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01 June 2023
Delivery drones are uniquely capable of transporting payloads faster, cheaper and more sustainably than traditional vehicles or ships. While many last-mile terrestrial or seaborn deliveries are already possible with unmanned aerial vehicles, the unit costs of those deliveries need to continue to fall for the industry to truly scale.
At the recent AUVSI XPONENTIAL, <a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.a2zdronedelivery.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A2Z Drone Delivery, Inc</a>, developer of commercial drone delivery solutions, released its latest flagship commercial delivery drone, the A2Z Drone Delivery <a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.a2zdronedelivery.com/rdsxpelicanhome" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RDSX Pelican</a>. With the RDSX Pelican&rsquo;s new hybrid VTOL design, A2Z has extended the range and payload capacity to handle up to 5 kg payloads on up to 40 km routes. The Pelican has also been designed to reduce the cost-per-kilometer of drone delivery, allowing drone service providers to more easily scale operations.
With its patented tethered delivery system, A2Z Drone Delivery, Inc. is developing innovative solutions to enable safe, accurate and low-noise drone deliveries. Focused on last-mile UAV delivery systems, A2Z is creating UAV delivery platforms capable of pushing drone delivery into the mainstream of logistics operations. Based in Los Angeles, C.A., A2Z originated as a drone delivery project at Brown University in 2016 and now services customers around the world which are leveraging its technology for a diverse array of applications.
A2Z Drone Delivery&rsquo;s first offering was its Rapid Delivery System (RDS), a drone agnostic winch system. By conducting payload deliveries from altitude, the A2Z solution enables deliveries from altitude where spinning propellers are kept far from people and property, mitigating consumer privacy concerns of low-flying drones while abating intrusive rotor noise. In 2022, the company rolled out the new RDS2 drone winch offering the highest payload capacity of any tethered delivery system on the market, and eliminating the need for specialty payload boxes. The just-launched RDSX Pelican can be purchased with the factory integrated RDS2 onboard.
<h5>RDSX Pelican Unit Economics</h5>
While localized labor costs are outside the manufacturer&rsquo;s control, in designing the new RDSX Pelican, the A2Z development team has put the unit economics of drone deliveries front and center. To maximize scalability of drone delivery ecosystems, the RDSX Pelican was designed to minimize operational costs for commercial drone delivery fleets. Boasting an attractive 13 cents/kg/km operating cost when fully loaded, the Pelican delivers the efficiency, payload capacity and reach needed to scale a commercial drone delivery operation.
A2Z was able to reduce these operational costs by simplifying the Pelican&rsquo;s airframe. With no ailerons, elevator or rudder, the Pelican&rsquo;s durable-yet-simple design eliminates common points of failure and exponentially extends operational time between maintenance overhauls. In short, the Pelican keeps the deliveries flowing longer. Designed to satisfy the 55-pound takeoff weight limitation for FAA Part 107 compliance, the Pelican is ready to go to work in the US and around the world.
&ldquo;Here at A2Z Drone Delivery, our development is not just about maximizing performance, it&rsquo;s about creating usable tools designed to get work done,&rdquo; said Aaron Zhang, Founder and CEO of A2Z Drone Delivery, Inc. &ldquo;A full-service drone delivery ecosystem will need a fleet of short, medium and long-range UAV platforms capable of depositing payloads in an array of settings. The new RDSX Pelican is the highly efficient, long range delivery platform in that last-mile fleet. It is thoughtfully designed to minimize potential points of failure, reducing the overall cost-per-kilometer of logistics operations, all while providing maximum payload flexibility.&rdquo;
<h5>Multiple Pelican Configurations and Availability</h5>
Available in multiple configurations starting at $29,000, the RDSX Pelican can be customized for an array of missions. The Pelican can be configured with the A2Z Drone Delivery RDS2 drone winch, or, for missions in which the drone is able to safely land at its destination, a simple servo-release mechanism can release payloads and expand the Pelican&rsquo;s payload capacity. Beyond logistics use cases like residential deliveries, the Pelican can be fully customized to suit unique mission criteria such as aerial mapping, drone inspection, forestry services, search and rescue operations, water sample collection, offshore deliveries, mining, and more.
The company is now accepting pre-orders for the RDSX Pelican which will be fulfilled on a first-come-first-served basis with initial deliveries expected for June 2023.
<h5>A2Z Expands Global Footprint</h5>
The company also recently expanded its global operations with a new test facility outside Shanghai, China. Dubbed &ldquo;Ground Zero,&rdquo; the test facility allows A2Z&rsquo;s development team to test its next generation cargo drones and drone winches under real life conditions.
Over the last year, A2Z has been conducting daily autonomous beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) parcel deliveries to real life consumers. With the facility situated near a mountainous bamboo forest popular with hikers, A2Z also partnered with a local campground to deliver food and beverages from the campground&rsquo;s caf&eacute; to hikers on the trails.
"The regulatory flexibility at our Ground Zero test facility really allows us to push the boundaries of autonomous unmanned deliveries, and the daily residential parcel deliveries we&rsquo;re conducting have given us amazing insights into how customers will interact with our drones,&rdquo; said Zhang. &ldquo;While we&rsquo;ve designed our just-launched RDSX Pelican to meet the Part 107 requirements for operations under current US rules, at Ground Zero our team is already developing the drone delivery solutions of tomorrow. Our testing there gives us the data needed to demonstrate our commercial UAV systems are safe, reliable, economic, and efficient. With the work we are doing there we can ensure our delivery drones are ready to take flight here in the US and around the world as the regulatory environments continue to shift.&rdquo;
<h5>Learn More</h5>
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A2Z Drone Delivery Launches RDSX Pelican

25 May 2023
Society is becoming more and more aware of the enormous potential uses of UAS to perform multiple tasks that would streamline and reduce costs in many of industrial application's routine tasks. One of these uses which is having a great relevance is the case of on-demand delivery or the medical transportation. &nbsp;
<a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/aerospace-and-defense/our-insights/future-air-mobility-blog/drone-delivery-more-lift-than-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to McKinsey</a>, over the past three years, there have been more than 660,000 commercial drone deliveries to customers, not including the countless test flights to develop and prove the technology (Exhibit). In the same way, as <a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.uavnavigation.com/company/blog/autopilot-package-drone-delivery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">we already mentioned in our whitepaper about Package Drone Delivery</a>, Deloitte estimates a value of US $115 billion in 2035, and the packaging delivery using drones, with a market growth rate of 48 percent by 2029.
The extensive use of unmanned aircraft for these purposes would increase the low-altitude air traffic and it would raise the probability of accidents. Relying on a technology that guarantees the precise and on-time reception of cargo and eases the correct air traffic management. Air Traffic Control&nbsp;becomes a critical need to make these applications a reality. &nbsp;
An example would be a UAV taking off from an airfield which is at a significant distance from the mission area. If the UAV requires a segregated airspace, it is critical to overfly certain areas following a given schedule allowing for airspace optimization. 4D trajectories allow assure the fulfilment of this schedule.
<h5>Multi-UAV Coordination Flight</h5>
Multi-UAV operations are complex unmanned operations where more than one unmanned aircraft is commanded from a single ground control station. This advanced type of mission requires an advanced flight control system capable of managing the complex schema of operation with multiple telemetry links and commands.
Multi-UAV flights are very useful for military practices, however, controlling two UAVs on flight is a very stressful situation for remote operators who should coordinate their movements to perform their missions. One of these missions is aerial target emulation in military training exercises. For example, the testing of radar systems against multiple platform attacks. &nbsp;
Some of these missions would require the use of two or more UAT (Unmanned Aerial Targets) simulating a coordinated penetration attack over a coastline. &nbsp;
During this test operatives, all target drones will perform a flight where time is a critical variable to create a demanding scenario where the radar systems under test should squeeze all their capabilities.
To give a professional solution to these, and more drone applications where time is a critical variable, <a href="https://www.uavnavigation.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UAV Navigation-Grupo Oes&iacute;a</a> has developed the 4D Trajectory capability. This new capability of the system enables the operator to configure the time at which a specific waypoint will be reached. The autopilot will adjust the aircraft airspeed to arrive to these assigned waypoints along its route at the specified time.
UAV Navigation-Grupo Oes&iacute;a advanced ground control software, Visionair, includes an intuitive configuration tool that will make the on-time flight configuration an easy and user-friendly interface to track the flight and monitor the UAS performance with the ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) display on the main display of the software.
The company continues providing cutting-edge functionalities to enable their FCC customers to perform the unmanned aviation missions of the future. &nbsp;
<a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.uavnavigation.com/company/contact-uav-navigation">Contact us</a> to find out more about the 4D Trajectory capabilities and purposes. &nbsp;

4D Trajectory Can Configure Accurate Arrival Times

Drone Delivery

[May 3, 2023]: Asio Technologies, a leading manufacturer of geospatial position systems and tactical defense solutions, announced today the successful completion of several demonstrations of its NavGuard optical navigation system to strategic customers in the United States. The demonstrations were conducted in response to defense and civil customer requests. They involved drones performing aerial navigation activities as well as automatic door-to-door delivery of packages over urban and rural areas without relying on GNSS signals. The successful demonstrations of the NavGuard solution further establish Asio Technologies' commitment to providing innovative and reliable solutions for the drone industry.
Using the state-of-the-art NavGuard system, the drone was able to accomplish its missions without interruption, even in areas and times where the GNSS line was unavailable or jammed. 
NavGuard is a real-time optical navigation system that enables precise, autonomous GNSS-free navigation for tactical UAS platforms, making it an ideal solution for tactical drone missions where payload capacity and flight time are limited, and continuous operation under all conditions is critical. Designed with advanced machine vision technology, AI, and sensor fusion, NavGuard ensures safe and sustainable 24/7 drone missions in complete GNSS blackout. It is a versatile solution for various applications, including defense, commercial, homeland security, and infrastructure security.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/6byofZU8Vy45H5DKfxCDPcgs2Uqskh2JAj0cyymk.png" alt="" width="400" height="300" />
"We are thrilled to have successfully demonstrated our cutting-edge NavGuard system in the US," said David Harel, the CEO of Asio Technologies. "NavGuard is a game-changer in the industry, enabling safe and reliable drone missions in various environments. This solution is ideal for both civil and defense missions, ensuring mission safety and supporting the drone industry's growth. We are currently demonstrating the NavGuard solution to numerous customers from different fields and with diverse needs and are excited to see the positive response and interest in this groundbreaking technology."
About Asio Technologies
Asio Technologies serves the defense and paramilitary markets, with a specialization in geospatial position systems encompassing navigation, positioning, mission planning, and mission management. Asio Technologies prides itself in holding several innovative registered patents in positioning and north finding.
With a core focus on target acquisition, augmented orientation, mission planning and a common language for the tactical command level, Asio&rsquo;s solutions are based on actual operational experience ranging from surveillance and reconnaissance to targeting and weapons guidance. Over the years Asio has built a track record of manufacturing and supplying dozens of combat-proven innovative solutions, according to Mil-specs and ISO standards.
For more information, please visit <a href="https://navigationguard.com/">www.navigationguard.com</a> <a href="https://asiotech.com/">www.Asiotech.com</a>

Asio Technologies Successfully Demonstrates Revolutionary NavGuard Solution for GNSS-Free Navigation in the US

16 February 2023
An autonomous drone, controlled by <a href="http://www.flightops.io" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FlightOps</a> multi-drone operating system, recently performed Israel's longest autonomous medical equipment delivery via air. The drone, which operated beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), successfully carried blood units over approximately 15.5 miles.&nbsp;
<div>
In partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Health&rsquo;s Medical Centers Division, the Galilee Medical Center utilized the FlightOps drone operating system to safely deliver medical equipment without compromising the quality of the samples. The drone, operated by <a href="https://en.down-wind.co.il/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DownWind</a>, one of Israel's largest commercial drone-operating companies, transported blood units from the Rambam Medical Center Haifa to the heliport of the Galilee Medical Center. This is the longest distance any medical equipment has been transported by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in Israel.&nbsp;
According to Professor Masaad Barhoum, the director of Galilee Medical Center: &ldquo;Progress and technology are an integral part of our values. Within this framework, we place special emphasis on projects that combine innovation and bring value to the residents of the area.&rdquo;&nbsp;
</div>
<div>
FlightOps co-founder, Ofer Haruvi, stated: &ldquo;The route from the Rambam Medical Center to the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya constitutes a new record for a drone flight licensed by the Civil Aviation Authority for a distance of 15.5 miles in an urban area. We are happy the technology developed by the company will be used to positively impact public health and supports a viable commercial business model.&rdquo;&nbsp;
</div>
<div>
The FlightOps drone operating system was utilized for a record-breaking flight for the second time in a public-health mission within the last six months. In July 2022, the FlightOps system safely transported medical laboratory tests&mdash;including blood counts, urine tests, and coagulation tests&mdash; between Hillel Yaffe Medical Center and Sha&rsquo;ar Menashe Mental Health Center over a distance of 9.7 miles.&nbsp;
</div>
<div>
FlightOps OS is robotic software that can be installed on drones of any type, replacing human pilots with artificial intelligence. This enables enhanced onboard decision-making and lowers reliance on communication, reducing the exposure to human errors. The FlightOps technology allows for automated mission planning and creates smart flight routes that avoid no-fly zones and ground and air obstacles. This allows for massive scalability in both the number and range of missions while reducing operating costs. FlightOps is a cloud-based software that enables drone and air mobility service providers to scale up their operations in terms of range and number of missions.&nbsp;
</div>
<div>
<h5 class="paragraph">About FlightOps </h5>
Headquartered in Herzliya, Israel, FlightOps offers a cloud-based flight automation software infrastructure that allows drone and air mobility service providers to easily scale up their operations in terms of both the range and the number of missions, all while reducing their operating costs. With FlightOps, businesses can streamline their flight operations, maintain safety, and lower expenses.&nbsp;
</div>

FlightOps OS Enables Longest Medical Drone Delivery in Israeli History 

Trending News

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21 November 2022
Drones are helping remote Indigenous communities in Canada assert control over necessities such as transporting goods and essential medicines to where they are needed.
"It's a decolonial effort where it returns the power into our hands so that we can assert our self-determination, and determine how it unfolds within our region," says Jacob Taylor, a member of Curve Lake First Nation near Toronto, and founder/CEO of <a href="https://www.indigenousaerospace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Indigenous Aerospace</a>.
<img src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/1tuZs2D8MC7GpVcGJacjZ1APxgzLpPM2L2lapEQj.png" alt="" width="344" height="301" />
Jacob Taylor [image from Facebook]
While working on education programs for remote communities in Northern Ontario, Taylor became intimately aware of the logistical challenges facing areas that are usually accessible by plane. In 2016, he learned of a Webequie First Nation woman who died as a result of the community's nursing station running out of oxygen.
"The nearest oxygen tank was just 43 miles away," explains Taylor. "But, since it was nighttime when the tank ran out, helicopters couldn't fly. However, a drone could have, and remote-piloted aircraft systems suddenly became a fascinating concept to solve some of the critical-care logistics within the region."
But Taylor doesn't simply wish to deploy drones to bring supplies to communities that need them. He wants to ensure that Indigenous communities don't miss the chance to emerge as leaders in the drone industry.&nbsp;
So, in July 2021, he founded Indigenous Aerospace with the goal of helping First Nations communities develop drone programs.
"There have been no treaties signed for the sky," says Taylor. "Indigenous people have an inherent right to participate in the aerospace industry.&nbsp;In addition, there are no cookie-cutter solutions that work in all of our communities. We have to find the right fit for the right place, and the best people to do that are the people that originate from there."
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Canada's Indigenous Aerospace Sees Drones as Tools for self Reliance

11 November 2022
It appears to be a problem for guitarists playing at your local bar and the Amazon Prime Air fleet&mdash;being told to TURN IT DOWN!
On November 10, Amazon announced in a blog post that it was designing a new delivery drone to go into service by 2024, the MK30.
The new drone is smaller and lighter than the MK27-2 model the company plans to deploy in Lockeford, California, and College Station, Texas, before the end of 2022. Prime Air's current fleet has a delivery range of approximately nine miles, flies 400 feet high at a speed of up to 50 mph, and can carry packages weighing five pounds. The FAA gave its approval for Amazon's drone deliveries in 2020.
<img src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/Rqi4KTLnq9aTd4gI2mef8FMLlFwe2qR9jf6xy6Zg.jpg" alt="" width="495" height="283" />
Already "old news"? The Prime Air MK27-2 delivery drone.
But even before "version 1.0" gets a significant, real-world launch, the upgrade is getting ready to roll.
The MK30 promises an increased range, new safety features, and the ability to do its job in light rainfall.
It's also quieter.
Responding to noise concerns from people living in the flight paths of Prime Air drone deliveries, the MK30 is being designed with custom propellers that should reduce the flutter, whine, and buzz by 25 percent.
"That&rsquo;s a game-changer," Amazon reported in the blog, "and we&rsquo;re very excited about it."
<img src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/I231nOwoaG0SfoLI5JXh8VGiCNQgsSpKyshO9HFw.jpg" alt="" width="487" height="274" />
Testing the MK30 model.

Amazon Reveals MK30 Delivery Drone for 2024

29 September 2022
As most current delivery drones can't manage more than a few pounds of payload, don't expect your new washer to be delivered by UAV any time soon.
Well, unless the <a href="https://www.sabrewingaircraft.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sabrewing</a> Rhaegal RG-1 is on the job.&nbsp;
A pre-production <a href="https://www.sabrewingaircraft.com/cargo-uav/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rhaegal</a> recently trounced the previous world record for a dead lift by a vertical takeoff drone by lifting 829 pounds of payload.
But there's even better news.&nbsp;
When the aircraft takes off conventionally&mdash;meaning not vertically, such as a helicopter&mdash;it can reportedly carry more than two tons of cargo up to an altitude of 22,000 feet, and outrace those Amazon vans at a speed of 230 mph.
&ldquo;This is only a fraction of what this aircraft can carry,&rdquo; said Sabrewing CEO Ed De Reyes. &ldquo;But it proves we&rsquo;re able to lift more cargo on our maiden flight than any previous cargo UAV that has ever flown.&rdquo;
Based on a helicopter engine developed by Safran&mdash;which uses a turbine-based motor called the Ariel 2E&mdash;Rhaegal can use 50-percent sustainable, eedstock-based aviation fuel, and its electric generator powers electric motors in four ducted fans. Power comes via a turbo-electric drivetrain systen that uses electric generators to convert mechanical energy from a gas- or steam-powered turbine into electric energy&mdash;a method used by some warships and merchant ships.
By making improvements to the blades, ducts, and shape of the aircraft&rsquo;s fans, Sabrewing was able to increase thrust by 30 percent&mdash;which was enough of an improvement to shatter the payload record.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re able to generate more propulsive energy&mdash;and much more efficiently&mdash;with a turbo-electric drivetrain and ducted fans than with batteries or directly driven by the turbine,&rdquo; says Sabrewing's chief technology officer Oliver Garrow. &ldquo;The Safran motor is currently cleared to use 50-percent sustainable aviation fuel, and we expect to be one of the first aircraft manufacturers to use hydrogen ,after Safran completes testing on their motor in the next couple of years.&rdquo;
Sabrewing has had some help in creating the Rhaegal. Leonardo Aerospace contributed to the avionics, Toray provided composite materials, Garmin assisted with navigation, Attollo Engineering worked on Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensors, remote positioning technology from Spider Tracks, and software developed by California State University Channel Islands and three U.S. universities.
<h5>WATCH!</h5>
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Sabrewing Rhaegal Smashes Payload Record

Above: Zipline medical delivery worker in Ghana.
9 September 2022
Deepak Ahuja&mdash;who was the former CFO at Tesla&mdash;has flown to Zipline to become that company's CFO and Chief Business Officer.&nbsp;
<img src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/SHvhbqBlTvX54JDlC3J2FlZ6P02TZXAbpVvgqoxF.png" alt="" width="153" height="184" />
Deepak Ahuja
&ldquo;Rarely do I see this level of disruption and impact paired with the world-class technology that Zipline&rsquo;s team is building,&rdquo; stated Ahuja in a press release. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s an exciting time for Zipline, and I&rsquo;m thrilled to join the team as we keep building to offer these solutions at a massive scale.&rdquo;
Silicon Valley-based Zipline is a robotics firm whose main mission is to deliver medical supplies to out-of-the-way locations&mdash;such as its COVID-19 vaccine distribution in Ghana.&nbsp;
Check out these other The Droning Company articles on Zipline:
<a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/medical-supplies-delivered-by-drones-saving-lives-in-africa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/medical-supplies-delivered-by-drones-saving-lives-in-africa</a>
<a href="https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/what-labor-shortage-walmart-ups-its-delivery-drone-game" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/what-labor-shortage-walmart-ups-its-delivery-drone-game</a>
<a href="https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/forget-flying-taxis-here-are-8-ways-drones-impact-logistics-right-now" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/forget-flying-taxis-here-are-8-ways-drones-impact-logistics-right-now</a>

Product Enhancements: Former Tesla CFO Lands at Zipline

August 19, 2022
<a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.a2zdronedelivery.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A2Z Drone Delivery</a><a href="https://www.a2zdronedelivery.com/">&mdash;</a>developer of commercial drone-delivery solutions&mdash;is launching its second generation Rapid Delivery System (RDS). The <a style="color: #ba372a;" href="http://www.a2zdronedelivery.com/rds2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RDS2</a> automated delivery winch eliminates the need for specialty cargo boxes, and is capable of delivering any payload up to 22 lbs., making it the highest-payload capacity delivery winch on the market.
A2Z Drone Delivery is also rolling out a new integrated cargo drone, the RDST, offering service providers an off-the-shelf drone delivery system for last mile deliveries. While the RDST features an integrated RDS2, the standalone Rapid Delivery System can also be installed on an array of popular enterprise delivery UAVs.
With the release of the new RDS2 and RDST, A2Z Drone Delivery is expanding its lineup of drone-delivery hardware focused on its core mission of creating systems that address consumer-protection concerns with burgeoning residential-drone deliveries. By conducting deliveries from altitude, A2Z Drone Delivery&rsquo;s solutions protect recipients from spinning UAV propellers, while mitigating privacy concerns of low-flying drones and abating intrusive rotor noise.
&ldquo;Most drone-delivery systems in deployment today require payloads to be packaged in special boxes, pouches, or on-board payload compartments," explains Aaron Zhang, Founder and CEO of A2Z Drone Delivery, Inc. "The RDS2 is designed to meet what every shipper wants, using what every shipper has. The RDS2 can auto-release the shipper&rsquo;s own boxes, removing the need for a recipient on the ground to meet the drone, and retrieve packages without landing. These capabilities, combined with the utmost payload flexibility and the heaviest payload capacity currently on the market, makes our RDS2 a strong investment for drone-service providers looking to rapidly scale commercial delivery applications.&rdquo;
While designed for the rigors of rapidly-expanding residential-drone delivery applications, the RDS2 and RDST are ideal for many logistics challenges, such as delivering medical supplies or life-saving equipment for search and rescue operations.
Outside the logistics sector, current A2Z Drone Delivery customers have deployed the tethered Rapid Delivery System for intra-site transport of tools and samples in mining operations, shore-to-ship delivery of urgent supplies and port documents, as well as placement and retrieval of ground sensors for industrial inspections. The RDS2 and RDST have already completed extensive beta testing subjecting the platforms to real-world stresses and user demands.
&ldquo;The RDS2 has completed more than 2000 test deliveries, and is already deployed with six of our beta-test partners which have tested the platform in a diverse array of applications,&rdquo; says Evan Hertafeld, A2Z CTO. &ldquo;Consistency and reliability are the name of the game, and this testing has reinforced the effectiveness of our hardware. Responding to partner feedback, we also sought to streamline maintenance with our new A2Z Assistant software and a longer-lasting tether to reduce downtime.&rdquo;
<h5>Forward Vision</h5>
The development of scalable drone delivery ecosystems is currently being led by some of the major players in the industry&mdash;such as Walmart/DroneUp, Amazon, and Google Wing&mdash;but, eventually, the market will diversify and become more democratized with local/regional service providers completing those last-mile drone deliveries.
For the foreseeable future, A2Z expects to stay focused on the continued development of our last-mile delivery solutions. What form those new solutions will take is really up to the continued feedback the company gets from its partners and customers. The new RDS2 and RDST were born of customer feedback, as their deployments required expanded payload capacities and more flexibility in cargo size and shape. A2Z expects its customers will continue to help chart the future of drone delivery.
<h5>A Deeper Dive on the RDS2 Rapid Delivery System</h5>
<img src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/xiwsfZmLhSaTyTiy6UngrFtxMtTbt8AQtzpaEEAD.jpg" alt="" width="658" height="450" />
Featuring a compact design, the new RDS2 maintains the redundant safety mechanisms of its predecessor, including its payload monitoring system, passive payload lock, manual or automatic tether controls, and tether abandonment should it become inadvertently entangled. New features of the RDS2&mdash;developed in response to hours of user feedback&mdash;include:
<ul>
<li>Heavy-Duty Drive Motor. Enables the RDS2 to deliver payloads up to 22 pounds&mdash;the highest payload capacity on the market.</li>
<li>Work With Any Off-The-Shelf Boxes. Requiring no specialty delivery boxes, the RDS2 fits right into any existing logistics network.</li>
<li>Payload Auto-Release. Patent-pending auto-release mechanism can deposit any box without the need for a human receiver.</li>
<li>Payload Pickup. Retrieve payloads up to 11 lbs. while maintaining a safe hover.</li>
<li>Low Profile and Easy-To-Integrate Form Factor. The entire chassis of the RDS2 can be easily tucked into the belly of any heavy-lift drone and is less than four-inches tall, leaving plenty of headroom for cargo.</li>
<li>Ultra-Long-Lasting Tether. Upgraded, braided Kevlar tether extends maintenance cycles up to 800 deliveries between tether replacements.</li>
<li>General-Purpose Payload Hook. Optional manual-release hook capable of delivering or picking up everything from bags to buckets.</li>
<li>A2Z Assistant. Intuitive desktop application for maintenance, system configuration, etc.</li>
</ul>
<h5>The New RDST Integrated Cargo Drone</h5>
<img src="https://media.thedroningcompany.com/images/tincy/JlEUYjk9QvGOj5cW936qHr57YpGK8ZOjmihGWXwI.png" alt="" width="623" height="413" />
Designed to meet current FAA weight requirements for commercial delivery drones, the RDST integrated cargo drone employs a stable and redundant octocopter configuration paired with the RDS2 to offer drone-service providers a ready-to-fly delivery system. While the operational range of the platform is dependent on payload specifics, the RDST can extend operations up to a 9-mile round trip from a main distribution center. The RDST is designed to satisfy the entire range of payloads modern drone operators need to carry, and is rated for safe flight with payloads up to 11 pounds. The RDST stands 29 inches tall, and its rotors easily collapse for transport in the provided flight case.
<ul>
<li>Factory-Integrated RDS2. With the included RDS2 winch, the RDST is ready to deliver out-of-the-box.</li>
<li>Massive Cargo Bay. The cargo bay can accept packages up to 18"L x 18"H x 14"H.</li>
<li>Upgraded Ground Control Station (A2Z QGC). An intuitive user interface integrates RDS2 commands and telemetry with open-source Q Ground Control mission-planning software capable of conducting pre-planned automated delivery missions without needing to land.</li>
<li>Extended Radio Range. Up to 18-mile transmission range with optional 4G LTE connectivity.</li>
<li>Designed for Work. Easily replaceable parts and simple design makes for low-fuss maintenance and minimal operational cost per mile.</li>
<li>Onboard Lidar. Provides relative AGL height readings for maximum safety. Optional precision delivery and landing capabilities.</li>
<li>Open-Source Flight Control Software. Allows easy integration with third-party hardware and software.</li>
</ul>
The all new A2Z Drone Delivery RDS2 Rapid Delivery System and the ready-to-fly RDST integrated cargo drone can be purchased through the <a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.a2zdronedelivery.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">company website</a>.&nbsp;
<h5>Watch the System in Action</h5>
<iframe style="width: 668px; height: 376px;" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VXKJB6nsR5Y" width="668" height="376" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<h5>About A2Z Drone Delivery, Inc.</h5>
With its patented delivery system, A2Z Drone Delivery, Inc. is developing innovative solutions to enable safe, accurate, and low-noise drone deliveries. Focused on last-mile UAV delivery systems, A2Z Drone Delivery is creating UAV delivery platforms capable of pushing drone delivery into the mainstream of logistics operations. Based in Los Angeles, California, A2Z Drone Delivery originated as a drone-delivery project at Brown University in 2016, and now services customers around the world which are leveraging its technology for a diverse array of applications.&nbsp;
A2Z Drone delivery released the first-generation of its Rapid Delivery System (the RDS1) in 2020, and the tethered-delivery system saw rapid adoption in numerous applications. Most notably, industry trailblazer DroneUp employed the RDS1 in its residential-drone delivery trials. Mounted on the DroneUp flight platform, the RDS1 made its first commercial delivery in a trial flight with Coca-Cola in Coffee Country, Georgia, in January 2021. Later in 2021, A2Z Drone Delivery expanded its commercial offerings with the RDSX, a dual-payload UAV platform. The newest additions to the A2Z ecosystem are the new RDST integrated cargo drone, and the RDS2, the second-generation of the companies proprietary tethered delivery system.
<h5>We're at the 2022 UAV Expo!</h5>
Come and see A2Z at booth #819.
<a href="https://www.thedroningcompany.com/blog/the-2022-uav-expo-" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More info on the Expo here</a>.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

New A2Z Drone Delivery RDS2 Winch Can Carry Any Box Up to 22 Pounds

<div class="u-clearfix">
<div class="c-article-teaser-text">August 10, 2022</div>
<div class="c-article-teaser-text">&nbsp;</div>
<div class="c-article-teaser-text">Drones that fly packages straight to people&rsquo;s doors could be an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional modes of transportation, writes Freda Kreier at <a style="color: #ba372a;" href="https://www.nature.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nature</a>.</div>
<div class="c-article-teaser-text">&nbsp;</div>
<div class="c-article-teaser-text">
Citing research published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/patterns/fulltext/S2666-3899(22)00180-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Patterns</a> on August 5, 2022, Kreier found that for "last mile" delivery methods&mdash;which bring packages on their final journeys to our doors&mdash;greenhouse-gas emissions per parcel were 84 percent lower for drones than for diesel trucks. Drones also consumed up to 94 percent less energy per parcel than did the trucks.&nbsp;
This is big news, because freight transportation accounts for more than one-third of transportation-related greenhouse-gas emissions in the USA. Not surprisingly, companies such as Amazon have been experimenting with using drones and robots to deliver packages with an eye to reducing their environmental impact.
Interest in drone deliveries grew even more during COVID-19. A survey conducted in mid-2020 found that more than 60 percent of people would be willing to pay extra for their packages to be delivered by robots.
"This was partly the result of a desire to avoid infection," says Thiago Rodrigues, a transportation researcher at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and a co-author of the new study. "But another incentive was the fact that automated delivery is often faster than waiting for delivery trucks to make their rounds."
Rodrigues and his colleagues have done an energy-consumption study of drones. The team attached packages weighing 1 lb or less to quadcopter drones and flew them at speeds of 9 mph to 26 mph. From these flights, the researchers were able to determine how much energy was needed to fly a drone, as well as the quantities of greenhouse gases emitted by generating the electricity to charge the drone&rsquo;s battery.
<h5>Check the Numbers!</h5>
<figure class="figure">
<div class="embed intensity--high">
<div class="embed intensity--high"><img class="figure__image" src="https://media.nature.com/lw800/magazine-assets/d41586-022-02101-3/d41586-022-02101-3_23345176.jpg" alt="Drones deliver carbon savings: Bar chart showing the greenhouse-gas emissions by emission source for delivery vehicles." data-src="//media.nature.com/lw800/magazine-assets/d41586-022-02101-3/d41586-022-02101-3_23345176.jpg" /></div>
</div>
</figure>
The results show that a drone&rsquo;s environmental footprint depends, in part, on where it&rsquo;s charged. For example, in the U.S. Midwest electricity generation is more carbon intensive than in New York. Yet regardless of region, drones have a much smaller environmental impact than do diesel and electric trucks when it comes to moving small packages. A drone's greenhouse-gas emissions per 1/2 mile are roughly two percent of those of a medium-duty truck powered by either diesel fuel or electricity.
Strangely, the study also found that electric bikes consumed less energy per package than drones.
"Using drones to deliver lightweight parcels and other electric vehicles to move larger items could slash the sector&rsquo;s energy costs," says Rodrigues. &ldquo;The way we deliver goods to customers is changing rapidly. Our research suggests that shifting to autonomous vehicles could provide a very efficient and sustainable approach for last-mile delivery.&rdquo;
Thanks to Nature for the original reporting.
</div>
</div>

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