Maneuvering a large trailer into a confined space like a garage isn’t the easiest thing to do, especially if you don’t have a second person present to help you guide it. That is where an impressive new robot aims to help. A bit like a Roomba robot vacuum cleaner packing some serious muscle, the new Trailer Valet RVR is a wireless miniature tracked tank that is capable of pulling remarkably heavy loads. How heavy? Try up to 9,000 pounds, from a unit that weighs only 77 pounds. Simply hitch the RVR to your RV or trailer and you can then remote control it from up to 40 feet away, with high levels of accuracy and an impressively full range of motion.
“The RVR is a highly advanced wireless remote-controlled trailer mover,” Jamie Buck, technical support and customer service representative for Trailer Valet, told Digital Trends. “Rechargeable with a lithium battery, the RVR can rotate 360 degrees with an easy-to-use remote control that comes pre-paired to each unit. Its caterpillar treads allow the RVR to operate on more types of terrain than previous models, including grass, dirt, gravel, and asphalt.”
The trailer-moving bot comes in three different sizes, each designed to accommodate a specific trailer. Each RVR has between two and four planetary motors, capable of moving both single and dual axle trailers, and a lightweight aluminum body for corrosion resistance. “With an RVR, everyone who owns a trailer can easily maneuver [it] wherever they need, with the luxury of standing back and controlling from any angle they wish,” Buck continued. “Most of our customers use their Trailer Valet when fishing, camping, traveling, or when moving trailers all day at work.”
The 3,500-pound capacity RVR3 model will set you back $2,100, while you will pay $3,400 for the 5,000-pound capacity RVR5 and $4,100 for the 9,000-pound capacity RVR9 unit. According to Buck, both the RVR5 and RVR 9 models are currently stocked in Trailer Valet’s warehouse in Southern California, while the RVR3 is available for pre-order with a two- to three-month wait.
Until self-driving trailers become an everyday thing, this is just about the best high-tech solution you could hope for.
