The Ultimate Fullservice

Husky Corporation and Fuelmatics have developed a robotic pump to fill gas tanks.

October 30, 2013

CALGARY, Alberta – The future of fuel pumping might be coming to a service station sooner than you think. The automatic fueling system that pumps gas for you has made its primetime debut on Fox News.

Sweden’s Fuelmatics teamed up with Canada’s Husky Corporation to develop a gasoline pump run by a robot, Fox News reports. The robotic pump utilizes cameras to find the fuel door, using a suction cup to pry it open. Then the camera helps the robotic “arm” to place the nozzle into the tank. A magnetic reed switch “reads” a capless fuel filler inside the gas tank to figure out when to stop filling up.

The pump maneuvers into place as soon as the driver enters payment data. While similar devices have undergone testing in the past, today the technology has finally caught up with reality. Husky estimates that within half a year, the robotic gas pump will be at a commercial operation, but no firm debut date has been set.

To use the system, customers have to purchase the capless fuel filler for around $5. Tests indicate that the automatic fueling system should work with 90% to 95% of the vehicles currently on the road. Cars with fuel doors not on the side, such as behind the license plate or close to horizontal placement on luxury cars such as the Lamborghini Aventador, will be out of luck.

No word on whether the robot will wash windshields or check oil levels, though. That automatic service might still be in the future.

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