The drone industry continues its rapid evolution, touching everything from retail delivery and public safety to border security and advanced hazard prediction. This week Drone News, we saw significant developments on multiple fronts. Let’s dive into the latest updates: Zipline’s expansion into Texas, NASA’s innovative safety system, new AI-powered drone detection at the border, and a major funding boost for BRINC.
Zipline Takes Flight in Texas with Walmart Partnership
Drone delivery pioneer Zipline is expanding its reach, launching services in the Dallas area, starting with Mesquite, Texas. This move is powered by a partnership with retail giant Walmart. Customers within the designated service areas can now sign up to receive orders delivered directly to their homes within approximately 30 minutes.
This expansion features Zipline’s new P2 Zip drone. Key features include:
Payload & Range: Capable of carrying up to 8 lbs within a 10-mile radius.
Precision Delivery: Boasts “dinner plate level accuracy,” meaning it can land packages precisely on small targets like doorsteps or patio tables.
Advanced Design: Utilizes both lift and cruise propellers with a fixed-wing design, making it quieter and more resilient, handling wind gusts up to 45 mph and operating even in rain.
Unique Delivery Mechanism: The P2 Zip hovers around 300 feet above the delivery location and lowers a smaller container, the “delivery zip,” on a tether. This smaller unit uses its own fan-like thruster for precise maneuvering before gently setting the package down.
Navigation: Employs cameras, sensors, and Nvidia chips for autonomous navigation and obstacle avoidance.
Walmart notes they’ve completed over 120,000 drone deliveries since initiating programs with Zipline and other partners in 2021. Zipline itself has an impressive track record, logging over 100 million autonomous flight miles and completing roughly 1.5 million deliveries globally since 2016, significantly outpacing many competitors. Notably, Zipline designs and builds its drones domestically in the United States.
NASA’s Proactive Approach to Drone Safety: Predicting Hazards
NASA is developing an advanced software system aimed at making drone flights safer by predicting potential hazards before they occur. The system, known as the In-time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS), focuses on real-time risk assessment.
Instead of merely reacting to issues like lost navigation or communication signals, IASMS anticipates these threats and alerts the operator proactively. Michael Vincent from NASA’s Langley Research Center explains the system ideally operates “unnoticed in the background,” only intervening just before an unusual situation might arise.
NASA has been rigorously testing IASMS, running complex simulations in March involving scenarios like hurricane relief missions with multiple drones operating beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), performing drops, and conducting inspections.
The long-term vision is for IASMS to integrate with NASA’s Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM) framework. This could be a crucial step towards enabling routine, safe drone operations in complex urban and suburban environments, ultimately building greater public confidence in drone technology’s safety and reliability. Widespread adoption, however, will depend on demonstrating effectiveness and ensuring the necessary communication infrastructure is in place.
AI-Powered Drone Detection Deployed at US-Mexico Border
Pierce Aerospace has announced a partnership with Skyllark Labs to deploy advanced drone detection technology at the US-Mexico border. The system integrates Pierce’s YR1 Remote ID sensor and other detection sensors onto Skyllark’s 100-foot Scout Tower.
What sets this system apart is its use of “Superintelligence AI” (as termed by the companies). Unlike systems relying solely on pre-programmed data, this AI learns in real-time from the data collected directly in the field, allowing it to adapt more effectively.
The system is designed to detect, track, and identify drones and potentially other threats, providing border security and law enforcement with enhanced situational awareness both in the air and on the ground. Aaron Pierce, CEO of Pierce Aerospace, called it a “big step forward,” while Amarjot Singh, CEO of Skyllark Labs, stated they are “redefining real-time border security.”
BRINC Secures $75 Million and Strategic Alliance with Motorola Solutions
Seattle-based drone manufacturer BRINC has announced a significant milestone: securing $75 million in new funding. Alongside this investment, BRINC revealed a strategic alliance with Motorola Solutions.
This alliance will integrate BRINC’s drones directly into Motorola’s extensive public safety ecosystem. This includes integration with:
APX Radios
Vesta 911 Call Management System
Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD)
Real-Time Crime Center Software
A key implication of this integration is the potential for automated drone dispatch. When specific events trigger alerts within the Motorola systems, BRINC drones could be deployed automatically, potentially speeding up response times and providing crucial aerial intelligence for first responders.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
About Zipline:
Q1: What is the P2 Zip drone?
A: The P2 Zip is Zipline’s newer delivery drone model used in the Texas expansion. It features a fixed-wing design, lift and cruise propellers, can carry 8 lbs up to 10 miles, and uses a tethered “delivery zip” for precise package placement.
Q2: How accurate is the Zipline delivery?
A: Zipline claims “dinner plate level accuracy,” meaning it can deliver packages to very small, specific areas like a doorstep or small table.
Q3: How does the Zipline delivery actually work?
A: The main drone (P2 Zip) hovers high above (around 300 ft), then lowers a smaller unit (“delivery zip”) on a tether. This smaller unit maneuvers itself precisely into place using a thruster before releasing the package.
About NASA’s IASMS:
Q4: What does IASMS stand for?
A: IASMS stands for In-time Aviation Safety Management System.
Q5: What is the main goal of NASA’s IASMS?
A: The primary goal is to predict potential drone hazards (like loss of navigation or communication) before they happen and alert the operator, rather than just reacting after an incident occurs.
Q6: What is UTM?
A: UTM stands for Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management. It’s a framework being developed (with NASA involvement) to manage drone traffic safely and efficiently, similar to air traffic control for traditional aircraft but tailored for low-altitude drone operations.
About Pierce Aerospace / Skyllark Labs:
Q7: What’s special about the AI used in the border detection system?
A: The AI is designed to learn in real-time from data gathered in the field, meaning it can adapt to new threats or changing conditions, rather than relying solely on potentially outdated pre-programmed information.
Q8: What sensors are being used?
A: The system uses the Pierce YR1 Remote ID sensor along with other unspecified drone detection sensors mounted on a Skyllark Scout Tower.
About BRINC:
Q9: How much funding did BRINC raise?
A: BRINC secured $75 million in new funding.
Q10: What does the Motorola Solutions partnership mean practically?
A: It means BRINC drones will be integrated into Motorola’s public safety software and communication systems (like 911 dispatch and radios). This could lead to drones being automatically dispatched to incidents reported through these systems.
