Swiss Postal Delivery via Drones – Tests to run until end of July

Swiss Postal Delivery via Drones – Tests to run until end of July

by | Jul 9, 2015 | Air | 0 comments

Swiss Post Testing Drones for Mail Delivery Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 10 Swiss Post, Swiss WorldCargo and Matternet Start Drone Tests ( July 10, 2015) (Editor’s Note: Swiss postal delivery concept was originally touched upon back in April as mentioned in this post.) What Article Chronicles:  Switzerland’s postal service, Swiss Post, announced on Tuesday, July 7th, that it had begun testing parcel deliveries via unmanned cargo drones. Tests will run until the end of July. The goal is to test the practical use as well as cost-effectiveness of drones in delivery logistics, not just for mail/parcel delivery but also for emergency situations (e.g. delivery of emergency relief supplies or high priority consignments such as laboratory samples). The widespread use of drones, however, is not expected within the next five years. Current barriers to everyday use include the Swiss regulatory framework and existing technical limitations such as limited battery life. Official UAV / Drone Name: To be determined. Several Matternet Models, particularly the Matternet ONE, will be used in the drone tests. Basic UAV/ Drone Description:  Autonomous, “snow-white”, “light structure” quadcopter that can follow pre-programmed flight routes established by cloud software from Matternet. Payload: Up to 1 kg (2.2 lb) via small thermally insulated containers. Range: Approximately 10 km (6.2 miles). Speed: Unknown. Companies Involved: Swiss Post Swiss WorldCargo Matternet   What are your thoughts on the use of unmanned postal delivery drones? Comment below!...
German Cargo Drones Delivering Blood Samples

German Cargo Drones Delivering Blood Samples

by | Jul 8, 2015 | Air | 1 comment

German Cargo Drones Delivering Blood Samples Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 09 Drohnen: Fliegende Helfer für die Krankenhauslogistik ( April 20, 2015) (Editor’s Note: Original article is in German, title translates to “Drones: Flying Helpers for Hospital Logistics”.) What Article Chronicles: A chain of three German hospitals, the Agaplesion Frankfurter Diakonie Kliniken, wants to use drones to transport blood and lab samples. Circa 50 to 70 times per year, blood must be quickly delivered from the central blood bank and laboratory to one of the chain’s three hospitals as part of an emergency situation. However, due to typical Frankfurt rush hour traffic, it can take up to 20 minutes for a 5 km (3.1 mile) trip. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) could potentially do the same trip in 5 minutes. Agaplesion partnered up with HiSystems Gmbh to test out the concept. As Mr. Dennis Göbel, managing director of Agaplesion states, this is not “an Amazon-type business – we want to save lives, not deliver books.” German and EU laws require that drones remain in view of their pilots at all times and prohibit flight over densely populated areas. Drones may also not fly higher than 100 meters (328 feet). As such, test flights for the unmanned drone delivery of blood and laboratory sample have only occurred on private land but the maiden flight over the Frankfurt cityscape is still pending. Official UAV / Drone Name: MikroKopter Basic UAV/ Drone Description:  All-weather, 4.5 kg (9.9 lb), six-rotor UAV with three-dimensional locating and positioning capabilities via onboard camera, GPS and air pressure sensors. In case of emergency maneuvers, the drone...
Cargo Delivery Drones Public/Private Partnership in South Korea

Cargo Delivery Drones Public/Private Partnership in South Korea

by | Jul 2, 2015 | Air | 0 comments

CJ Group Cargo Drones Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 08 CJ Group Unveils Cargo Carrying Drones (May 15, 2015) (Editor’s Note: South Korean government/private cooperation between Ministry of Public Safety and Security and the CJ Group to use drones to deliver cargo, food and medicines in times of disaster) What the Article Chronicles:  South Korea’s Ministry of Public Safety and Security has partnered up with CJ Korea Express, the country’s largest cargo delivery company, to develop and provide drones that can deliver much needed disaster relief supplies. This is the first time a private company will be given permission to start unmanned aerial vehicle services in South Korea. So far, three drones have been developed with 3 more in the pipeline. In the long term,  CJ Korea Express hopes to capitalize on its emerging disaster relief operations experience to launch a commercial drone delivery service to remote and isolated areas as soon as the current South Korean UAV operation laws change. Official UAV / Drone Name: CJ Sky Door Basic UAV/ Drone Description:  Midsized drone with four 3-bladed rotors. Payload: Up 3 kg (6.6 lb) of disaster relief goods via a cargo box or via a detachable container. Range: A maximum altitude of 4,000 m (13,123 feet) and a 20 km (12.4 mile) flying radius. Speed: Up to 60 km/hr ( 37 mi/hr) for 70 minutes. Companies Involved: CJ Korea Express South Korea’s Ministry of Public Safety and Security What are your thoughts on the unmanned cargo delivery public/private partnership concept? Comment...
Cargo Delivery Drones – Flying Soon Near You

Cargo Delivery Drones – Flying Soon Near You

by | Jun 28, 2015 | Air | 2 comments

Flirtey Delivery Drones to Make Historic “Kitty Hawk” Flight Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 07 Cargo Delivery Drones – Flying Soon Near You (June 25, 2015) (Editor’s Note: Throwback to my third LinkedIn article regarding unmanned cargo) It has been a year of firsts for the commercial drone delivery concept. In February, Alibaba’s online marketplace, Taobao, partnered up with YTO Express to run a real world test in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, allowing 450 people (on a first-come-first-served basis) to order ginger tea and receive it via UAV in less than an hour.  In June, Fastway Couriers teamed up with Flirtey to successfully carry out drone parcel deliveries in New Zealand by transporting automobile parts along a 1.9 km (1.2 mile) route in less than 5 minutes, compared to 20 minutes by traditional courier.   And now, Flirtey is at it again. The Australian commercial drone startup, in partnership with NASA and Virginia Tech, will be the first company to demonstrate the practicality of commercial drone deliveries in the US as part of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved test flight slated for July 17. Flirtey’s hexacopter UAVs and NASA’s fixed-winged aircraft will deliver pharmaceuticals to a free medical clinic in Wise, Virginia as part of the “Let’s Fly Wisely” event, which aims to demonstrate how drones can improve health care access and create economic opportunities.  A total of 24 packages will be delivered by Flirtey’s hexacopters, which are made from carbon fiber, aluminum and 3D printed components. Each lightweight, multi-rotor UAV has a range of 30 kilometers (20 miles). They feature built-in safety measures, such as low-battery alert and low GPS signal/full communication loss auto-return to a...
The Age of the Cargo Drones – How Will Your Goods Be Delivered?

The Age of the Cargo Drones – How Will Your Goods Be Delivered?

by | Jun 25, 2015 | Air | 0 comments

Autonomous Last Mile Delivery Solutions – Amazon, Matternet and Container Delivery Direct from Cargo Ships Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 06 The Age of the Cargo Drones – How Will Your Goods Be Delivered? (May 14, 2015) (Editor’s Note: Throwback to my second LinkedIn article regarding unmanned cargo) Last week, at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) conference, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced it would take part in 3 research projects to collect data about the safety of beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations. Among those eagerly awaiting this information are both startups and heavy hitters such as Matternet and Amazon. If approved, BVLOS maneuvers could bring the concept of commercial cargo drone systems one step closer to reality. Current data suggests that unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) could potentially deliver a 5 pound (2.27 kg) package in under 30 minutes for as low as $1. This would significantly revolutionize traditional last mile package delivery logistics. Something that both Matternet and Amazon are aiming to do in their own specific way. Matternet, a company working on perfecting drone-based delivery, envisions the use of an interconnected quadcopter system to deliver light packages such as medicines, documents and electronic goods. Their Matternet ONE drones are programmed to autonomously follow routes plotted by the company’s cloud software, adjusting automatically for weather, restricted airspace and physical obstacles. For $5000, interested companies could own and operate a Matternet ONE. However, there are also talks of a subscription service that would lease the hardware for as low as $1000 per month per UAV. Having already tested drone operations in Haiti and...
Amazon Drones: Delivery in 30 Minutes for $1

Amazon Drones: Delivery in 30 Minutes for $1

by | Jun 18, 2015 | Air | 0 comments

Amazon Drones: Delivery in 30 Minutes for $1 Unmanned Cargo Delivery Concept – Chronicle 04 Amazon Drones Could Deliver Packages for Just $1, Study Suggests (April 10, 2014) (Editor’s Note: Making the business case for implementing a commercial delivery drone system) What the Article Chronicles: New York based ARK Investment Management has quantified how much a same-day drone delivery would cost compared with delivery truck and couriers. Given the 400 million annual shipments Amazon makes to US customers, an initial investment of $130 million to cover drone cost and support infrastructure and a budget of $350 million annually to cover operating expenses, Amazon would break even after the first year of operations. As the chart below shows, a similarly sized packaged would cost 8-13 times more for much longer delivery times. Although payload would be limited to 5 pounds (2.3 kg), this is of no consequence as approximately 86 % of all orders shipped by Amazon weigh less than this. Official UGV / Drone Name: Amazon Prime Air Companies Involved: ARK Investment Management Amazon What are your thoughts on ARK’s cost forecast for unmanned cargo delivery drones? Comment...