Humorously, fetching a small package with a well-defined size and shelf location and putting it into a standardized box on a conveyor belt is by far the easiest step of this process to automate.
In all seriousness, there's no reason that homes or apartment complexes couldn't have fairly standardized drone landing pads. Clever people could probably rig up some sort of simple elevator to bring the shipments inside. Incidentally, the landing pads could also be marked in a standard way to assist in computer vision controlled automated landing.
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I was a bit distraught to see human hands touching my requested item at one point in the video. Surely that can be eliminated.
Humorously, fetching a small package with a well-defined size and shelf location and putting it into a standardized box on a conveyor belt is by far the easiest step of this process to automate.
I have to go outside to retrieve the package? Deal-breaker.
In all seriousness, there's no reason that homes or apartment complexes couldn't have fairly standardized drone landing pads. Clever people could probably rig up some sort of simple elevator to bring the shipments inside. Incidentally, the landing pads could also be marked in a standard way to assist in computer vision controlled automated landing.
And if you provide a charging point and allow the drone to charge, then delivery is free.
Amazon has warehouse robots already. I think it's just often cheaper to pay people.
http://www.bloomberg.com/video/amazon-s-robotic-workforce-no...
Maybe this is what they need:
http://www.rethinkrobotics.com/products/baxter/
Hmm...I think Baxter will surrepent (http://prevaricate.me/?p=666) into my room though...
Pneumatic tubes, with a drop pad on the roof