Drone delivery in the near future
The British government is in league with the retail giant Amazon to start testing flying drones that can deliver parcels to your door. Amazon is funding the programme, which will search for the best way to allow hundreds of robotic aircrafts to buzz around Britain’s skies safely. The company is aiming for small parcels to arrive at their destination within 30 minutes of ordering them online.
Already Francesco’s Pizzeria, a private Italian restaurant in Mumbai, delivered a hot boxed pizza to a customer a mile away on the roof of a skyscraper in the Worli business district, by drone, on 22nd May 2014. According to the CEO, the drone delivery was inspired by reports that the book internet retailer Amazon was planning to use drones to deliver books in remote areas and countries where deliveries are difficult and dangerous. Domino’s one of the world’s largest pizza delivery outlets had also indicated plans to begin drone deliveries when it released a footage of one of its “ demicopter” drones delivering pizzas after a flight across the fields.
In US their government mistakenly delivered a $350,000 drone, meant for monitoring wildlife and the environment, to a US college student by UPS delivery service. The student uploaded the pictures of the package to Reddit under username Seventy seven before ringing UPS for an explanation.
Ministers say they want to pave the way for all businesses to start using the technology in the future, but they will still have to convince the public that having automated drones flying around is both safe and won’t invade people’s privacy.
The trails will search for answers for the following three problems. To operate the drone safely beyond the line of sight, as the current rules say a pilot has to be able to see the aircraft at all times.
To prevent drone colliding into things and perhaps use the same technology being developed and used in the autonomous cars with sensors to avoid hitting objects. How can one pilot control many drones safe way.
The government says the work will help it draw up new rules and regulations for the future, so that all companies can take advantage of drone technology which it claims could eventually run into millions.
One of the new drone which is being put to test is part plane and part helicopter which can fly at 50mph (80km/k) for 10 miles (16km) from the base, at height of 350ft (100m). When it reaches the delivery address, it flies down vertically onto a special landing mat that the buyer will place on their property so that you can get your parcels dropped into your back garden securely.
Amazon said these drones although will have sensors won’t have any cameras to protect the privacy and drones won’t be used for filming. Drone technology will eventually replace conventional parcel delivery. The drone technology is innovative, safe, beneficial and will give impoverished people an empowering experience that could mould political, economic, social and environmental landscapes over the next few decades.
The new unmanned Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) with a better aerodynamic properties, can flies like a bird, long distances economically. The drone age is coming and an estimated annual global spending of £9bn (12bn) by 2022.
Drones could be used by farmers, autonomously to lay the seeds, fertilize the soil and spray pesticides.