Slashdot Mirror


Walmart Applies To Test Drone Use For Delivery and Inventory Checking (faa.gov)

An anonymous reader writes: Retailing giant Walmart has submitted an application to the Federal Aviation Administration requesting permission to run drone trials. The tests are to include not only home delivery — with the permission of residents within the 'flight path' — but also inventory-checking procedures at Walmart parking lots. It only costs $5 to make an application of this nature to the FAA, and until some hint of concrete legislation comes to light from the newly-formed UAS task force on November 20th, that's probably about as much as any company would want to spend on speculative drone-delivery research.

20 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. Watch out for falling prices! by ztexas · · Score: 4, Funny

    And/or medium-sized drones carrying Velveeta and beer!

    1. Re:Watch out for falling prices! by Burz · · Score: 1

      Max Headroom was not an exaggeration after all (the episode with junk falling from the sky).

  2. Hint of concrete legislation from the task force? by ScentCone · · Score: 1

    No. Legislation comes from the legislature. The DoT's new regulatory efforts are not only NOT legislative (they are regulatory, from the administration running the executive branch), but they are talking about doing things that fly in the face of a law that WAS passed by the legislature. The DoT is talking about regulating classes of RC toys that congress explicitly ruled as off-limits from exactly that sort of action by the administration.

    --
    Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
  3. Concrete application comes to light by turkeydance · · Score: 1

    until some hint of the FAA on November 20th. you can play, too.

    1. Re:Concrete application comes to light by willworkforbeer · · Score: 1

      Applying concrete is kind of an edge case for drones.

      Now, applying crowd-controlling teargas, there's your growth market.

      --
      Pretending this is my office full of bitter coworkers..
  4. Lasers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    "... inventory-checking procedures at Walmart parking lots ..." (drone follows you in parking lot and says [in robot voice]) Did you just buy that, please show your receipt, return to store now, last warning, 3, 2, 1 [pew! pew!]

  5. Re:Headline by techno-vampire · · Score: 1

    No. They're applying for permission to run a test, in public, of using drones for delivery and inventory checking, not for permanent permission to use them that way. The headline is quite specific about that as written.

    --
    Good, inexpensive web hosting
  6. Re:Great by EzInKy · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Thankfully, delivery trucks have well defined regulated lanes of travel to keep them off private property.

    --
    Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
  7. Re:Hint of concrete legislation from the task forc by fred911 · · Score: 1

    They don't have rules, the have suggestions for safe operation that they encourage people to follow.

    https://www.faa.gov/uas/model_...

    --
    09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B - D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0 45 5F E1 04 22 CA 29 C4 93 3F 95 05 2B 79 2A B2
  8. Re:Hint of concrete legislation from the task forc by ScentCone · · Score: 1

    The FAA has had rules for R/C Aircraft for decades.

    This is factually incorrect. The FAA has had rules against interfering with aviation ... but that applies to everything and everyone (hot air balloons, ultralights, kites, RC models ... everything).

    You used to need and FCC License too.

    Increasingly academic, as many systems use freely available FX and levels of power (roughly like using WiFi). Long-range FPV operators STILL need FCC licensing, but of course most just blow that off.

    DoT?

    Department of Transportation

    What Law did congress Pass and a President sign that covers this

    The FAA Modernization And Reform Act of 2012.

    Among other things, note section 336, which explicitly denies the FAA authority to pass any new regs regarding recreational use of RC (model aviation). More to the point, the law required the FAA to incorporate UAS technology into the national air space by August of this year. The administration has blown that deadline, and dragged their feet the entire time. They don't like the law that congress wrote, so they're getting around it by turning to the DoT, instead of the narrowly defined FAA has referenced in 336, in order to regulate hobbyists despite the law that says they can't.

    --
    Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
  9. Nothing to see here, move along by rsilvergun · · Score: 1

    Nope, no way automation is going to eliminate any jobs, and even if it were (which it's not) we can just lower pay to compensate and prices will fall until the lower pay has equal buying power, right?

    --
    Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
    1. Re:Nothing to see here, move along by 0123456 · · Score: 2

      Nope, no way automation is going to eliminate any jobs, and even if it were (which it's not) we can just lower pay to compensate and prices will fall until the lower pay has equal buying power, right?

      You're right. It's not like we've been automating jobs away for a century or more, yet now have far more people employed than were back then.

  10. Re:Great by EzInKy · · Score: 1

    Never say never. Again thankfully, both criminal and civil penalties apply when they do stray. Additionally, few if any ground delivery vehicle owners argue for the right to violate others privacy and space. Drone proponents could learn a lesson from them.

    --
    Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
  11. Re:Great by easyTree · · Score: 1

    Ground-based delivery vehicles are also rarely used for airborne missile strikes within another country's sovereign territory - another feather in their cap - go delivery trucks!

  12. Re:Wong Direction by easyTree · · Score: 1

    Amazon Drone-Delivery Customer Service Clerk: Woa, I see that Uncle Sam has ordered and paid for another air-strike for an unnamed nephew in Southern Oilistan!

    Colleague: *Envy* Dude; I wish I had an uncle that generous.

  13. Re:Hint of concrete legislation from the task forc by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 1

    DoT?

    Department of Transportation

    In this case, since it involves RC stuff, I think DoT == Department of Toys . . .

    --
    Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
  14. Re:Who's dick by Dog-Cow · · Score: 1

    Probably the same dick your mother was sucking when she conceived you. We're still not sure how the semen ended up in her vagina.

  15. Inventory Checking? by DriveDog · · Score: 1

    Meaning watching customers headed for their cars with presumably stolen merchandise? Counting the shopping carts? Spying on RVs they allow to park there for the night?

  16. Re:Technology be damned! by DriveDog · · Score: 1

    Don't worry, if you live in Kentucky you now get to blast away at them.

  17. In related news ... by PPH · · Score: 1

    New section to be added to the People of Walmart web page : aerial reconnaissance photos.

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.