Next-generation Zipline P2 delivery drone only uses 97% less energy

Zipline's autonomous electric delivery drones have flown more than 38 million miles since the company was founded in 2014. Several clinics and hospitals in Rwanda received blood and other health supplies from Zipline's first fleet. With limited delivery service and distribution centers in three states, the Silicon Valley startup has expanded into six other countries.

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Zipline unveiled its new aircraft on Wednesday, which it hopes will make rapid aerial deliveries possible everywhere in the country, even in densely populated cities.

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Platform 2 or P2 Zip is Zipline's new drone that can carry up to eight pounds of cargo within a ten-mile radius and can land packages as small as a table.

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“One of the reasons why this number is important,” says Zipline CEO and co-founder Keller Rinaudo Cliffton, “is that when you look at e-commerce in the US, you will find that a majority of packages weigh five pounds or less.”

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The company's CEO said that the P2 Zip can travel up to ten miles in just ten minutes and that he can provide you with a delivery approximately seven times faster than any typical service that you might order today. Rinaudo Cliffton, president of Rinaudo Cliffton Consulting, said that rapid deliveries by drones could bring an end to "porch pirates," individuals who steal packages that are left on a doorstep while the buyer is away from home.

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Unlike Zipline's original drone, the P1 Zip, the P2 Zip incorporates both lift and cruise propellers, as well as a fixed-wing. No matter how windy or rainy the weather gets, it can still maneuver precisely and quietly.

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P2 Zip hovers 300 feet above ground level and dispatches a mini-aircraft and container called a “droid” to deliver cargo to customers' doorsteps. On a long thin tether, the droid descends slowly, maneuvering quietly into place with fan-like thrusters before launching a package retrieval mission.

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The original Zipline P1 drones will remain in production and will continue to be used by many people, according to Zipline CEO Rinaudo Cliffton. There is no limit to the distance the P1 Zip can fly, delivering up to five pounds of cargo within a 60-mile radius, but it requires a larger space for takeoffs, landings, and dumping the cargo.

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With the P1 Zip, cargo is dropped with a parachute attached to the end of the aircraft so that its payload can land within a space about the size of two car parking spaces. In order to prepare for the next flight, an employee must disassemble a P1 Zip, install a fresh battery, and then assemble a new one to replace the old one when it returns to the base.

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P2 Zip docks and charges autonomously at a charging station that resembles a street lamp with an arm and a large disc attached:

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Zipline docks can be installed either along the side of a building or in a parking spot, depending on the zoning and permits of the area. This idea is envisioned as docking stations for restaurants in a downtown shopping district, or alongside the outer wall of a hospital, where healthcare workers can insert the droid into a window or dumbwaiter, retrieve it, and reload it by inserting the docking station into the window again.

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The installation of one of these docks takes about as much time and effort as the installation of a charging station for an electric vehicle, Rinaudo Cliffton said.

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P2 Zip was developed after Zipline established logistics networks in Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Japan, Kenya, Nigeria, and Rwanda. Currently, it operates drone delivery networks in North Carolina, Arkansas, and Utah, but the P2 will help it expand.

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P2 Zip is partnering with a number of companies, including a healthy fast-casual restaurant Sweetgreen, Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City, Michigan Medicine, Multicare Healthcare System in Tacoma, Wash., and the Rwandan government, to test delivery via P2 Zip.

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Zipline is not the only company with ambitious plans. In partnership with other startups like DroneUp and Flytrex, Zipline makes deliveries for Walmart. Despite a thicket of regulation and low demand from customers, Amazon has been working on drone deliveries here for nearly a decade.

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Quiet and green is the goal

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Earlier this year, Zipline head of engineering Jo Mardall told Trade Algo that the company focused much of its engineering on making sure the drones were not only safe and energy-efficient but also quiet enough that residents would embrace their use.

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“In my opinion, people have a right to be concerned about noise. I’m worried about the noise. As a matter of fact, I do not want to live in a world where there is a bunch of loud aircraft flying above my house,” he said. “For us, success looks like being barely audible in the background. That means something similar to the sound of leaves rustling.”

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Using a unique propeller design, the P2 Zips are able to do this, Mardall explained, adding, “Having the Zip deliver from 300 feet up is very helpful.”

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Zipline was founded by Mardall and Rinaudo Cliffton who stressed that Zipline aims to have a net-beneficial impact on the environment while providing businesses with a more convenient way to carry anything from hot meals to refrigerated vaccines, just in time for customers.

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Their explanation was that unmanned aerial vehicles alleviate traffic congestion by flying above it, thereby avoiding worsening it. It is also important to note that since Zipline's drones are electric, they can be powered with renewable energy or clean energy without emitting any harmful emissions as a result of burning jet fuel, gasoline, or diesel fuel.

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In addition to that, Zipline claims that its drone delivery service enables companies to “centralize inventory” and “dramatically reduce waste.”

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It has been proven that hospitals that use Zipline services can reduce their total annual blood supply waste rate by 67 percent, according to a study published by Lancet.

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"That's a staggering statistic, and it's a really important one for us. By reducing inventory at the last mile, and only sending it when it's needed, it saves health systems millions of dollars by reducing costs for distribution.”

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The CEO of Zipline stated that the company is working to bring that level of efficiency to every corner of commerce. Moreover, the company intends to keep the cost of drone delivery competitive with existing services, like FedEx and UPS, as well as food delivery apps such as Uber Eats and Instacart, which are already widely available.

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As a first step, the startup is planning to conduct more than 10,000 test flights this year using about 100 of its new P2 Zip drones. The company has already made plans to complete around 1 million deliveries with its existing P1 drones before the end of 2023, and by the end of 2025, Zipline expects to operate more flights per year than any other commercial airline in the world.