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I believe oneway drones are next so that the van doesn't have to stop moving. Then upgrade to a truck on a highway - just keep launching as the truck is maint

I believe oneway drones are next so that the van doesn't have to stop moving. Then upgrade to a truck on a highway - just keep launching as the truck is maintaining 55-65 mph. Unit lands in your yard. When you get home, Remove your item, fold up the power unit, recycle the cardboard/plastic components and stick the reusable portion of the unit in your mailbox. Unit is self addressed and postage included to go back to the nearest facility.

JoeAltmaier 10y ago
Doesn't that turn the delivery problem into an exactly mirrored pickup problem? Getting the drones back would be about as much work as getting the package to you.
- BlickSilly 10y ago
  updated my comment for clarity. Recycle some of the components, and put the power/brain/battery unit in your mailbox.
  - vidarh 10y ago
    If I had to get to a mailbox to return something, I would refuse to order from that company.
    - gm-conspiracy 10y ago
      There is this company called Netflix...
      - jon-wood 10y ago
        They're spinning down the side of their business that requires using the postal service because it's less popular, and less efficient than the side that doesn't.
        BlickSilly 10y ago
        ...because they were shipping a digital product via the mail, and a new delivery format arrived. they went from shipping their digital goods physically to shipping their digital goods digitally. It is a good prediction that we will someday be receiving our newly ordered toothbrush digitally, and have it physically printed in your home, but for now we still need physical goods to move from factory-warehouse-home
      - vidarh 10y ago
        ... which I've ordered from. If I want a disc, I buy it from Amazon. Otherwise I stream. I get that it might have made sense once upon a time, but thankfully those days are long gone.
- whistlerbrk 10y ago
  I think not, the initial delivery is time sensitive. The retrieval of the expensive components is not.
- deleted 10y ago
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- deleted 10y ago
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- danvoell 10y ago
  Couldn't you make drones that unpack the package? So there is nothing to return?
  - JoeAltmaier 10y ago
    I believe the idea was, the truck is going too fast to stop and wait for them to return.
sigmar 10y ago
Once the payload is delivered, the return trip is faster and less energy intensive (due to less weight). Why couldn't the drone just return to the same or even a different truck? I'd assume there is more than one truck per city.
endswapper 10y ago
One way drones would be step backwards. One way would create a different set of practical problems in managing a fleet. The solution is having a combination of an aircraft carrier and mid-air refueling. Vans full of packages to be delivered are the aircraft carrier and vans that are empty or low on packages represent the mid-air refuel because they can swap out the battery/fuel. Drones don't have to return to same van, but the closest, or whatever optimization you are looking for. Minimize the movement and energy required for heavier, more energy intensive components (the aircraft carrier) while making the most of the drones capabilities.
pjc50 10y ago
I don't see a good reason to make reusable systems 'disposable'. Especially as doing it that way means you need to carry one drone per package in the van! I can see this being useful in various places if the landing question is sorted out, and I think the main one of those is the 'disaster' scenario. Plenty of rural situations would benefit too: you don't have to send a van up a narrow unpaved road, or on a circuitous route, just send a drone over the hills (can this handle non-LOS?) or across the fields. If roads are closed due to snow, you may be able to deliver from the main cleared road (assuming the weather has cleared up enough for the drone). Some of the Scottish islands are within the one-way range of this drone from the mainland, which might be useful for mail deliveries. Rockets were once tried for this purpose: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_mail https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_mail
- BlickSilly 10y ago
  "I don't see a good reason to make reusable systems 'disposable'" what if one semi-truck could deliver the contents of 10x vans? what if one semi-truck could deliver the contents of 10x vans in significantly less time than any one of the 10 vans by never getting off the highway? what if one semi-truck could deliver the contents of 10x vans in significantly less time than any one of the 10 vans by never getting off the highway and be back to the warehouse ready for another round of deliveries within a 2 hours? Removes - Reloading in the van (people?). Recharging/swapping in the van. Return trip to van. Truck waiting nearby 10 drones go out, what if one gets stuck somewhere? when do you abandon? 9 drones are just idling here and they are critical for the next stop's deliveries. Adds - Warehouse preparation of drones for flight. more frequency of deliveries, as single truck can cover more ground in shorter time, making hourly delivery (pick your hour: 8.9.10.11 & 12 etc) an option for a much larger audience outside of cities. More Drone Losses - Getting the cost of these oneway units down would be key to offset this. I think of it like a drone bomber from the sky, but on the ground and simpler to operate (direct operating costs for an airplane anyone.. its prohibitive).
nradov 10y ago
In most states you cannot legally drop anything other than water from a moving vehicle on public roads. Launching drones from a moving truck would be hazardous to other drivers and should never be allowed.
- zo1 10y ago
  This is why we can't have nice things. Note the distinct lack of an "until", "perhaps" or "maybe" statement in your comment, and a very hard inclusion of "never". It may not be safe now, and it may not be legal now. But sometime in the future, all the concerns that would have been reason-enough to have it illegal/unsafe would be resolved to most people's satisfaction.

JoeAltmaier 10y ago

Doesn't that turn the delivery problem into an exactly mirrored pickup problem? Getting the drones back would be about as much work as getting the package to you.

BlickSilly 10y ago
updated my comment for clarity. Recycle some of the components, and put the power/brain/battery unit in your mailbox.
- vidarh 10y ago
  If I had to get to a mailbox to return something, I would refuse to order from that company.
  - gm-conspiracy 10y ago
    There is this company called Netflix...
    - jon-wood 10y ago
      They're spinning down the side of their business that requires using the postal service because it's less popular, and less efficient than the side that doesn't.
      - BlickSilly 10y ago
        ...because they were shipping a digital product via the mail, and a new delivery format arrived. they went from shipping their digital goods physically to shipping their digital goods digitally. It is a good prediction that we will someday be receiving our newly ordered toothbrush digitally, and have it physically printed in your home, but for now we still need physical goods to move from factory-warehouse-home
    - vidarh 10y ago
      ... which I've ordered from. If I want a disc, I buy it from Amazon. Otherwise I stream. I get that it might have made sense once upon a time, but thankfully those days are long gone.
whistlerbrk 10y ago
I think not, the initial delivery is time sensitive. The retrieval of the expensive components is not.
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
danvoell 10y ago
Couldn't you make drones that unpack the package? So there is nothing to return?
- JoeAltmaier 10y ago
  I believe the idea was, the truck is going too fast to stop and wait for them to return.

sigmar 10y ago

Once the payload is delivered, the return trip is faster and less energy intensive (due to less weight). Why couldn't the drone just return to the same or even a different truck? I'd assume there is more than one truck per city.

endswapper 10y ago

One way drones would be step backwards. One way would create a different set of practical problems in managing a fleet. The solution is having a combination of an aircraft carrier and mid-air refueling. Vans full of packages to be delivered are the aircraft carrier and vans that are empty or low on packages represent the mid-air refuel because they can swap out the battery/fuel. Drones don't have to return to same van, but the closest, or whatever optimization you are looking for. Minimize the movement and energy required for heavier, more energy intensive components (the aircraft carrier) while making the most of the drones capabilities.

pjc50 10y ago

I don't see a good reason to make reusable systems 'disposable'. Especially as doing it that way means you need to carry one drone per package in the van! I can see this being useful in various places if the landing question is sorted out, and I think the main one of those is the 'disaster' scenario. Plenty of rural situations would benefit too: you don't have to send a van up a narrow unpaved road, or on a circuitous route, just send a drone over the hills (can this handle non-LOS?) or across the fields. If roads are closed due to snow, you may be able to deliver from the main cleared road (assuming the weather has cleared up enough for the drone). Some of the Scottish islands are within the one-way range of this drone from the mainland, which might be useful for mail deliveries. Rockets were once tried for this purpose: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_mail https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_mail

BlickSilly 10y ago
"I don't see a good reason to make reusable systems 'disposable'" what if one semi-truck could deliver the contents of 10x vans? what if one semi-truck could deliver the contents of 10x vans in significantly less time than any one of the 10 vans by never getting off the highway? what if one semi-truck could deliver the contents of 10x vans in significantly less time than any one of the 10 vans by never getting off the highway and be back to the warehouse ready for another round of deliveries within a 2 hours? Removes - Reloading in the van (people?). Recharging/swapping in the van. Return trip to van. Truck waiting nearby 10 drones go out, what if one gets stuck somewhere? when do you abandon? 9 drones are just idling here and they are critical for the next stop's deliveries. Adds - Warehouse preparation of drones for flight. more frequency of deliveries, as single truck can cover more ground in shorter time, making hourly delivery (pick your hour: 8.9.10.11 & 12 etc) an option for a much larger audience outside of cities. More Drone Losses - Getting the cost of these oneway units down would be key to offset this. I think of it like a drone bomber from the sky, but on the ground and simpler to operate (direct operating costs for an airplane anyone.. its prohibitive).

nradov 10y ago

In most states you cannot legally drop anything other than water from a moving vehicle on public roads. Launching drones from a moving truck would be hazardous to other drivers and should never be allowed.

zo1 10y ago
This is why we can't have nice things. Note the distinct lack of an "until", "perhaps" or "maybe" statement in your comment, and a very hard inclusion of "never". It may not be safe now, and it may not be legal now. But sometime in the future, all the concerns that would have been reason-enough to have it illegal/unsafe would be resolved to most people's satisfaction.