Technology

Reality is another story...

Wow. Don't think I live close to an Amazon distribution center but those that do it will be neat to see this in a few years. Just hope they get the technology figured out so if someone is standing in the coordinated spot it won't land on their head.

I love Amazon, one of the premier corporations in the USA.

Can you imagine the drone landing on your kids head or running into the rope your kids strung between the house and a tree? Or your dog seeing it land and chasing it down like a squirrel. I saw the TV episode on this the other night and I am sure they are looking at all the pitfalls. A tremendous amount of obstacles to overcome.

Hype. Vapor-ware...

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/dec/02/amazon-...

What happen in Mid flight? If failed and crash. Lost shipment.

I know people who would shoot at them like skeet shooting.

I'm holding out for when they will be able to read your mind and deliver it as soon as you think, boy I'd like a pizza, a coffee, or that latest iPad snet from Amazon. Scary stuff.

From the "just as likely" department, Waterstones on Oxford Street (a fantastic UK book store) have announced delivery by Owl:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LtoSsE_4qU

"We're excited to announce the Ornithological Waterstones Landing Service, a brand new way to receive your favourite books."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/02/drone-contraband-ge...

Drones delivering packages... kinda like the drivers FedEx and UPS use today.
Ha Ha

You gotta understand... Igor Sikorsky imagined the general population would all own personal helicopters. Advertisements promoting personal helicopter ownership by the masses showed a guy landing at the local grocery store to pickup some incidentals, like bread, then take off and go home. Like that was ever going to happen.

Skeet shooting with instant prizes!

Have happened

I see more problems than solutions

Nuvi1300WTGPS

aside from all the other issues brought up here, I think fuel cost of this technique makes it very unlikely.

I wonder if that will work for pizza deliveries?

Maybe it works for subdivision area and that a big maybe.

Taking down one of these babies could be as easy as jamming the airwaves with Lightsquared 4G towers!

It is definitely thinking outside the box. But there is a long way to go before that technology is a reality ( redundancy/safety issues). Don't see it happening for at least a decade or longer if ever.

They also have to avoid collisions with police drones.

Above ground level helipads could be required of customers in order to be eligible for such delivery service. Most accidents would be avoided with this kind of separation from human activity at ground level.

Wouldn't fenced-in ground level helipads work just as well and be far less expensive (maybe even safer since packages would not blow off and no one would fall trying to get to them)? Don't worry about it though, this is never really going to happen.

And we haven't even touched on the issue of geocoding yet. As we all know, the geocoded addresses are not at all precise and end at the street, not at your front door. How are they going to get from a "in the general area" coordinate to your front step? Some sort of street view? Had to really laugh at the video showing the drone dropping the package 20 feet from the front door. Yeah, that will go over big.

Amazon says New York and Los Angeles as a beginning. I can see the drone now, taking the elevator up to the 15th floor apartment...

It will put the package on the balcony you don't have.

http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/04/technology/innovation/domino...