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I thimk they are going to have to think again. Even with motor-propeller pairs on each arm there isn't enough redundancy for safety. One motor down and the reduced lift at that point with the weight above the propellers will mean instability, especially in variable winds.
Elsewhere there seems to be a consensus that for passenger carrying, eight lift arms with high mounted propellers is the minimum for both stability and adequate redundancy in the event of motor failure.
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Elsewhere there seems to be a consensus that for passenger carrying, eight lift arms with high mounted propellers is the minimum for both stability and adequate redundancy in the event of motor failure.
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An electric autogyro might be interesting. Short take off and landing; stable; no stalling; free spinning rotor; will glide down if power lost; power only needed to push it forward (lift comes from the rotors). The last fact may—and I stress may—mean that you won't need a ton of heavy batteries.
I think if you get into this machine, or any other like it, there is a reasonably good chance that you will die. Unlike a helicopter suffering an engine failure and auto-rotating to carry out a forced landing, the type of machine in this video can't. The pilot will lose control if any one of the eight motors fails and it will crash.
It would actually be safer to produce a single electric motor powered helicopter with variable pitch rotor blades, at least the pilot would retain some control if the electric motor failed. With the machine shown in the video, you would be 8 times more likely to die than relying on a single motor set-up conventional"helicopter" as I describe above. Also the auto-gyro option referred to above would be a sensible option.
The "quad" set ups are ok for UAVs due to their manoeuvrability, but as a means of transport they are too dangerous. You would be much safer buying a "Flying Death Egg" (Robinson R22).
It would actually be safer to produce a single electric motor powered helicopter with variable pitch rotor blades, at least the pilot would retain some control if the electric motor failed. With the machine shown in the video, you would be 8 times more likely to die than relying on a single motor set-up conventional"helicopter" as I describe above. Also the auto-gyro option referred to above would be a sensible option.
The "quad" set ups are ok for UAVs due to their manoeuvrability, but as a means of transport they are too dangerous. You would be much safer buying a "Flying Death Egg" (Robinson R22).
That's why I think all the stories of such as Amazon delivering by aerial quad drones are ridiculous. Any drone capable of carrying parcels could cause terrible injuries and damage in an urban environment if it crashed.
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Amazon were / are trialing delivery drones in Northamptonshire. About 12 months ago there was a blanket NOTAM advising of drone activity in a particular area, but that has gone quiet now, so they have either done what they need to do or abandoned the idea. I suspect that it is the latter.
They weren't delivering to customers, just trialing different concepts. I think the most recent being that a customer would place a special mat on their lawn. The Amazon drone man would then arrive close by in a van, probably at the end of the street, and fly the treasure onto the punter's mat. It all seems like a long winded way of simply walking up the drive and shoving it through the letter box.
I think the public have become overly optimistic about UAVs and don't appreciate the complexities, regulations and limitations.
What a thought. White van man has been bad enough, white drone man truly scary!
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Am trying to imagine a drone delivering the parcels that have arrived for me this week: 10" circular saw, mudguards, cycle lock, front and rear lamps, and a few other things
All in winds topping 60 mph and torrential rain. And then just leaving the goods out there? Or expecting us to go out and get them inside before they get totally ruined? Plus - don't you dare scare our pussy cat with your noisy drone hovering and landing.
Give me a cheery delivery person with a Transit. (Even they manage to scare the pussy cat by ringing the door bell... Soppy cat, I know.)