KeyShotVR

Drone Deliveries & Pickups Re-Imagined
Patents: US20180053139A1 & US10410105B1

Approaching Drone Example High Rise Building

We are in an exciting new era where drones are becoming part of everyday life. These inventions, with their various capabilities, make drone deliveries to homes and businesses in high rise buildings, not only possible but simple and seamless.

With the use of our landing pads, an internet connection and our unique software to generate an exact Drone Address (My Drone Address or MDA) it will be possible for drone operators to pin point the exact location of a delivery even in locations that have virtually the same GPS co-ordinates, as in the case of multi story buildings.

Drone operators and end users will be able to schedule exact delivery dates and time slots by using the Drone Delivery Hub (DDH) system. When the parcel originator confirms the delivery with the DDH system and a time slot is agreed upon, the DDH system will generate a unique QR code which will be displayed on a digital display device which is integrated into the landing pad.

The Drone Delivery Hub System will also support a Drone Loyalty program, enticing end users to use drone deliveries. This loyalty program will support profile, accrual, redemption, fulfillment and tier management and other aspects of a typical loyalty program.

The monetization components of the Drone Delivery Hub system will allow licensed holders of the this system to manage and generate revenue streams.

To complement the Drone Delivery Hub system and drone deliveries in general, a shipping container or box has been developed to facilitate drone deliveries. This strong and reusable box or container will feature a pre-printed QR or bar-code on the box.

This QR Code will contain information such as the box or container dimensions, maximum permitted lift weight and the grip positions for drone pick up. This necessary information will allow the drone operator to correctly adjust the drone pick up mechanism to the dimension and grip positions of the box or container.

An RFID tag which will broadcast the container dimensions, grip positions and lift capacity electronically, and is embedded in the box wall. This will enable drones that have the capability to identify RFID signals to process this information wirelessly.

Unique "My Drone Address"

Delivering or picking up parcels by commercial drones is no new innovative idea, however processes, systems and physical challenges can hamper successful drone drone deliveries or pick-ups in specific situations, such as high rise buildings or condos.

This invention addressed those challenges in order to uniquely identify a drone landing pad situated on a high floor or balcony of a condo or high-rise building. It allows for reliable drone deliveries or pick-ups to previously challenging, dangerous or impossible drone landing pads locations.

Typical drones use GPS coordinates to navigate to a specific location. However in the case of high rise buildings or condos, such drone landing pads have virtually the same GPS coordinates if the landing pads are stacked on multiple floors or balconies above one another.

Our solution allows users to use a mobile device placed near the Landing Pad to generate a unique Drone Address (MyDroneAddress - MDA). This unique address (MDA) is stored within the user profile off the Drone Delivery Hub system, identifying the specific location, altitude and landing pad associated to a particular user.

Three Landing Platforms seamlessly integrate with the Drone Delivery Hub system via the internet or home network. The Landing Pads also communicate with inbound drones via guiding signals or low frequency radio waves.

Planning & Scheduling

When deliveries or pick-ups are requested, the Drone Delivery Hub (DDH) system will manage and facilitate all aspects around the planning and scheduling of the delivery or pick-up.

The DDH System will evaluate and analyze slots, and share available or recommended slots to the online retailer's system via a seamless interface.

Depending on the user type (Private, Commercial, Public companies etc), slots can be configured by the system administrator to handle low or high volumes of delivery or pick-ups.

Landing Pad owners will be able to manage and control slots from desktop or mobile devices to indicate preferred slots, or blackout periods.

When the retailer has confirmed the delivery with the DDH system, a unique QR code is shared with the DDH system, together with the agreed slot information.

The DDH system will activate and display this QR code via a digital display device in the center of the Landing Pad at a configurable time prior to the arrival of the drone.

Platform Hardware & Features

Many Drone platforms exist today, but this invention facilitates Drone Deliveries or Pickups by connecting these platforms to a system that assists Drone operators to safely and accurately deliver or pick up parcels or containers, even from balconies on high rise buildings.

Different types of landing pads are in the prototype phase. These landing pads can either be attached to balconies or solid structures such as railings, or it can simply be placed on a flat surface.

Each of these landing pads have unique features to assist inbound drones with guidance signals and communication capabilities, which in turn is connected via the Drone Delivery hub network to participating users, retailers, etc.

These platforms contain strategically placed sensors, guiding signals, network connectivity, a camera and a digital display device to display a unique QR or Barcode to the drone, prior to landing on the pad.

These landing pads and integration capabilities are designed to facilitate drone deliveries or pickups for home deliveries, but can be easily configured for other purposes, such as pickups or deliveries in industrial parks between businesses, or simply for public services, like ordering a book from a library etc.

Loyalty Management

The Drone Delivery Hub system supports a Drone Loyalty program, allowing retailers to offer loyalty credits to participating users.

Loyalty members will earn credits, which could be "miles". The system is designed in such a manner to support multiple loyalty credit currencies, such as points, tokens, miles, kilometers, stones, stars, etc.

Participating members of the Loyalty program, will earn or accrue credits for each delivery or pick-up, depending on the agreement with the retail partner. Once enough credits are accrued in the member's account, he/she can redeem those credits for free or reduced rate deliveries at participating retailers.

The system also supports profile management, accrual and redemption management, fulfillment and tier management, correspondence and communication modules and API management with participating partners.

The Drone Loyalty program works similarly to typical airline loyalty programs and members will reach silver, gold or higher level tier status as the credits grow and reach preset qualifying levels.

Drone Delivery Boxes

The creation of strong and reusable boxes or containers, allows for effective drone deliveries or pick-ups. The unique design of these boxes or containers enable drone operators or companies to identify the dimensions of a box or container, as well as the grip positions, prior to departure of the drone.

Alternatively, when the drone arrives at the pick-up sight, the pre-printed bar-code or QR code will display the dimensions, lift capability and exact type and grip positions of the box or container.

For those drones that can identify and process RFID signals an embedded RFID tag in the box will broadcast the box dimensions, grip positions and lift capability electronically.

When the pickup service is arranged by the user, the user can also provide the drone operator with a unique code that represents the dimensions, grip positions and lift capability of the box.