense isn’t just a component in our robots, it’s the foundation of our autonomy. We built everything around it because it was the best, and it still is. It’s what makes Cartken robots work, indoors, outdoors, at scale, around the world.”
— Jake Stelman,
Co-Founder and VP of Hardware, Cartken