Two Japanese companies are testing a home-delivery service that uses a small self-driving vehicle.

Kyocera Communication Systems and Yamato Transport are teaming up for the project. The trial is taking place in Ishikari City in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido.

The companies describe the vehicle as a type of robot, with 20 storage lockers onboard. Cameras and sensors guide it around pedestrians and other obstacles as it reaches speeds of up to 15 kilometers per hour.

In a demonstration, it managed to deliver parcels along a designated route. Customers used passwords to access lockers to get their items.

Yoshida Hiroshi of Kyocera Communication Systems said, "The robot must avoid obstacles in different circumstances. Technically speaking, that's the most critical part if we are to make the robot truly self-driving for commercial use."

Japan's delivery businesses are looking to automation to deal with a labor shortage amid growing demand from online shopping.