Amazon Files Patent in India For Drone Safety Technology; Prime Air delivery Service Coming Soon?

The idea of drone delivery was introduced to the world by Amazon and soon the company started testing the idea in the US. Amazon Prime Air, the service that Amazon wants to offer to deliver products up to 5 pounds within 30 minutes is still in the testing phase in the US.

According to a report by Business Standard, Amazon has filed for a patent tending to drone safety in India. This means that the company is planning to test this service on Indian shores as well.

Amazon’s idea is to deliver any small product within 30 minutes, thereby saving all the packaging and shipping costs. The patent the company has applied for caters to the safety of the drone. Let’s say there is any object within a specific circumference of the drone, then the drone will automatically move to a safer area.

The propellers of the drone will have sensors to detect any obstacle or objects on the way and act accordingly. This is specifically important in the Indian context because of irregular street ways and cable lines, along with trees.

If Amazon has filed for this patent, then it is imminent that the company is planning to launch the service in the next couple of years, after thorough tests. However, it should be noted that this service hasn’t been launched in the US yet either.

“For example, an AAV may be configured to deliver a payload that contains an item ordered from an e-commerce website to a customer – specified location (e.g a backyard of a home). As the AAV is preparing to land at the location, it may monitor for objects (pets, humans) approaching the AAV and quickly respond to prevent the object from becoming harmed,” says the specification filed by the company with the Patent Office.

So even in the case of bad weather, the propellers will be able to adjust to the conditions and move accordingly. This technology is also being tested in other countries where the service is going to launch soon.

Does it Make Sense in India?

Drone technology in India is still in the very early stages, and not a lot of people own a drone. In fact, it is banned in a few cities and it doesn’t make sense to have this technology for delivery of products.

The density in India, at least in large cities, is high and this will make doorstep delivery through drones a big task. It will be impossible to make the drone land at the desired spot without it getting lost or stolen.

Since drones are so uncommon, it might even catch the people by surprise. This doesn’t ensure safety to the drone and the package to be delivered in India. The market is not mature enough to accept such technology right now.

I don’t think Amazon will be able to launch this product in India very soon. In fact, seeing all the hurdles, it may drop the idea as a lot of people aren’t equipped to handle this technology, and moreover, the residents themselves are not familiar enough. Do not keep your hopes too high, because drone powered technology hasn’t proven to be successful in India ever.