## The Revolution of Self-storage
***
### Motivation
The self-storage industry is a \~58 billion dollar industry in 2023
([Source](https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2023/09/18/2744588/0/en/Self-Storage-Market-Size-89940-75-Billion-by-2030-at-CAGR-of-7-5-CAGR-which-is-Booming-Strong-Growth-in-the-Globe-till-2030.html#:~:text=Self%20Storage%20Market%20Summary%3A,USD%2089940.75%20million%20by%202030.))
but is still one of the most technologically deficient industries available. I plan to change
that... One container at a time.
This concept for a new self-storage facility draws inspiration from two major industries:
warehousing and shipping.
I saw a very neat concept for an automatic warehouse that used a set of modular shelves and boxes to
store multiple different products
in a simple fasion. This Norwegion company, [Autostore](https://www.autostoresystem.com/), uses a
set of robots to go and gather the same sized carton for order fulfillment. I wanted to expand this
concept to handle many different sized containers that would store someones' possesions.
This brought me to the shipping industry; more specifically: ocean liners and their containers.
Pioneered in the early 40's, Container ships today carry hundreds
of containers across the globe every day. Container ships stack containers up to 9 high! This led me
to introduce RoboStore, a concept for self-storage that works on the modularity of containers and
the robotics inspiration from Autostore.
### The Concept
My idea was to take many different sized containers and stack them all on top of one another. This
would
allow a gantry crane to stack and unstack the containers whenever a patron needed to access their
possesions.
This concept poses many different advantages:
- Modular: Different markets could have different sized facilities and number of containers.
- Extensible: The capacity of a facility could be easily expanded just by adding more containers.
- Secure: By abstracting away the stereotypical garage doors, this concept can stack containers in a
safer environment away from thieves and damage.
- Cheap: By using the space more effectively, the savings can be passed to the users.
- Adaptible: Due to the nature of the concept, old department stores could be adapted to serve as
RoboStore locations.
- Flexible: Containers could be transfered to other RoboStore locations to help someone move to a
new city or town.
### V1.0 The Initial Concept
As a starting point for the project, I began to make a small wooden prototype that worked on some
stepper motors and a small gantry. I started with a single size of box and developed a very simple
algorithm for stacking the containers. This concept was a lot of fun to make, but suffered from some
really bad flaws:
- The gantry was really slow as any speed would cause the belts to slip.
- Construction quality was... lacking to say the least. This was due to the speed at
which the prototype was made. Additionally, the wood was quite flimsy.
- Wobbly gantry crane. When the crane would drop or come up, there was a lot of swaying
because of the motor.
### Innovation Challenge
I have taken this concept to a competition, the innovation challenge, at the University of Cincinnati.
This competition has given me some funding and resources to continue this project. I am currently competing at this moment. So I will continue to update this page regularly.
My current plan of action is as follows:
- Make a CAD model for the prototype
- Design a business model and logo
- Make a new prototype with Aluminum and steel that contains more detail
- Construct a sample app that shows how someone would access their possesions