Last year we covered Flirtey, a young startup dedicated to the development of drones for fully automated, airborne delivery services. In July, the company was responsible for the first FAA-approved drone delivery in the United States, when a series of medical deliveries were made to a rural healthcare clinic. Last week, Flirtey achieved another first – the first fully autonomous, FAA-approved drone delivery to an urban area in the US.
The drone flew along a pre-determined route and lowered a package containing bottled water, emergency food supplies and a first aid kit to a residential area in Hawthorne, Nevada. While a pilot and several other observers stood by, their assistance was never needed.
“This was by far one of the most successful UAS operations we ran and represents an advanced level of test and development of new UAS technology, flight planning, innovation, and mission execution by Flirtey,” said Chris Walach, Director of Operations for the FAA-designated Nevada UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) Test Site. “The Flirtey team excelled in all aspects of safe flight operations in the National Airspace System (NAS).”
One of Flirtey’s top priorities in the development of autonomous drone delivery is disaster relief and other humanitarian aid. One of the biggest issues in getting timely aid to people in need is access – remoteness and infrastructure damage can severely slow down the delivery of relief supplies. Drone delivery could eliminate those problems. One thing the Nevada delivery showed was the drone’s ability to autonomously navigate around buildings and other obstacles, delivering its cargo with precision.
“Conducting the first drone delivery in an urban setting is a major achievement, taking us closer to the day that drones make regular deliveries to your front doorstep,” said Flirtey CEO Matt Sweeny. “Drone delivery by Flirtey is set to save lives and change lifestyles.”
“3D printing has been invaluable for our team in regards to rapid prototyping and keeping up with our fast-paced testing and production timelines at Flirtey,” Sweeny told 3DPrint.com. “The Flirtey delivery drone is constructed from carbon fibre, aluminium and 3D printed components. It is a lightweight, autonomous and electrically driven unmanned aerial vehicle. It conducts deliveries by lowering the package in a controlled manner with the drone hovering in place. Built in safety features include low battery return to safe location, auto return to home in case of strong winds, low GPS signal or communication loss.”
“I congratulate Flirtey on successfully completing the nation’s first fully autonomous urban package delivery, and I am thrilled that Flirtey is not only testing its cutting-edge technology in Nevada, but also creating jobs through its headquarters relocation to Reno,” said Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval. “When we first set out to target Unmanned Aerial Vehicles through the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, we knew that our state had the expertise to make an FAA Test Site designation a reality, but what we really hoped to achieve was for Nevada to be the center of the commercial UAV industry — the epicenter of research and development, testing, manufacturing, and policy surrounding drones and autonomous systems. The Knowledge Fund has been a successful tool to draw the industry’s attention to our capabilities, and Flirtey’s relocation to Nevada is an important step in this process. I welcome Flirtey to the New Nevada, and look forward to watching them succeed.”
The recent delivery was filmed as part of a half-hour documentary called Foreign Correspondent, which will air on ABC sometime in mid-April. What do you think of the use of this new technology? Discuss in the 3D Printed Medical Drone Supplies forum over at 3DPB.com.