Of Drones and Electric Delivery Bikes

The Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences has partnered with Wingcopter—the German maker of eVTOL delivery-drones—to test the logistics, economics, and general feasibility of delivering consumer-goods to rural residents via a system comprising Wingcopter’s drones, and a fleet of electric cargo bikes. Flights and rides are scheduled to commence in the west-central German state of Hesse in the spring of 2023.

Under the auspices of a project called DroLEx—a portmanteau of Drohnen-Lastenrad-Express-Belieferung (Drone Cargo Bike Express Delivery)—everyday goods will be flown by Wingcopter drones from a central distribution-center to outlying villages, where the products will be handed over to electric-bike couriers for delivery to end customers.

The project's operations and end results will be evaluated from economic and environmental perspectives and, if deemed successful, will serve as the basis for the development of a sustainable and scalable business model.

Dr. Kai-Oliver Schocke, director of the Frankfurt UAS Research Lab, states: "In many rural areas today, supply is severely limited due to the closure of smaller, local stores. We expect that the use of delivery drones will improve the local supply in rural areas again. From a socioeconomic perspective, this type of delivery is especially beneficial to citizens with limited mobility, such as the elderly or those without their own cars. In addition, the alternative transport option can result in economic and environmental benefits for the partners involved."

Contemporary e-commerce models have habituated consumers to home delivery of their purchases. However, the economics of conventional delivery service—e.g., vehicles, fuel, delivery personnel, warehousing—are prohibitive to smaller businesses.

Drone delivery enables local and regional retailers to compete with e-commerce titans the likes of Amazon, Walmart, Target, and AliExpress, thereby ensuring the survival of private enterprise, and the sustainment of competition essential to capitalist economies. What’s more, the 53-knot speed, six-kilogram payload, and 59-nautical-mile range of Wingcopter’s 198 series delivery drones stands to significantly expand the customer catchment area of smaller retailers.

Selina Herzog, Wingcopter head of service solution design and planning, remarks: "Delivery drone applications will prevail where they serve a real need and improve lives. This is clearly the case with our medical delivery projects in Africa and other parts of the world. However, we are convinced that Drone Delivery as a Service offerings also have a real benefit for many people in rural areas of Germany. We are pleased to now be able to evaluate this use case over a longer period of time",

The DroLEx project is the first of its kind in Germany and is funded by the nation’s Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport through the "Innovative Air Mobility" funding program. The undertaking is scheduled to run for 12-months.

FMI: www.wingcopter.com