SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Amazon.com, Inc., the e-commerce giant, has been awarded a patent to build a floating warehouse that would serve as a launchpad, or mother ship, for drones carrying packages to customers.
The patent for "airborne fulfillment center," or AFC, was filed in 2014, awarded in April, and "unearthed" this week by CB Insights, a company based in New York that analyzes data on companies in emerging industries to provide predictive intelligence on company health and strategy, investor performance and technology adoption trends.
Amazon, headquartered in Seattle, Washington state in the U.S. Pacific Northwest, has called its ground-based warehouses, which also works as regional distribution hubs, across the world "fulfillment centers."
While making the warehouse airborne, the AFC is essentially a logistics technology for building an airship capable of flying at altitudes of 45,000 feet, or 13,000 meters, or more while stockpiling items Amazon sells through its online marketplace. An unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), popularly known as drone, would depart from the AFC when a customer place an order, and fly down to deliver the package.
As it glides down rather than having to take off and land, the drone supposedly would require little power, as the patent filing explains: "it may descend from the high altitude of the AFC using little or no power other than to guide the UAV towards its delivery destination and/or to stabilize the UAV as it descends." The used drone then would fly to a ground installation.
The AFC would remain in the air and be refueled and replenished using a shuttle, possibly a smaller aircraft capable of docking onto the airship and unloading products as well as fuel. The shuttle would also bring used drones back onto the AFC, as the delivery vehicles currently being tested by Amazon are unable to reach the height where the AFC stays.
The idea seems to be an extension for Amazon's drone delivery initiative known as Prime Air. The company has been working on the technology for years, trying to reaching customer homes without relying on logistics companies.
With completion of its first drone delivery test in the United Kingdom earlier this month, Amazon plans to expand its drone testing in 2017.
体坛英语资讯:Neymar, Thiago Silva return to Brazil
体坛英语资讯:FIFA president Infantino proposes to postpone 2021 Club World Cup
国内英语资讯:China launches new Long March-5B rocket for space station program
请不要破坏生物链
防止沙尘暴
一角钱的互助
疫情迫使奥斯卡奖破例 线上电影也将有参评资格
麻省理工的新技术:用手势就能控制无人机
印度现在也和中国一样,网课的生意火到爆
外公赶时髦作文
国际英语资讯:UNICEF raises alarm over displaced children amid COVID-19
福奇:没有科学证据表明新冠病毒来自中国实验室
中学生学习策略研究的文献综述
体坛英语资讯:Coach seeks more time to improve Kenya rugby dismal World Series season
国际英语资讯:Thousands of Libyans to return home from abroad after closure of borders: official
My Prize 我的奖品
螳螂捕蝉之后
中学生学习方法谈作文
体坛英语资讯:Rolex Shanghai Masters not affected by coronavirus
体坛英语资讯:Ice Hockey World Championship Division I canceled in Slovenia and Poland
中学生阅读学习障碍综述
体坛英语资讯:Superstar Durant among four Nets players to test positive for coronavirus
校运动会消息
我国将于2022年前后发射4艘载人飞船
中学生如何学习
体坛英语资讯:World Mens Curling Championship cancelled due to COVID-19
拼多多现在是全国第二大电商了,公开说要改变市场规则
国内英语资讯:China donates masks to Singapore to assist in COVID-19 combat
美国小哥断网进山25天,不知道全球爆发疫情!?
鲁迅作品综述
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |