增强现实如何破坏供应链

我们吃的、穿的、买的每一件商品，从蔓越莓到曲轴，几乎都要经过供应链。在供应链当中协助管理这些商品的公司，为美国贡献的GDP高达7.5%。

由于商品运输的高成本，公司在完善服务的同时，也一直在想方设法节约成本。而新兴技术可能就是他们要找的答案。

随着人工智能技术的创新和区块链这种分布式总分类账技术的发展，增强现实将会改变供应链管理软件。增强现实将信息投射到真实世界（就像是橄榄球比赛直播时，用来代表首攻码标牌位置的黄线），可以帮助卡车司机、仓库工人和管理者跟踪商品从离开工厂到送达用户家门的全部行程。

通过包装上的传感器，公司管理人员能够对公司产品的销售情况进行高级分析。一家工厂可以根据数千家零售店当天的销量，实时增加或削减产量。研究数字供应链的数据科学家可以从产品中生成新的见解，不论商品正在卡车配送途中，还是已经摆上了经销商的仓库货架。如果销量喜人，达到预期，制造商可以削减产量，向有需求的地区重新分配供货，从而达到减少损失的目的。

目前已有超过10亿部支持增强现实的智能手机和平板电脑被投入使用，所以公司不必等待低成本的增强现实眼镜，现在就可以开始享受增强现实带来的好处。增强现实将通过下面五种方式，将供应链转变为服务全球商品配送的灵活工具：

1）分拣包装服务

仓库通过增强现实技术，更高效地定位商品，装入外送包装盒中。运营“分拣包装”服务成本最高的部分是培训新员工如何在庞大的仓库内找到他们要找的商品。增强现实眼镜可以在仓库地面绘出一条虚拟的路线，简化查找和培训过程。在节日季的高峰时间，临时工需要迅速上手。增强现实可以在眼镜上向新员工持续反馈他们的表现和不足，从而缩短学习曲线。分拣和包装变得更像是吃豆人游戏，工人必须在时间耗尽之前收集正确的物品。对增强现实分拣包装系统的实地测试，将失误率减少了40%。有些增强现实眼镜甚至可以提供货架上的所有包裹的图形叠置，从而大幅缩短了寻找和识别待分拣商品的时间。包装完成后，增强现实软件可以立即向快递运营商提供装卸指示和预计发运时间。

2）协同机器人

机器人是终极的人类技能增进。工人只需要舒服地坐在办公桌前，带着增强现实眼镜，就能透过机器人看到仓库内的情况。现在的增强现实眼镜可以在仓库内绘制机器人的行走路线，利用机器人的力量举起和移动沉重的货物。危险的或重复性的任务，例如卡车装车等，都可以分配给机器人，人类可以指导它们如何最有效地装载货物，从而实现最大负载。此外，物流机器人可以扫描每件商品的破损情况，核对重量，遵守任何包裹发运指示。通过将机器人连接到管理人员，如果在卡车离开仓库之前任何商品缺货，可以自动提醒客户。

3）维护

防患于未然是成本效率最高的维护方式。现在许多飞机在地面时，会通过Wi-Fi传输飞机发动机使用数据，增强现实则可以协助维护人员将发动机数据与航空电子系统内其他类似飞机的历史记录进行对比，从而减少发动机停机时间。然后，这些算法会在问题可能出现之前建议进行维护。对于在地面的大部分时间都停泊在较远位置的飞机，增强现实也可以帮助航空公司中心更有经验的维护团队，了解本地技术人员正在处理的问题，及时提供现场支持。

4）最后一英里配送

在物流过程中，最后一英里配送的成本最高。而增强现实可将最后一英里配送的时间缩短近一半，从而节约成本。DHL的报告显示，货车司机每天40%至60%的时间在车厢内查找接下来要配送的正确包裹。而有增强现实对每一件包裹进行识别、标记、排序和定位，司机不需要费脑筋记住早上如何装车。将人工智能与增强现实相结合，还可以帮助司机准确找到收件人的家或建筑大门。这些系统会记录每一次配送，使新司机可以借鉴老司机的经验。在不久的将来，每位司机遇到的每一栋建筑都将有一个图形叠置。

5）采购

区块链的分布式总分类账功能结合增强现实，可确保采购过程的透明度和可追踪性。当客户无法确信一件商品的原产地或真伪时，整个供应链就会崩溃。每年有价值数十亿美元的假药被配送给患者，有成千上万人死于服用假药。从制造商到最终用户，利用增强现实识别和跟踪每一批货物，可以帮助解决这个致命的问题。在区块链上记录每一次所有权转移，也可帮助跟踪鱼类的原产地或农产品的来源。

大数据已成为全世界供应链产品分配决策的驱动因素。增强现实将大幅提高数据分析和做出响应的速度。增强现实为供应链带来的洞察力，可用于驱动以自动驾驶汽车和配送无人机为特色的下一代供应链。（财富中文网）

本文作者杰伊·萨米特是德勤（Deloitte）数字现实业务的独立副总裁，并著有畅销书《突破自己》（Disrupt You!）

译者：刘进龙/汪皓

Nearly everything we eat, wear and buy – from cranberries to crankshafts – moves through a supply chain. And businesses that help shepherd all those products along that chain account for an astounding 7.5% of U.S. GDP.

Because of the high costs of moving goods from point A to point B, corporations are always on the lookout to save money in addition to improving service. Emerging technology may be an answer.

Thanks to innovations in artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology known as blockchain, augmented reality is poised to transform the software used to manage supply chains. Augmented reality, which overlays information onto the real world (think of that yellow line shown during televised football games to indicate the location of the first down marker) will now help truck drivers, warehouse workers, and management keep track of products from the second they leave the factory until the moment they arrive at your door.

Using sensors on packaging, company managers will be able to perform advanced analysis of how a company’s products are doing. In real-time, a factory can increase or decrease production based on that day’s sales at thousands of retail locations. Data scientists working on the digital supply chain can generate new insights from their products regardless of whether the shipment is sitting in the back of a delivery truck or on a distributor’s warehouse shelf. If sales are as robust as forecast, manufacturers can cut losses by making fewer products and redistributing items to where the demand is.

With over one billion AR-enabled smartphones and tablets already in use, companies don’t have to wait for low-cost augmented reality glasses to start reaping the benefits of augmented reality. Here are five ways that AR is transforming the supply chain into a nimble tool for global distribution:

1) Pick-and-Pack Services

Augmented reality is being used in warehouses to more efficiently locate products and pack them in outgoing boxes. One of the costliest parts of running a “pick and pack” service is training new workers to navigate a large warehouse and find the one product they are searching for. AR glasses can paint an imaginary line on the warehouse floor to simplify the searching and training. During the peak holiday season, temporary workers need to be on-boarded quickly. AR shortens the learning curve by providing new hires with constant feedback on their glasses about how they are doing and what can be improved. Picking and packing becomes more like a game of Pac-Man, in which workers must gather the correct items before time runs out. Field tests of AR pick-and-pack systems have reduced errors by as much as 40%. Some AR glasses can even be used to provide graphic overlays of packages on shelves, thereby minimizing the time needed to find and identify items to be picked. Once packed, the AR software can instantly provide carriers with handling instructions and anticipated shipping times.

2) Collaborative Robotics

Robots are the ultimate human augmentation. Workers sitting comfortably at their desks can wear AR glasses that let them see what a robot in the warehouse sees. AR glasses can now chart the paths of robots through warehouses and use their strength to lift and move heavy cargo. Dangerous or repetitive tasks, such as loading a truck, can be delegated to robots that operate with human guidance when it comes to how to best load the items to achieve the maximum load. Additionally, logistics robots are able to scan each product for damage, check its weight, and abide by any package shipping instructions. By connecting robots with managers, customers can be automatically alerted if any products that aren’t available before the truck even leaves the warehouse.

3) Maintenance

Fixing a problem before it happens is the most cost-effective form of maintenance. With many aircraft engines now transmitting usage data via Wi-Fi when they are on the ground, augmented reality is assisting maintenance crews in reducing engine downtime by comparing engine data with the past history of other similar aircraft with avionics systems. These algorithms then suggest maintenance before a problem is likely to occur. For planes that spend most of their ground time at distant locations, AR can also enable more experienced maintenance teams at the airline’s hub to see what local technicians are dealing with and provide timely live support.

4) Last Mile Delivery

In logistics, the last-mile of delivery to customers is the most expensive. AR can save money by cutting the time spent on last-mile delivery nearly in half. According to a DHL report, drivers spend 40% to 60% of their day searching inside their own truck for the correct boxes to deliver next. Instead of having to remember how their truck was loaded that morning, augmented reality is used to identify, tag, sequence, and locate every parcel. Combined with artificial intelligence, AR glasses can also navigate the driver to the proper door or building gate for delivery. These systems will record each and every delivery so that new drivers will benefit from past driver experiences. In the near future, every driver will be given a graphic overlay of each building they encounter.

5) Procurement

The distributed ledger capability of blockchain is being combined with augmented reality to bring transparency and traceability to procurement. The entire supply chain falls apart when customers can’t be assured of a product’s origin or authenticity. Each year, billions of dollars’ worth of counterfeit pharmaceuticals are distributed to patients, and tens of thousands are dying. Using AR to identify and track each shipment from manufacturer to end user is a way to help solve this deadly problem. Recording each transfer of ownership on a blockchain can also assist in tracing the origin of fish or the source of harvested crops.

Big data drives the decision making behind the world’s distribution of products throughout the supply chain. Augmented reality is now poised to exponentially increase the speed at which data can be analyzed and acted on. The insights augmented reality bring to the supply chain can be used to power the next generation of the supply chain, which will feature autonomous vehicles and delivery drones.

Jay Samit is independent vice chairman of Deloitte’s Digital Reality practice and author of the bestselling book “Disrupt You!”