Drone delivery of 3 kg of refrigerated food to depopulated areas

On September 10, 2021, PRODRONE Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as PRODRONE) conducted a delivery demonstration experiment (hereinafter referred to as this experiment) in Shinshiro City, Aichi Prefecture, together with Nagoya Railway Co., Ltd. This experiment was carried out in collaboration with Consumers' Cooperative Coop Aichi, which handles local home delivery services, and the vehicle was loaded with approximately 3 kilograms of refrigerated foods such as eggs and tofu, and was delivered by automated flight to a private home 2.2 kilometers away in about seven minutes. For delivery, we use a 3D map of the sky created with the cooperation of Nakanihon Air Service Co., Ltd., and set the sky above the river as a drone highway, replacing some of the deliveries by delivery trucks with autonomously operated drones. The aircraft used, PD6B-Type3, is a highly reliable aircraft that complies with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's flight permit application level 3, which requires high safety, and is operated as a drone logistics service in Ina City, Nagano Prefecture. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the number of users of online supermarkets has increased dramatically nationwide, and there is an urgent need to improve the efficiency of delivery due to the shortage of drivers in depopulated areas. Drones are expected to be used not only in these situations, but also to help isolate villages during disasters. A Coop Aichi user who received the package said:

"When the refrigerated items were delivered by drone, I was surprised that the eggs arrived without breaking. It would be helpful if the eggs arrived on different days of the week, like refrigerated days and frozen days. Honestly speaking, I thought it would be more convenient if when you opened the box, the upper shelf was for the refrigerated items and the lower shelf was for the frozen items. It would be great if drone delivery could reduce the burden on the delivery staff."

PRODRONE will continue to develop products that will not only improve the efficiency of drone delivery, but also help solve logistics issues in mountainous areas, such as isolated villages during disasters.

PD6B-Tpye3 used for delivery

PD6B-Type3 arriving in front of Coop Aichi user's home

Delivery items include 3 kg of refrigerated items such as tsukudani, oden ingredients, and eggs.