One way to beat the Black Friday crush: Footage shows watch delivered to home by DRONE
BLACK Friday may be coming in fast this Friday but some shoppers may be relieved to hear one company’s futuristic solution to tackling the chaotic crush.
Every year more and more shopping is ordered online, leaving delivery men stretched beyond belief - especially in the run up to Christmas.
But Halifax-based watchmaker Weird Ape believes they may have stumbled upon the perfect solution - using drones.
Amazing footage captured by the company shows the moment they managed to deliver two of their watches after flying the remote-controlled device over the rolling Yorkshire landscape.
Company founder Stefan Kozikowski piloted the watch-carrying drone for half a kilometre to a customer’s home in Keighley.
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WEIRD APE
The flight using the £800 DJI Advanced 3 drone went without a hitch, with two watches delivered safely onto the customer’s drive.
He said: “Watches are small, light and high value making them ideal candidates for drone deliveries.”
To carry out the test, Weird Ape says they had to get a Civil Aviation Authority license to fly the drone - which cost £1,500 and involved Stefan taking a written test and a flying exam - and take out specialist insurance.
The drone can travel at 20mph in a straight line, meaning it can reach remote locations much quicker, and items are dropped automatically when the drone touches down.
WEIRD APE
Watches are small, light and high value making them ideal candidates for drone deliverie
Mr Kozikowski said: “One of the most challenging parts was building the payload delivery system.
“At first we were integrating a receiver and servos to open the hatch. This all needed additional power and added weight.
“Seeing us struggle with the design our accountant, an avid fisherman, suggested we create a much simpler design based on a bait dropper.
WEIRD APE
“This clever design didn’t require any of the complicated communications equipment, saving cost and weight.”
While Mr Kozikowski says the flight proved the worth of drones as a delivery tool the law currently means the devices cannot be piloted remotely.
For the Keighley flight, he and a colleague had to drive to within 500m of the customer’s house before the drone could be launched.
But he says the test was well worth the hassle and believes any more companies could take up the method in the future.
