A while back Amazon proposed an idea in which they would rely on drones to deliver smaller packages within the city. This would no doubt help offset the number of deliveries that need to be made a day, but it would also allow customers who have made smaller purchases to receive their products sooner.
However due to various legal hurdles and restrictions from governing bodies, such plans have effectively been put on hold, at least while the authorities figure it out. However an Israeli engineer by the name of Kobi Shikar has come up with an idea in the form of a grounded drone dubbed Transwheel that would be able to make deliveries, but at the same time overcome the legal hurdles faced by drones that can fly.
Basically it’s a robot on wheel with a pair of arms that will grip the package. It will then be able to find its way to the person’s home and using a built-in camera and social networks, it can then identify if that person is meant to receive the package. In fact Shikar imagines that these drones could be used for more than just small package deliveries.
He has envisioned that by combining multiple drones, it could even withstand the weight of a cargo container and transport those around as well. Unfortunately at the moment Shikar’s Transwheel idea is still a concept, but he is hoping that with some financial backing, it will be made a reality.
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