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Arthur T Knackerbracket believes Google can soar, but only if hobbyists play by the rules:

To bring order to low-altitude airspace so its Project Wing delivery drones can get off the ground, Google is proposing a set of rules for operating aircraft below 500 feet. The proposal calls for all drones, including those flown by hobbyists, to constantly transmit identification and position information so airspace access and collision avoidance can be managed by computer.

The proposal, unveiled on Wednesday by Dave Vos, head of the Wing project, seeks to take moment-to-moment control of airspace under 500 feet away from air traffic control authorities and put it in the hands of private airspace service providers, he said. These companies, which he called ASPs, would receive data from all craft in flight, including hobbyist drones, emergency helicopters and commercial craft like those being developed by Google Wing. Before every flight, each craft would send a short flight plan. The flight might be approved as requested, approved with modifications to take into account other users, or denied.

[...] Right now, use of this low-altitude airspace is largely unregulated and hobbyists are able to fly without having to identify themselves, their vehicles or detailed flight plans. That’s one reason the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) only allows drone flight within visual line of sight. But if Google, Amazon and other companies are to use drones for package delivery and other services, the line-of-sight restriction will need to be lifted.

[...] Vos is proposing the system be based as much as possible around technology that already exists, to reduce development and standardization time. That means drones and aircraft would use ADS-B, an aviation industry standard used on many airliners that sends out position, heading, speed and identification data every few seconds. All large planes already have ADS-B transponders, but with entry-level equipment starting at around $2,000, many smaller aircraft do not. Earlier this year, Google said it had started development of an “ultra low-cost” ADS-B transponder that will be cheap enough that every operator will be able to afford it. “If you can’t afford it, you can’t afford to fly, in my opinion,” he said. “That means we need to make sure everyone can afford it.”

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Knowledge Troll writes:

I for one welcome our new donut and chicken carrying flying robotic overlords. It has only been a few months since the FAA stopped requiring distinct approval of each commercial sUAS (small unmanned aerial system) flight. Current regulations still require a waiver for a remotely operated flying machine that exceeds the visual range of the pilot and the story does not mention if the flight was autonomous or not. Aerial surveys and inspections that would otherwise require people to climb towers, poles, or other structures are also under way. The FAA is lagging and taking their time but there is some progress.

The story also fails to mention if the chicken sandwich was any good or the coffee was hot.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Burritos from the sky? College just got a little lazier:

In what's sure to be a college student's dream come true, drones will soon be delivering burritos on the campus of Virginia Tech. The experimental service, to begin this month and last just a few weeks, is a test by Project Wing, a unit of Google's parent company Alphabet Inc. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. and the Blacksburg, Virginia, university have agreed to participate.

The Federal Aviation Administration approved the venture, the most extensive test yet in the U.S. of what many companies -- including Amazon.com Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. -- hope will eventually become routine drone deliveries of products. Amazon has begun a round of trials at a location in the U.K. "It's the first time that we're actually out there delivering stuff to people who want that stuff," said Dave Vos, who heads Project Wing.

Project Wing will use self-guided hybrids that can fly like a plane or hover like a helicopter. They will make deliveries from a Chipotle food truck to assess the accuracy of navigation systems and how people respond. The devices will hover overhead and lower the Chipotle edibles with a winch. Part of the experiment will be to see how well the packaging protects the chow and keeps it warm. Food was selected as the demonstration cargo because it's a challenge. The company is already at work on a more sophisticated second version of the aircraft that won't be used in the tests, Vos said.

"Chipotle edibles"? I smell an entirely new business.

Original Submission

GreatAuntAnesthesia writes:

According to The Guardian, Amazon has made real drone deliveries to real customers in Cambridge, UK. At present the "Prime Air" service is only available to two Amazon Prime customers with large gardens who happen to live close to Amazon's UK depot, but they hope to extend the service to dozens more in the coming months.

Apparently the drone was fully autonomous, with no human operator, and the time from placing an order to delivery was just 13 minutes. A video of the delivery can be found in the linked article.

Is this the future?

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

A future where drones drop off your online orders is another step closer this week after a new record was set for the world's longest drone delivery. On May 5, a fixed-wing HQ-40 UAV carried a package more than 97 miles (156 km), under the watchful eye of the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems (NIAS).

Drones from companies like Amazon, 7-Eleven, Domino's and UPS have already taken to the skies to deliver packages and pizza to customers, but those trips are usually short, last-mile trials. The record-breaking UAV journey covered 97 miles from a location in central Texas to carry a pneumatic part to the city of Austin.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Blimps and drones: a combination made in logistics heaven?

Amazon isn't the only retailer that's looking into drone delivery. Walmart appears to be working on a similar concept but its solution might be a bit different compared to Amazon's. Walmart has filed for a US patent for a floating blimp warehouse which will make delivers via drones. The idea is to have a floating warehouse up in the sky from where Walmart can instantly ship products to customers using drones.

According to the patent filing, the blimp-style floating warehouse would fly at heights between 500 and 1,000 feet. It will have multiple launch bays for sending drone deliveries. The blimp itself will either fly autonomously or be remotely controlled by a human pilot. This solution could help Walmart lower the cost of fulfilling online orders, cutting down on "last mile" costs to a customer's house which is normally handled by a logistics company.

Original Submission