The subject has been kicked around before and I figured I would toss in some humor. I have a few very large Amazon Distribution Centers just North of me. Maybe 1/2 mile. Dozens of their delivery drones fly over my house daily and I am actually amused watching them. Really pretty cool watching them quietly pass over. Just a low hum as they fly over. My town in the Cleveland, Ohio SE suburbs actually mailed out notifications to residents explaining to residents exactly what they were and why they were passing over. Maybe one day I will drag out my camera, mount a 300mm zoom lens and try to catch one or two in flight. They are only a few hundred feet up.

So the question begs, anyone else out there close to an Amazon Distribution Center watching drones fly over?

Ron

 

When the idea was proposed, years ago, the plan was for the drones to fly from the trucks. For the small and medium boxes, the driver would not exit the truck or fight with dogs. With out the truck stopping, the drone would exit the truck, fly up to several blocks, deliver the package then perhaps fly blocks to join a truck. (might not be the same truck) The truck would not need to drive down every street, but maybe every 4th street. With the better batteries and better drones, we have today the truck might reach out a mile in all directions.

 

I bought a drone off Amazon,
It delivered it self!

 

The subject has been kicked around before and I figured I would toss in some humor. I have a few very large Amazon Distribution Centers just North of me. Maybe 1/2 mile. Dozens of their delivery drones fly over my house daily and I am actually amused watching them. Really pretty cool watching them quietly pass over. Just a low hum as they fly over. My town in the Cleveland, Ohio SE suburbs actually mailed out notifications to residents explaining to residents exactly what they were and why they were passing over. Maybe one day I will drag out my camera, mount a 300mm zoom lens and try to catch one or two in flight. They are only a few hundred feet up.

So the question begs, anyone else out there close to an Amazon Distribution Center watching drones fly over?

Ron

It must be an interesting thing to see. I have one question by the way? What is the success rate of these delivery drones? Do they always deliver on time and to the right address?

 

I bought a drone off Amazon,
It delivered it self!

View attachment 372666

Box and all?

 

Box and all?

A box with the remote in it first!

Which begs the question, how does Amazon set the destination address in thier
delivery method ? co-ordinates?

 

A box with the remote in it first!

Which begs the question, how does Amazon set the destination address in thier
delivery method ? co-ordinates?

The same way they do now. The delivery address is used to access a GIS database that gives the geospatial coordinates (probably GPS). The more nuanced question is how it proceeds in cases where that might not be enough. For instance, an apartment or condo or a business in a strip mall. Is it based solely on the form of the address and that flags it as being undeliverable by drone? Does the software make a decision in real time based on what it sees that it isn't deliverable? If so, does it just return, or does it "phone home" and get a human to make a decision, possible selecting a drop-off point remotely?

 

It must be an interesting thing to see. I have one question by the way? What is the success rate of these delivery drones? Do they always deliver on time and to the right address?

I don't know but watching them fly over is fun. We have two very large Amazon distribution centers about a half mile North of me. No clue where they are going but figure apartment buildings are out of the picture and I have yet to have one drop my stuff at my door. No clue as to how all of that works out. It was funny when my small town community (Bedford Heights, Ohio) actually started explaining what the drones were all about and not an invasion from The Angry Red Planet. Ihave never seen one fly over after dark. Apparently they get where they are going.

Ron

 

The same way they do now. The delivery address is used to access a GIS database that gives the geospatial coordinates (probably GPS). The more nuanced question is how it proceeds in cases where that might not be enough. For instance, an apartment or condo or a business in a strip mall. Is it based solely on the form of the address and that flags it as being undeliverable by drone? Does the software make a decision in real time based on what it sees that it isn't deliverable? If so, does it just return, or does it "phone home" and get a human to make a decision, possible selecting a drop-off point remotely?

Whatever they use and I figure GPS they apparently get where they are going but it's fun watching them. I also haven't a clue how large a payload they can carry. Heck, in my old age I find the drones entertaining. I need to get a life.

Ron

 

Whatever they use and I figure GPS they apparently get where they are going but it's fun watching them. I also haven't a clue how large a payload they can carry. Heck, in my old age I find the drones entertaining. I need to get a life.

Ron

As best I can tell, the max payload is currently 5 lb, but the max takeoff weight is about 90 lb. One estimate last year put Amazon's cost at $60+ per delivery, compared to about $3 to $10 for a normal truck delivery. It wouldn't be too surprising for them to be significantly subsidizing operations initially as the fledging system builds infrastructure and capability, as well as banking on technological progress to bring costs down as in the future.

They are definitely a neat technology that has come a very long way. I'm still very skeptical that this type of application has legs, though. The big problem that I see is congestion. It's one thing for the first few folks, like Amazon, to adopt this approach when the skies are still virtually free of drones -- it's the big-sky vs little craft phenomenon. But what happens as more places adopt drones for more purposes? Not only more places using them to deliver and/or pick up things, but all of the other uses, such as realtors taking pictures of properties, not to mention all of the recreational users. At some point the congestion will be so high that collisions will become unacceptably frequent, no to mention the run-of-the-mill problems of a drone failing in midflight or dropping the cargo because it wasn't secured quite right. Sooner or later, accidents will start happening where people are injured and killed on the ground, or even just property damage. Then companies will start reevaluating whether it really is saving them money when those costs are included. You will also start seeing more and more regulations being imposed on when, where, and how they can operate, which will have a strangling effect compared to the relative freedom and flexibility they operate under now. Plus, how will the all the people in the general public that have drones for fun (or business) respond when they are told that they can no longer fly their drones expect in designated areas and/or have to have capabilities like remote ID and network communications to interact with a federal automated air control system, such as the FAA's proposed UTM (UAS Traffic Management)? How many people will continue flying their unregistered and non-networked drones regardless of what laws are enacted?

 

Whatever they use and I figure GPS they apparently get where they are going but it's fun watching them. I also haven't a clue how large a payload they can carry. Heck, in my old age I find the drones entertaining. I need to get a life.

Ron

Like watching carrier pigeons deliver their messages.

 

Like watching carrier pigeons deliver their messages.

Nah. WAY cooler!

Fast forward a decade or two and it won't be so cool. The novelty will be gone, along with it the fascination. All that will be left will be people whining and complaining and suing over the noise.

 

Nah. WAY cooler!

Fast forward a decade or two and it won't be so cool. The novelty will be gone, along with it the fascination. All that will be left will be people whining and complaining and suing over the noise.

Worse yet, people might start shooting them down or something. Either to steal what they're carrying, or arguing that they're being spied upon or that their constitutional rights are being trampled when they fly above their property.

 

How many people will continue flying their unregistered and non-networked drones regardless of what laws are enacted?

250g and under do not need registration.

 

250g and under do not need registration.

That's the rule today. What's the chance that that will be the rule in the future when the skies are congested with drones that have to be actively deconflicted? It was the same with cars back when they came on the scene. Over about a two-decade period it went from no requirements to being required in every state, generally to include vehicles that were garaged and not being driven at all. We bought a motor scooter in 1980 from someone that my dad worked with that had been sitting in his garage since 1966. When we went to register it, we discovered that we couldn't unless we paid all of the back registration fees. So it ended up getting scrapped.

 

I have yet to have one drop my stuff at my door.

Ron

If I were you, I would have ordered something to have a drone at my doorstep.

 

I wonder how many drones get hijacked, re-purposed, or used for their components?

 

Nah. WAY cooler!

Fast forward a decade or two and it won't be so cool. The novelty will be gone, along with it the fascination. All that will be left will be people whining and complaining and suing over the noise.

We'll we've got the whining and the complaining checked off. Next will be the lawsuits.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ck1exgejq3xvo