In the next five years, the Internet retail giant expects to use small drones to deliver packages to customer doorsteps within 30 minutes of their order.
Amazon is testing a delivery service that uses drones to deliver packages within 30 minutes of an order being placed.
Dubbed Amazon PrimeAir, the service uses 8-propeller drones about the size of a remote-controlled airplane to transport shoe-box-size plastic bins from fulfillment centers to customers’ homes. The service, which still requires more testing and clearance from the Federal Aviation Administration, could take to the skies as soon as four to five years, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos told Charlie Rose during an interview Sunday on “60 Minutes.”
The completely unmanned aerial vehicles rely on GPS to deliver their cargo, Bezos explained during the segment (see below), which included an Amazon film of the drones in action.
“I know this looks like science fiction — it’s not,” Bezos said.
One thing is clear, Jeff Bezos is about the replace the clay pigeons by bringing these to suburban streets
What a wonderful scenario! The sky filled with flying packages, running into birds, delivering the goods to rooftops and cars pulling out of driveways. Whoops, we apologize for accidentally knocking off the mail carrier… I can hardly wait.
It amazes me how many people still think that automated delivery systems are a “bad thing”
“Clay pigeons” “Knocking off the mail carrier” Really?
To paraphrase Darth, “Your lack of vision disturbs me.”
I’ve covered this subject previously.
http://hplusmagazine.com/editors-blog/fly-your-pov-around-yo…quadcopter
http://www.acceler8or.com/2011/12/quadrotors-will-do-everything-well-almost/
http://www.acceler8or.com/2012/04/drone-delivery/
And yes, i got the same “Oh my god, this is a horrible idea!” from similar people who lacked any real understanding of what this means. I got told “it’ll never happen!” several times.
And now, here we are with Amazon doing exactly as I predicted, and you still have people trying to claim “it’ll never happen”
Change is inevitable. The removal of humans from the supply chain is inevitable. The drones are coming, and eventually every one of us will have a swarm of them at our beck and call, extending our senses beyond our physical locations, giving us the ability to do things remotely, and yes, automating delivery of goods.
Fight it all you wish. Enjoy the futility. Have fun thinking you have any chance to change what is going to happen. And when the day comes that you find yourself accepting a package delivered by a drone and it feels as normal as making a call on your phone, look back at this day and laugh.
You cannot fight the future.
How surprising it will really be when a Octocopter lands in front of our house and delivers the product which we have ordered.