Video: Inside the Technology of an Amazon Warehouse
A Kiva robot drive unit is seen, foreground, before it moves under a stack of merchandise pods, seen on a tour of one of Amazon's newest distribution centers in Tracy, Calif. Brandon Bailey/AP
This 360-degree video shows off the company's robotic systems.
Ever wonder what happens in the time between when you order that Amazon package and it arrives on your doorstep two days later?
Amazon's fulfillment center in Tracy, California, gets the job done with a mix of automated technology and human efforts. On one of the busiest shopping days of the year, the center employs over 3,000 people.
The process begins with Kiva robots moving shelves filled with items across the floor of the warehouse while human workers pick out the items from these mobile shelves, checking inventories on screens as they go.
Once an order is gathered and ready, it travels through a system of conveyor belts to get to a station, where it is then packed up for shipment. Finally, another machine scans a barcode on the box to ensure the correct address is printed on the package label and then it is sent out into the mail.
To see the process, click around in the 360-degree video below from CNET: