Ever wanted to buy groceries but was too lazy to get up the couch? Ever wished that there was a magic fairy that can knock on your door and hand over all the things you need? Your daydream may be closer to reality than you might think.
In Canada, a company is attempting to lead the nation into the future. Drone Delivery Canada, a company owned by Tony Di Benedetto, sees drones as the means of delivering goods door to door.
Drone Delivery Canada started testing their specialized drone – The Sparrow – in the delivering goods. They hope that this will be the start of what can be an entire country using drones for deliveries. So far, there are no commercial delivery service in the country, and DDC is hoping to be the first of its kind.
Canada a Long Way to Go:
Like any other field trying to integrate drones into service, it will be a slow process. Drones must follow certain rules and regulations for example. Privacy concerns when drones doing door-to-door deliveries are also an issue.
Another issue would likely be the range of services for the drones. Drones are capable of short-term flight, meaning they must start at a service center or delivery source. This makes their reach very limited and would only be able to deliver in the area around the source. For the Drone Delivery Canada’s UAVs, they are currently testing at 1-2 kilometers of travel.
As far as testing goes, the DDC has begun testing their delivery drones in Ontario. It is a slow process, but so far it is looking good for the delivery system. The company’s current target are small, urban areas. This gives the drones wide-open spaces to test their navigation skills. It is also not as busy and crowded as a big city. This can help the drones spot any errors in locating targets and areas.
Now at this point you may ask, “The drone system might sound great, but can it carry heavier loads?” The DDC’s answer to that question is the Raven drone. The Raven is the far bigger “cousin” of the Sparrow and is estimated to lift up to 11 kilograms.
