A highly reliable connection between drone and pilot is essential for safe BVLOS operations.
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In a recent case study, connectivity solutions provider Elsight outlined its relationship with drone service provider DroneUp.Download Full Case Study here.
drone up is Walmart’s drone delivery service provider. DroneUp has delivery locations in his six states of Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Utah, Virginia, and Texas, and has enabled drone delivery at his 34 stores in 23 cities across the country.
For DroneUp, on behalf of Walmart, reaching the level of safety required to scale BVLOS delivery means operating on the “six nines” standard of availability: 99.9999% uptime. Drone deliveries can be fully automated, but the DroneUp platform is designed with remote pilot capabilities for even greater safety and redundancy. This means a reliable connectivity solution for maintaining a solid connection between drone and pilot.
Elsite DroneUp’s technology partner with the Elsight Halo platform, which provides the connectivity you need for 99.9999% uptime. “Carrier agnostic, Halo can take up to four SIMs from multiple carriers, aggregate all available bandwidth into one, automatically balance traffic, and ensure that if a network loses coverage, We use AI-driven bonding that allows the drone communication system to seamlessly switch to a backup link,” says Elsite.
Why not use RF or SATCOM for connectivity?
“Traditional RF links have too little range and SATCOM is too expensive,” says Elsight. That leaves cellular as the best option. Drone deliveries don’t necessarily need the bandwidth of multiple SIMs, but Halo’s ability to carry multiple SIMs reduces the risk of a single point of failure. It helps DroneUp achieve the required level of reliability. Halo is also carrier agnostic, small, lightweight, and easy to integrate.
Drone delivery is just one of the operations DroneUp plans to offer from the DroneUp hub. In the future, DroneUp could serve local first responders or provide mapping and surveying services to communities. His 99.9999% reliable connection between drone and operator is essential for any type of advanced drone operation involving flight beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS). New advanced BVLOS drone operations are constantly emerging as DroneUp and Elsight continue to develop the communications ecosystem that works for the world’s largest and largest retailers. Halo is part of DroneUp’s strategy to future-proof the business to meet the needs of current customers while planning future innovative applications.
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