
Zipline's Drones Will Deliver Blood in the United States This Year - sohkamyung
https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/robotics/drones/ziplines-bigger-faster-drones-will-be-delivering-blood-in-the-united-states-this-year
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walrus01
Interesting to see they are using a dense polystyrene body. Very similar to
large FPV hobbyist craft you can build. Example:

[https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32508914119.html?trace=wwwdeta...](https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32508914119.html?trace=wwwdetail2mobilesitedetail&productId=32508914119&productSubject=Skywalker-X8-white-
Version-Skywalker-FPV-Flying-Wing-2122mm-RC-Plane-Empty-frame-2-Meters-x)

[https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?2042139-Viper...](https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?2042139-Viper-V2-0-3-Meter-
Flying-Wing-for-UAV-FPV)

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dogma1138
It’s cheap, light, rigid and easily repairable.

Carbon fiber isn’t even that light if your drone isn’t a quad copter that
needs pretty insane rigidity to not break apart there aren’t easily available
materials that are better than some form of hard coated poly foam especially
for lifting surfaces.

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aldoushuxley001
That title could be interpreted in a sinister way

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jamestomasino
My exact thoughts upon reading the headline, "Is that a threat?!"

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throwawaysecops
More better: "Beer Drone"

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zenmollusc
Perhaps one day we can order "pre-alcoholised" blood (or saline solution) via
drones and avoid the hassle of having to physically drink a beverage.

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KozmoNau7
Yeah, and bypass that whole annoyance of having to taste what we drink /s

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jake-low
That promotional video in the article is pretty cool. The drone is shown
"landing" by catching a taut cable with a hook, midair. Even if there's a
human pilot doing that part, that is no small feat.

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DSMan195276
Would agree, I thought that was pretty impressive. That said, it seems a bit
risky, since if you miss the target it's pretty much a guaranteed crash. I
wonder why this approach was preferred to just using a net or similar, it
seems like that would be substantially simpler. Landing with the cable is
definitely cool looking though.

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repiret
> if you miss the target it's pretty much a guaranteed crash

How do you figure? If you miss the target, you're still flying, come around
for another pass.

If you hit the target with something other than your hook, then you crash, but
just make the hook long enough that thats not a concern.

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masonic
Or, as vampires call it, "aerial refueling".

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ReverseCold
Is there seriously an "AudioJungle" audio watermark at the start of the promo?

Am I just hearing things?

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maxerickson
Really curious what sort of market they see in the US.

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repiret
160km (~100 miles) in particular seems limiting. There's a critical access
hospital in the rural Oregon community I live in that occasionally needs more
blood in a hurry, but it wouldn't have enough range to get out here. Plus with
only a 101km/h (63 MPH) cruising speed, its not going to show up any sooner
than ground transportation.

I can see why this is useful in Rwanda where the ground transportation
infrastructure isn't as developed, but I'd be surprised if there are a lot of
places in the US where its range is long enough to cover a hospital that can't
keep its blood bank adequately supplied with ground transportation.

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maxerickson
Yeah that was a big part of my question. 50 miles doesn't buy you much in
rural areas. And distance from other facilities is a requirement for critical
access hospitals, with nearly every rural facility participating in that
program.

They are also only going to be able to get business to the extent that they
are priced cheaper than just wasting blood, so there's a cap there.

