RYAN ROBERTSON: GO AHEAD AND FILE THIS UNDER THE FUTURE IS NOW TAB.
AMAZON ANNOUNCED MONDAY IT WILL DELIVER PACKAGES BY DRONE TO LOCKEFORD CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS BY THE END OF THE YEAR.
IT WILL BE THE FIRST TIME THE ON-LINE RETAILER WILL USE DRONES TO DELIVER PACKAGES TO CUSTOMERS.
AMAZON SAYS THE COMPANY’S BEEN WORKING FOR YEARS TO DEVELOP A SENSE AND AVOID SYSTEM WHICH ALLOWS THE DRONES TO OPERATE WITHOUT VISUAL OBSERVERS. THE SENSE AND AVOID SYSTEM ALSO ALLOWS FOR A GREATER DELIVERY RADIUS AND MAKES SURE THE DRONE DOESN’T CRASH INTO THINGS LIKE PLANES, CHIMNEYS, OR POWER LINES WHEN IN THE AIR. THE SYSTEM EVEN DETECTS PETS IN THE LANDING ZONE.
AMAZON SAYS IT TESTED MORE THAN TWO DOZEN PROTOTYPE DELIVERY DRONES BEFORE LANDING ON ITS CURRENT DESIGN, THE MK27-2.
ONCE PRIME AIR OFFICIALLY TAKES OFF IN LOCKEFORD, CUSTOMERS CAN SHOP ONLINE FOR PRIME AIR ELIGIBLE ITEMS. AMAZON WILL OF COURSE TRACK ALL SORTS OF DATA DURING THE INTITIAL ROLLOUT WITH THE AIM OF LAUNCHING DRONE DELIVERY SERVICES IN MORE AREAS IN THE NEAR FUTURE.