UAV Delivery Staging Using Intermediate Recipient Hubs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drone delivery systems face inefficiencies due to time-sensitive payload requests being revoked, and the challenge of delivering to mobile recipients, leading to wasted resources and increased wear and tear on drones.
Innovation Solution
A method for optimizing drone delivery efficiency by determining an optimal intermediate location based on historical payload delivery data, allowing the drone to navigate to this location and send notifications to potential recipients within a predetermined threshold distance, thereby reducing unnecessary travel and improving delivery times.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If a drone is dispatched directly to a delivery location based on initial recipient information, then the delivery can be attempted promptly, but the drone may waste energy and time if the recipient is not present or revokes the request
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by determining an optimal intermediate location before the drone is dispatched, and by sending notifications to multiple potential recipients in advance. This allows the drone to be positioned strategically and reduces the risk of wasted trips by identifying the most likely recipient beforehand.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediate location as a mediator between the drone and the final delivery point. The drone first navigates to this intermediate location where multiple potential recipients are nearby, allowing for verification of the correct recipient before completing the final delivery, thus avoiding energy-wasting return trips.
2Productivity
If a drone navigates to a delivery location and the recipient is elsewhere, then the drone must return with the payload, but this increases wear and tear and reduces productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The system determines an optimal intermediate location in advance and sends notifications to multiple potential recipients before the drone arrives. This preliminary identification of the correct recipient prevents failed delivery attempts and reduces the need for the drone to return, thereby improving productivity and reducing operational complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms by monitoring which potential recipients are present or have claimed their packages at the intermediate location. This real-time feedback allows the drone to adjust its delivery plan and complete the delivery successfully on the first attempt, avoiding return trips and reducing operational complexity.
3Loss of time
If the drone waits at the intermediate location for a recipient request, then delivery can be made promptly, but the drone is idle for a period, however this is optimized by only waiting when a request is received
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the drone's behavior at the intermediate location based on real-time conditions. The drone waits at the intermediate location only when a recipient request is received and the distance to potential recipients is within the threshold. This dynamic approach minimizes idle time and energy consumption while ensuring prompt delivery when needed.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for optimizing drone delivery efficiency. The method includes determining an optimal intermediate location for a UAV based on historical payload delivery data related to a payload carried by the UAV, wherein the distance between the optimal intermediate location and each of a group of potential recipient devices is less than a predetermined threshold; causing the UAV to navigate to the optimal intermediate location; sending, to each potential recipient device having a probability of requesting the payload carried by the UAV which exceeds a predetermined threshold, a notification indicating the payload carried by the unmanned aerial vehicle; receiving, from a first potential recipient device of the potential recipient devices, a request to deliver the payload; and causing the UAV to navigate from the optimal intermediate location to a location of the first potential recipient device when the request to deliver the payload is received.