I have done a little research about aspects of tech that interest me and aim to do more writing about emerging technologies, and what those might portend. This post is in that vein.
In parts of Africa drone delivery vehicles are delivering medical supplies.
Uber is hot to develop drone taxi and drone food delivery services.
Amazon, Google, and UPS want to deliver packages right to your front door via drones.
The writing is on the wall. With sooooo much money behind this, it's gonna be impossible to stop it.
Face it. Disruption is what tech companies love to do and drone vehicles are going to disrupt a whole lotta existing systems, soon as they get the clearance to use low level airspace and reasonably assure federal, state, and local governments that, whatever hazards and annoyances these devices might cause, the populace will embrace them due to the benefits they provide. Soon as the regulatory/safety hurdles are crossed look out 'cuz this tech is poised to jump!
From a central hub, and with a small fleet of drone 'aircraft', a whole lotta packages can be moved. I can see, in my mind's eye, a mass of drones leaving any Amazon fulfillment center early in the morning, like bees leaving a hive.
Oh, these bees are speedy ones and they never get tired. They'll zip over to your place, drop their load, then zip back to 'base' (which could be an old timey delivery van with a rooftop landing pad/battery charger) to do it again, and again, and again until all the packages for that day are delivered. Because they're electric, they only need a battery swap or quick recharge if they're low then they're back in the sky lickety split.
Don't worry that they'll collide with birds or with drones delivering from another fleet, for they have built in avoidance systems.
Soon big box retailers will be on board. Deep pockets Walmart wants to get in on the action, as do all the others because..... ....why shop in a store when you can at home? Scan the store's offerings, hit a few buttons on its app, and before you know it your purchase is in the air speeding towards your location on The Grid. All you need is a smartphone and an address. Instant gratification.
Physical stores, with their giant parking lots? Overheard! How long do you think it's gonna be before the need for cars is lessened? Drones will have taken over a large part of the automobile’s traditional ‘errand runner’ role and don't think that drones are wimpy- there are ones in existence that can lift 50 lb. loads. Imagine that whirring over you, or your neighbor's driveway! Kids- watch out!
Heading back to base.
Mathias Arlund- Unsplash.com
Of course what will perhaps supercede even this is home food delivery. Not just pizzas, it's gonna be everything. What restaurant is gonna say no to take out if that provides a market for its product? 'Get on board with this or get left behind' will be the mantra of most restauratuers. Trending is drone food delivery that makes the idea of pulling up in the car, going inside, ordering off the menu, waiting for your food, and going through all the motions of dining in seem quaint. Sure, people like to socialize but how many are going to say "Naah, not today!" and get take out coming to them from wherever they are? Dinner could be delivered to you on the beach!
Picture the streets of any American city and just watch the retailers, convenience stores, grocery stores, shopping malls, strip malls, churches, movie theaters, schools and universities shrink and/or vanish. It might be possible to rarely have to leave the house because nearly everything will be available online. Back in the day (like last year) lots of people went out, many times only because they had to. In the absence of needing to, many wont!
The entire picture of what a city looks like could undergo massive change. No more Golden Arches, Taco Bell, 7 Eleven, or Kwik Trip on every other corner. Who's going to go through a drive up or choose to stop in? You could literally order chow on your commute home from work (if you're not one of those work at home people) and if you've timed it right the danged drone would fly right over your car and drop the stuff in the driveway right in front of you as you pulled up, hot and ready, better than present-day little Caesars!
Welcome to part of the New Normal, ready to sweep the planet. This is a developing story and there’s lots more to come. Just a peek in the box.
P.S. It will also be possible to send the drone back for more parmesan, extra hot sauce, or an order of tiramisu. It won't complain and you’ll hardly feel guilty at the prospect of using more 'clean' electric battery power.