![]() ![]() Without much action on the regulatory front, much of late-20 left Amazon with quite a bit of time to work on functionality. ![]() The company spearheaded efforts in the summer of 2015 to set guidelines on where drones should fly, and later in the year debuted a new design for its drone with a longer range (15 miles) and better tech, which allows the drone to avoid ground and air-based obstructions automatically. government agencies had any effect, Prime Air seemed to gain some momentum throughout the rest of 2015 and into 2016. Prime Air catches some breaks (late-2015 through late-2016)Īlthough it’s not clear whether Amazon’s public shaming of U.S. Amazon followed through with its threats, leading to a testing center that resides a mere 2,000 feet from the U.S. This meant much of the testing for Prime Air would still need to happen outside of the U.S. The FAA established new drone regulations in February 2015, which stated that UAVs must be operated within eyesight of the pilot, and banned the flight of these drones over people who have no connection to the drone’s operation.Īmazon would receive somewhat of a break the following month, however, when the FAA finally approved testing with tight restrictions for a drone that the company had long since retired. Initially, things did not look good for Prime Air. A second letter to the the FAA showed Amazon’s frustration, with the company warning that the agency’s lack of communication would force the company to start testing abroad, which it did by building a new R&D center in the United Kingdom that became operational in 2014. The FAA seemingly ignored Amazon’s requests, though. By April of that year, Amazon said it was already testing technologies for the service, and in July the company made its first overtures to the FAA about officially testing Prime Air outside. from moving forward in 2014 and laying the groundwork for drone delivery. However, said criticism didn’t stop Bezos & Co. We’ve already discussed the launch of Prime Air in 2013, and the skepticism of the project from critics. Prime Air struggles to take off (2013 through early-2015) As for a timeline, it looks like we will have to wait until as late as 2020, if not later, for large-scale availability. For this one, the company has suggested using street lights, cell towers, and other high-lofted objects as potential “ docking stations.” And how about getting the package to you? Does the drone land on your front porch? Maybe not - it might deliver the package via parachute.īut in every case, these ideas are not yet realistic and show that it’s likely that it will be many more years before Prime Air takes off (no pun intended). Another issue Amazon has to deal with is where to put these drones when they’re not in use. To remedy this - and this is pretty out there - Amazon recently patented what it calls an “ airborne fulfillment center.” This basically amounts to a warehouse that doubles as a drone airport, one that would hang suspended from a blimp. Although Amazon has established a commendable network of fulfillment centers throughout the country, there are only locations in 24 states, most of which are coastal. One big hurdle is the issue of getting the packages to you. Getting Amazon drones off the ground (both literally and figuratively) will take a lot of work, in addition to persuading the FAA to agree to let drones in the air in the first place. Be sure to circle back from time to time, as this article is updated regularly to include the latest news and information. It starts with Prime Air’s history and goes through every major development up to the present. To help you keep track of the project’s development, we’ve put together this comprehensive timeline. What is artificial intelligence? Here’s everything you need to knowĭelivery drones: NASA to test advanced traffic control system for cities Amazon’s crazy delivery-drone blimp, as imagined by a video artist ![]()
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