DHL’s ParcelCopter 3.0 – A Tiltwing Delivery Drone

DHL’s ParcelCopter 3.0 – A Tiltwing Delivery Drone

Bavarian Tested >>> The DHL ParcelCopter 3.0 Designed for integration into its logistic chain and as a tool for improving infrastructure in hard-to-reach areas, over a three month period the latest version of DHL’s ParcelCopter was rigorously tested. Covering 8 km per trip and carrying up to 2 kg payloads, the delivery drones integration with mail packstations (also known as Parcelcopter Skyports) proved flawless over 130 autonomous trips. More details can be...
Catalonia at the vanguard of drone development?

Catalonia at the vanguard of drone development?

UAVs in Catalonia are highly ranked (4 out of the top 10 worldwide as per one research study). Reasons? Catalonia has extensive drone history (since the 1980’s) They have the BCN Drone Center (a specialist drone center with 2,500 hectares of segregated airspace for drone testing) Accommodating laws (allowing UAVs of up to 25 kg to fly outdoors outside of cities and built up neighborhoods to height of 120 meters and withing 500 m of its pilot) A government sponsored CataloniaSmartDrones working group (comprised of 25 companies and 16 organizations, including universities and research groups, and all working together on making the region drone-friendly) The original article can be found here: http://www.zdnet.com/article/come-fly-with-me-why-catalonia-is-really-seeing-drones-take-off/...
Drones in Japanese Golf Courses

Drones in Japanese Golf Courses

Starting May 9, Rakuten will test drone deliveries on a golf course in Japan. The drones can provide food, snacks and small accessories (e.g. new golf balls) to players while they are out on the course between 8:30 am and 3 pm. Maximum parcel weight is 2 kg. Minimum purchase amount is 100 yen (~0.90 USD). Video...
Google’s Talking Delivery Drone

Google’s Talking Delivery Drone

“Caution: Stay Back,” the Google delivery drone might say… An April 25th patent outlines how Google’s tether-based delivery mechanism would be complemented by multi-colored warning lights and matter-of-fact voice commands. Will you be looking forward to that upbeat “Delivery Complete” message? More info on the Quartz.com website >>>...
Delivery bots instead of delivery drones?

Delivery bots instead of delivery drones?

How one company is betting on ground-based autonomous delivery solutions (delivery bots) to buck the airborne delivery drones trend. Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 23   Skype Co-Founders Launch The Starship ‘Ground Drone’ For Deliveries (November 5, 2015) (Editor’s Note: Are wheeled ground drones traveling along on city sidewalks a more realistic alternative to aerial drones for autonomous last mile deliveries? Maybe. It all depends in what environment they will operate. Gated communities, university campuses and retirement villages are likely candidates…) What the Article Chronicles:  According to Strategy&, by 2035 we will be living in a world where 1/6 of the cars on the road are driverless and 4 to 6 deliveries per week are made by drones. A world where brick and mortar stores will function more like distribution centers complete with rooftop landing pads for UAVs and garages for driverless delivery vehicle fleets. So it doesn’t come as a surprise to hear that two former co-founders of Skype, already experienced in “disrupting” traditional industries, have created an Estonian start-up that will produce small ground-based autonomous drones that look “like a fridge on wheels with blinking LED lights”. The goal? To deliver groceries and other small goods in a way that will satisfy the e-customers constant desire for instant gratification services. The terrestrial 6-wheeled concept will likely be able to deliver about 2 grocery bags worth of cargo – 20 lb (9 kg) within 5 to 30 minutes at 1/10 to 1/15 the price of conventional delivery. A mobile app would allow customers to track their delivery. The same app would allow them to unlock the Starship,...
Delivery Drone Service Concepts – Lifting Railroad Freight Containers with Cargo Container Stacking Drones

Delivery Drone Service Concepts – Lifting Railroad Freight Containers with Cargo Container Stacking Drones

Delivery Drone Service Concepts – Lifting Railroad Freight Containers  Can delivery drones be used in other areas besides home delivery? Are Cargo Container Stacking Drones (CCSDs) feasible? Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 22 The benefits of automation – higher productivity, reduced cost and increased safety – are very alluring, particularly in places of very busy logistics activities such as railroad yards (or ports) where if something goes wrong during the handling and stacking of freight containers, they can become bottlenecks affecting the entire supply chain. Given that the transportation of containers by rail is significantly growing (particularly in places like China) there will be a need to further automatize and speed up the handling and stacking of freight containers in railyards.  Automation of gantry cranes is already becoming commonplace, but how about the other transport agents such as reach stackers? Could a reach stacker be programmed to handle and stack containers autonomously? Taking it a step further, could drones do the trick? As mentioned in a previous post, drones can theoretically already deliver a 4,000 lb car to your driveway so why could they not theoretically deliver the 62,170 lb (28,200 kg) payload of 20-foot freight containers? What would it take to make these drones a reality? The basics of the technology needed do appear to already exist. Precise positioning systems would have to be integrated into these drones to help them measure dimensions and contours of the containers to be transported. Unmanned gantry cranes can position containers within +/- 50 mm. The technology already exists, so it would just be a matter of shrinking and integrating the technology...