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Amazon testing delivery by drone

gray eagle said:
Amazing......


http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/12/01/amazon-bezos-drone-delivery/3799021/
Click to expand...

That's b******t! Will the drone ring the doorbell? Or will your item just be dumped on the sidewalk? And what happens if 86 % of Amazon orders are whizzing around above the streets? And what if everyone else will want to deliver like that? Traffic jams in the airspace ...

Plus how will you get permission for thousands of autonomous drones whizzing round the countryside! Or will they all be remote controlled? Man, in that case won't the bands be all cluttered up?

And: How easy will it be to plant a bomb - just insert your own explosive drone into traffic and no one will notice!

And remember, there go thousands of jobs for humans - again! This is probably the driving force behind the plan, anyway - people cost too much money!

No, this sounds like a half-assed scheme to me!
 
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If they fly over the Robertson's property I'll bet Uncle Si would love to take care of em'

[video]http://www.aetv.com/duck-dynasty/episode-guide/season-1/frog-in-one-4#4[/video]
 
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Methinks this is a solution in quest of a problem.....just because you can doesn't mean you should in some cases. I can imagine getting a text message alerting you to the delivery in 2 minutes..."Please stand outside your
house with a laundry basket. Your order will be incoming momentarily..." :mixed-smiley-010:
 
Everyone seems to be taking this seriously _ I think its more like taking the Mickey out of the DHL advert?
Keith

( I think its the DHL one - might be someone else....)
 
In 20 years or less, this method of delivery will almost completely replace most forms of human operated delivery of packages weighing 50 lbs or less. This is very real and is only the beginning of labor transition which will fully play out in a century.
 
Sascha66 said:
That's b******t! Will the drone ring the doorbell? Or will your item just be dumped on the sidewalk? And what happens if 86 % of Amazon orders are whizzing around above the streets? and what if everyone else will want to deliver like that? Traffic jams in the airspace ...

Plus how will you get permission for thousands of autonomous drones whizzing round the countraside! Or wil they all be remote controlled? Man, in that case won't the bands be all cluttered up?

And: How easy will it be to plant a bomb - just insert your own explosive drone into traffic and no one will notice!

And remember, there go thousands of jobs for humans - again! This is probably the driving force behind the plan, anyway - people cost too much money!

No, this sounds like a half-assed scheme to me!
Click to expand...

Wow! Let's not leave any doubt where you stand! I mean, just come out and condemn it before it's even done!

Look, there is nothing in particular about this concept that cannot be worked and made very safe and feasible. This includes the FAA getting off their bureaucratic rear end and actually working with industry to create low-level route corridors just for such small scale RPA's (people really need to get used to that term) to fly delivery routes. In terms of delivery points, there would be nothing that would prevent delivery very close to your door and what you don't seem to understand is the current level of AI that can measure openings and scan ahead for possible obstructions. It is already at a level sufficient to ensure the RPA does not collide with your structures.

Amazon is looking at this for something to implement 30 years from now. By that time, people will be over their fears of RPA's and start to realize that this is not only feasible, but entirely likely. Didn't you see Star Wars: A Phantom Menace? All those AI aircraft flying over tightly controlled parallel running aerial routes. Do you really think that's impossible to replicate in real life? No, it is not. It will simply require a new paradigm for what consittutes aerial flight.

Ken
 
One more thing. Take a look at ADS-B. That stands for Automatic, Dependant, Survelliance, Broadcast. What it really means is a whole new way to coordinate airspace. Airplanes will broadcast not only their position, but also their aircraft type, altitude, heading, airspeed and a host of other critical data points. ATC will be able to clear airplanes from Point A direct to Point B without any need to use a radio! You will receive your flight clearance via datalink, and have traffic information for all other aircraft in proximity to you displayed on your choice of visual presentation in your cockpit. You can literally fly safely in IMC without fear of midair collision because the system will facilitate an automatic traffic deconfliction scheme whereby aircraft communicate with each other via the datalinks and allow pilots to easily maneuver away from each other. Now, just simply do that automatically without the pilot in the decision loop, and suddenly you have the means to deconflict even hundreds of these RPA's zooming overhead urban areas.

This isn't science fiction! I have just scheduled my Cessna 310R to have a Garmin GDL-88 and GTX-330 ES installed and linked up with my Garmin GNS-530W.

The US Army is leading the way for RPA's just the size, weight, performance, and payload capacity of what Amazon is looking at and the Army already has them able to fly into open windows and doors and then fly inside a normal house or building, manuevering via autonimous means to fly through open hallways and send out critical visual and other data to the remote operator. Hence the need to start using the RPA name for this technology.

So, if the Army can and does do it today, then why cannot Amazon have it under study for 30 years or so from now?

Again, people, the world of aviation is changing. Yes, people will have to change, and kids with BB guns taking pot shots at them will be like kids taking pot shots at cars. Ultimately, both get them and their parents hauled into juvenile court with a lot of charges to account for.

Ken
 
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It will be better when the physicists who had a photon in two places at once figure out how to accomplish teleportation. That way one could order a grand piano and have it delivered to one's grand ballroom in precisely the spot desired. Same for refridgerators, etc.

I just think things were better when we had Railway Express and steam engines!
All this new-fangled stuff is just too much for me:wink:
 
This is A OK if all of the RPA coverage is complete (Radio links are 100% perfect?) Does your cell phone work 100% in cities, over the horizon & all weather conditions?
Keith
 
Skyhawk_310R said:
Wow! Let's not leave any doubt where you stand! I mean, just come out and condemn it before it's even done!

Look, there is nothing in particular about this concept that cannot be worked and made very safe and feasible. This includes the FAA getting off their bureaucratic rear end and actually working with industry to create low-level route corridors just for such small scale RPA's (people really need to get used to that term) to fly delivery routes. In terms of delivery points, there would be nothing that would prevent delivery very close to your door and what you don't seem to understand is the current level of AI that can measure openings and scan ahead for possible obstructions. It is already at a level sufficient to ensure the RPA does not collide with your structures.

Amazon is looking at this for something to implement 30 years from now. By that time, people will be over their fears of RPA's and start to realize that this is not only feasible, but entirely likely. Didn't you see Star Wars: A Phantom Menace? All those AI aircraft flying over tightly controlled parallel running aerial routes. Do you really think that's impossible to replicate in real life? No, it is not. It will simply require a new paradigm for what consittutes aerial flight.

Ken
Click to expand...

Amazon boss said we will see this in 3 years time! Or did I mishear? Nope I checked, 4-5 years in video as timeline. In 30 years maybe ... if I'm still around I'll check! And no ... I'm not afraid of drones, I can just see how the job opportunities vanish for humans.

Sascha
 
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Skyhawk_310R said:
One more thing. Take a look at ADS-B. That stands for Automatic, Dependant, Survelliance, Broadcast. What it really means is a whole new way to coordinate airspace. Airplanes will broadcast not only their position, but also their aircraft type, altitude, heading, airspeed and a host of other critical data points. ATC will be able to clear airplanes from Point A direct to Point B without any need to use a radio! You will receive your flight clearance via datalink, and have traffic information for all other aircraft in proximity to you displayed on your choice of visual presentation in your cockpit. You can literally fly safely in IMC without fear of midair collision because the system will facilitate an automatic traffic deconfliction scheme whereby aircraft communicate with each other via the datalinks and allow pilots to easily maneuver away from each other. Now, just simply do that automatically without the pilot in the decision loop, and suddenly you have the means to deconflict even hundreds of these RPA's zooming overhead urban areas.

This isn't science fiction! I have just scheduled my Cessna 310R to have a Garmin GDL-88 and GTX-330 ES installed and linked up with my Garmin GNS-530W.

The US Army is leading the way for RPA's just the size, weight, performance, and payload capacity of what Amazon is looking at and the Army already has them able to fly into open windows and doors and then fly inside a normal house or building, manuevering via autonimous means to fly through open hallways and send out critical visual and other data to the remote operator. Hence the need to start using the RPA name for this technology.

So, if the Army can and does do it today, then why cannot Amazon have it under study for 30 years or so from now?

Again, people, the world of aviation is changing. Yes, people will have to change, and kids with BB guns taking pot shots at them will be like kids taking pot shots at cars. Ultimately, both get them and their parents hauled into juvenile court with a lot of charges to account for.

Ken
Click to expand...

SO basically Amazon will drop my delivery on the kitchen table, but what if I don't want a remote operator to look into my windows with a drone? Man, I dig the opportunities for surveillance by govt. this offers! I bet NSA will demand to see all the video feeds, just like our mails or social networks!
 
Sascha66 said:
SO basically Amazon will drop my delivery on the kitchen table, but what if I don't want a remote operator to look into my windows with a drone? Man, I dig the opportunities for surveillance by govt. this offers! I bet NSA will demand to see all the video feeds, just like our mails or social networks!
Click to expand...

This was the best reply you could phrase?

I'm sorry you cannot visualize the world of the future, but it's going to happen. Your kind of reply would feel right at home with those who exclaimed, "If man were meant to fly, God would have given him wings!"

I have a succinct suggestion for you if you never want the US Army to fly one of these RPA's into your home. Don't join Al Qaeda!

Somehow, I never suspected that was ever a risk for you. So, let's calm down a bit and separate hysteria from reality! Delivery of around 80% of parcels by this means would reduce delivery truck traffic in urban areas substantially. That's a savings on fuel, emissions, and likely an increase in safety. Something I forgot to mention in my previous posts is that again the US Army is using these RPA's to delivery cargo. So, again, the margins of the technology are well ahead of where you think they are. You were the one who found it incredible that these RPA's could deliver a package on your doorstep. I pointed out that they already are agile enough to fly inside buildings. Way to take a factual point and twist it to further an argument!

Amazon's CEO can claim this will be doable in a few years, and from a technological standpoint, since the Army is already doing it, he is right. But, the barrier is society and their fears. There are some hurdles to overcome and I give it several years to work those out. But, again, within 30 years, the stigma and fears will be gone. I doubt seriously that people will ever feel OK with boarding a remotely piloted aircraft for passenger transport. But, to transport cargo large and small, I see this happening.

Ford and other companies have already fielded automobiles with lane detection software and sensors that recognize existing road lanes and provide aural and vibration warnings to drivers when such lanes are crossed. This combines with laser detection technology that alerts drivers to closing obstructions or other vehicles. That's very close to the measure of how this gets done. And yet, this isn't in advanced test vehicles but rather production vehicles people can purchase right now.

Cheers,

Ken
 
And some day we will have our smart phones implanted in our behinds just so people can tell us where to go... I have become very anti tech in my old age, I still prefer a time without cell phones! :)

I cancelled my phone 4 years ago when my Verizon contract was up and have yet to get a new one and I enjoy not having one! Wanted to buy an old rotary dial phone for my kitchen, one of the real old ones and hook it up to my land line just so I can watch my guests reaction when they come over.
 
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