Designing homes to accept deliveries by drones, a Smellidrone, Virginia partners with a UAS company, launching smallsats, refreshments delivered to golfers, a passive perching mechanism for micro drones, contract awards for loyal wingman prototypes, a long-range medical test flight in South Korea.
If delivery drones become prolific, that might have implications for the way homes are designed to accept deliveries by drone. That includes the location where deliveries are made and how they are are made.
Tech startup Valqari is developing drone-delivery mailboxes where the top of the mailbox acts as a landing pad, the drone activates a retractable door, and space opens to accommodate packages. These mailboxes could be mounted on rooftops and windowsills of homes, or be part of a neighborhood bank of mailboxes.
The Paramount Miami Worldcenter condo building in Florida was designed to include a “skyport” platform on the roof. The platform could accommodate VTOL vehicles for residents or a package delivery area.
Walmart submitted a patent application for a delivery chute mounted onto an apartment building. Drone deliveries would be dropped through the chute and onto a conveyor belt, then packages would be carried to the building’s mailroom for distribution.
Researchers from the University of Washington are using live moth antennas on an autonomous drone. Use cases include detecting chemicals in the air, gas leaks and explosives, locating disaster survivors, and narcotics detection. Most human-made sensors are not sensitive enough or fast enough. Professor Thomas Daniel, a biologist at the University of Washington says, “Cells in a moth antenna amplify chemical signals. The moths do it really efficiently – one scent molecule can trigger lots of cellular responses, and that’s the trick. This process is super-efficient, specific, and fast.”
Silent Falcon UAS Technologies intends to invest $6 million for its new East Coast headquarters for research, development, and manufacturing at the Front Royal-Warren County Airport. The company manufactures UAS components and sensors for the security, military, and commercial markets. The partnership with Virginia will create 250 jobs for the area. The Unmanned Systems Lab at Randolph-Macon Academy will act as part of a pre-professional pathway initiative for students.
Huntsville, Alabama startup Aevum unveiled its Ravn X drone. The aircraft will become the first stage of its smallsat launch system. The company wants to provide a fast-response service using autonomous aircraft that can take off from any mile-long runway.
