Amazon has become a leader when it comes to innovation in product delivery, with the plans of Amazon Air and Amazon Go shaking the entire internet. But the company isn’t done, as Zoe Leavitt, an analyst for CB Insights, has recently discovered a patent describing Amazon’s latest plans of launching an “airborne fulfilment centre utilising unmanned aerial vehicles for item delivery.” In simple words, this is going to be a giant flying warehouse in the sky.
This would be achieved using a giant airship floating at 45,000 feet above populated localities waiting for an Amazon order to come in. The airship will then dispatch individual drones to deliver the goods to the particular customer in no time.
Smaller airships would receive the returning drones coming with supplies for the fulfilment centre, along with helping the shuttle workers move back and forth from the facility.
The idea is to increase the currently limited drone range by using aerial deployment allowing them to cover a much wider delivery area. The airship warehouses would also be floating around, which would allow Amazon to move them easily wherever the consumer demand rises. For example, the patent explains that if there is a sporting event in a nearby stadium, the airship could be moved there to allow fans to buy team merchandise or snacks on the spot.
While all of this is very exciting, the patent is just a concept for now, and there are no reports of Amazon deploying warehouse blimps in the near future. But it would be awesome to see drones replacing the outdated courier service once and for all!
