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Drone Deliveries Part 2

Before we discussed the different things happening in the world of drone deliveries from the hospitals in North Carolina all the way over to Dubai and China. Just this past week UPS has applied for their part 135 certification which would allow them to start delivering packages via UAV’s (drones). If they can pull this off and word on the street is they are hoping too before the end of the year they will ‘have one of the first fully-certified, revenue-generating drone operations in the United States’ according to the article in UAS Magazine.
Scott Price the UPS Chief Transformation and Strategy Officer had this to say “UPS is committed to using technology to transform the way we do business, UPS’s formation of a drone delivery company and application to begin regular operations under this level of certification is historic for UPS and for the drone and logistics industries.”
Drone deliveries aren’t just a things here in the states as we spoke about in our last blog post and last month there was a VTOL (vertical takeoff & landing drone) that completed a 50 mile delivery in 28 minutes over in the Bahamas. The drone flew over both land & water and is able to transport perishables, mail, mechanical parts, and medicine.
Head to the FAA website for rules & regs regarding part 135 operations but basically it applies to air carriers & operators. Under this part 135 certification, UPS will be allowed to fly over people, fly at night and also fly beyond visual line of sight (bvlos.) These three factors are big in the UAV community right now because these are big no no’s for any other drone operators. It can be a very hard and lengthy process to receive any of those waivers.
Morgan Stanley has stated that by the year 2040 autonomous urban aircrafts could be a $1.5 trillion market! Crazy!!!
Let’s face it, drones are here to stay and every day we are discovering more and more reasons they are useful. Drones can free up those in mundane jobs to be more creative and think outside the box. Let’s get the creative juices flowing and start preparing for the drones of the future!

UAS Magazine : http://www.uasmagazine.com/articles/2050/with-ups-flight-forward-drone-delivery-operations-near-reality

Verge Magazine : https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/23/20707470/ups-drone-delivery-faa-certification-approval

Morgan Stanley : https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/autonomous-aircraft

FAA Part 135 : https://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/sas/135_certification/cert_process/

Fox News : http://www.fox5ny.com/news/drone-makes-first-commercial-delivery-in-the-bahamas

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Drone Integration

Drones are starting to make more positive appearances in the news and this is a great start.

In 2017 the FAA rolled out the Integration Pilot Program (IPP). This program brings together governments (state, local, tribal) together with private entities (drone operators or manufacturers) to successfully and safely integrate drones. ‘The program has created a meaningful dialogue on the balance between local and national interests related to drone integration, and provide actionable information to the USDOT on expanded and universal integration of drones into the National Airspace System.’ – FAA website (author unknown)

The 9 IPP Lead Participants are evaluating a host of potential operational concepts like:

  • Fying at night operations
  • Flying over people
  • Beyond the pilot’s line of sight (BVLOS)
  • Delivering packages
  • Obstacle avoidance technology
  • Reliable & secure data links between pilot & aircraft

There are some fields that could see immediate opportunities from this program, such as:

  • Commerce
  • Photography/Videography
  • Emergency management
  • Agricultural support
  • Infrastructure inspections

There are so many practical and useful applications for drones and that’s one thing we love to do is help industries figure out how to create safer & ore efficient workflows. Have questions? Reach out! We would love to problem solve with you!

Interested in reading more about this program? Click here . (All this information was provided by the FAA website.)

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Winter Tips for Tech Devices

Happy Wednesday! Today we have some tips for those of you who live in a colder climate.  When the temp starts to drop we need to be aware of how cold our technology is becoming!  If you let your devices get too cold they can malfunction or worse yet – break!

Laptops:

  • Don’t keep laptops in the car when it’s not running – if you must keep it in the car wrap it in a blanket or sweater.  Or, you can invest in a laptop warmer (which do exist!)
  • Bring your charger because cold air sucks battery life like nobody’s business!
  • Turn it off! I know what you’re thinking ‘but isn’t it working and staying warmer if it’s on??’ short answer yes – long answer – if you are moving around and active you *could damage the computer’s data.
  • Don’t turn your computer on the second you walk in the door – let it warm up a bit as to not encourage condensation 

Phones:

  • Like laptops, phone batteries can drain easily in the winter so have a charger on hand
  • Keep your phone warm by keeping it in your pocket, purse or backpack.  You may even put it in a wool sock for added warmth!

Drones:

  • Fully charge your batteries
  • Hover 30-60 sec before you fly
  • Keep batteries warm!  When on location, we keep our heat on in the car and throw the batteries up on the dashboard

Hope these tips were helpful!  We love our winter weather up here in New England and we also love our technology! Stay safe and warm and keep your gear in check!

 

 

(some laptop tips taken from Popsugar)