January 5, 2024
Phantom Auto's remotely operated clamp truck, outfitted with Rightline Smart Clamps.
Refrigerators and dishwashers. Cases of wine. Piles of truck tires. Loose boxes strewn about a trailer floor.
Irregularly-sized parcels and non-palletized loads present unique challenges for material handlers.
Unlike standard loads, oddly shaped and oversized parcels require more specialized tools to be safely lifted, moved, and racked. To maximize throughput efficiency, non-palletized parcels need to be bundled and moved in bulk.
Enter Phantom Auto’s remotely operated clamp truck, outfitted with the world’s most advanced forklift attachment: the Rightline Smart Clamp. Phantom has partnered with Rightline to solve for clamping use cases at our customers’ sites by integrating Rightline's revolutionary Smart Clamp attachment with our groundbreaking, award-winning remotely operated forklifts.
In a logistics industry that’s invested billions of dollars in innovations over the past decades, operations requiring clamps have largely been left behind. Clamping is technically challenging, traditionally relying on human feel and touch. Rightline’s advanced pressure-sensing Smart Clamps are changing that, providing a unique productivity tool for carton handling.
Smart clamps are further expanding the utility provided by Phantom’s remote operators, who are actively driving forklifts remotely in production environments from up to thousands of miles away.
The Advantages of Smart Clamps in Material Handling
Smart Clamps are self-contained, solid steel attachments that use electronic valving to automatically sense and control the grip of the clamp arms. They feature an onboard electronic system that detects contact with a load, governs the pressure exerted by the arms, and regulates the clamp force to safeguard parcels.
Smart clamps ensure firm yet delicate holds on fragile cartons, providing secure grips for challenging loads. They enhance operator productivity while reducing the risk of damage to goods.
Phantom integrates our powerful remote operation platform with Rightline’s precise, versatile attachments to extend a distributed workforce for complex material moves.
Equipped with five programmable, color-coded pressure bands displaying clamp force levels, Smart Clamps use microprocessor-managed hydraulics that sense parcel engagement and regulate clamping force.
Phantom can configure the pressure bands for specific applications, allowing remote operators to automatically select the pressure required to securely transport delicate and bulky objects that are commonly encountered in material handling.
Gone are the days when onsite forklift operators would have to feather clamps manually, relying on touch to avoid crushing fragile items. Thanks to Rightline’s hydraulic technology, Smart Clamps can be closed at full speed by Phantom’s remote operators using the color-coded displays to confirm optimum clamp force has been achieved.
Five Ways Smart Clamps Help Customers
By providing a safe, versatile solution for handling irregular loads, Smart Clamps are expanding the capabilities of Phantom Auto's remotely operated forklifts, which are streamlining operations in warehouses and distribution centers globally.
Among the use cases Smart Clamp-enabled remotely operated forklifts are solving at customer sites today:
- Secure lifting and racking of fragile oversized loads, like appliances such as dishwashers and flat-screen TVs
- Cold storage solutions for food product distributors, who need to efficiently move perishable products through refrigerated environments that pose difficult working conditions for on-site operators
- Safe bundling and efficient unloading of non-palletized boxes on inbound or outbound trailers
- Efficient knifing, or redistributing loose parcels onto pallets destined for putaway in different areas of a warehouse
- Cross-dock transportation of irregularly shaped parcels, to help customers meet their daily throughput deliverable goals
See Smart Clamps in Action at MODEX
Phantom’s customers are already reaping the benefits of Smart Clamps in production environments, directly receiving productivity gains through the transformative power of these paired technologies.
But don't just take our word for it! See the PhantomLift counterbalance outfitted with Rightline Smart Clamps live in action at Rightline’s Booth B2004 during MODEX 2024 in Atlanta March 11-14, 2024. Experience the future of material handling firsthand and discover how Phantom Auto forklifts and Rightline Smart Clamps can elevate your operations today.
Explore the Possibilities
Ready to revolutionize your forklift operations? Schedule a demo with one of Phantom's experts and unlock the full potential of smart clamp-enabled remotely operated forklifts.
About Phantom Auto
Phantom Auto specializes in remote operation of logistics vehicles. Phantom’s human-centric interoperable solutions enable people to remotely supervise, assist, and drive vehicle fleets from up to thousands of miles away – including forklifts, robots, trucks, and more.
By decoupling labor from location, the company increases labor access and retention, safety, productivity, and resilience across the supply chain. With Phantom, top-tier customers in the logistics sector can tap into drivers from anywhere—connecting people who want to work with jobs that need to be filled.
With Phantom, supply chain operators can tap into drivers from anywhere — connecting people who want to work with jobs that need to be filled. The company’s proprietary software delivers secure, low-latency communication over volatile wireless networks for reliable sensor streaming and safe vehicle control.
About Rightline
Thousands of material handling professionals rely on Rightline Equipment as their preferred supplier of innovative, rugged and reliable lift truck attachments. Providing superior performance at competitive prices for more than thirty years, Rightline continues to build on its fundamental principles of engineering excellence, precision production and genuine customer service.
