The context: In the near future, clients in all areas of the economy will begin to see the impact of drones on their operational processes – from the way they receive parcels to how blood supplies are being delivered to remote areas. Businesses and labour that are expected to be replaced by drones in the very near future within today’s transportation industry are being valued at EUR 12.1 bn. Within 20 years, the European drone sector is expected to directly employ more than 100,000 people and to have an economic impact exceeding EUR 10 bn per year.
The Problem: Even though more and more market applications are emerging, the barriers of this young technology are evident: „Our biggest concern regarding the professional application of drones is the limited reach. The battery technology has to improve massively. But this will take a while." (Jens Rosenow, UAV DACH e.V. – German association representing the drone industry). This statement can be easily quantified by observing current solutions: Depending on their construction type, today’s industry class drones cannot reach distances longer than 160 km and fly longer than 45–120 min.
● Multi-rotor drones are slow and highly inefficient for long flights: they can only fly for 30–50 min and cover distances of max. 20 km.
● Winged drones that can takeoff and land vertically (VTOL) have a maximum flight time of 120 min and cannot cover more than 160 km.
● Winged drones can achieve higher flight times, but cannot takeoff and land vertically. A runway/ramp/parachute or safety net is required – resulting in less flexibility, less ease of use and damages during operation.
