無人機行業(yè)能否安全起飛

由雕龍文庫 分享時間：2024-03-30 10:13:34 收藏本文

無人機行業(yè)能否安全起飛

This month an autonomous drone made a 13-minute flight over the British countryside to drop off an Amazon television-streaming stick and a bag of popcorn to a customer near Cambridge.

上個月，一架自動無人機在英國鄉(xiāng)村上空飛行13分鐘，給一位劍橋附近的客戶遞送了一部亞馬遜(Amazon)流媒體電視棒和一袋爆米花。

At one level, the delivery was little more than a quirky publicity stunt to demonstrate the potential of technology. But it also confirmed Amazon’s deadly serious intent to develop a delivery infrastructure that could yet revolutionise the logistics industry.

從一個層面來看，這次投遞只是一次新奇的宣傳手段，展示了科技的潛力。但它也證實，亞馬遜極其嚴(yán)肅的開發(fā)遞送基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施的意愿可能會給物流行業(yè)帶來革命。

“I know this looks like science fiction. It’s not,” Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder, told a television interviewer in 2024, revealing the company’s drones programme. “It will work, and it will happen, and it’s gonna be a lot of fun.”

“我知道這看上去像是科幻小說。并非如此?！眮嗰R遜創(chuàng)始人杰夫?貝索斯(Jeff Bezos)在2024年的一次電視采訪中透露了該公司的無人機計劃，他告訴采訪者，“它是可行的，它會實現(xiàn)的，它會帶來很多樂趣?！?/p>

The holy grail of the logistics industry has always been to solve the “l(fā)ast mile” challenge, the trickiest and most expensive link in the delivery chain. Amazon Prime Air could be part of the solution. Drone operators claim their deliveries can be quicker, safer and greener than most other options.

物流行業(yè)的終極難題一直是解決“最后一英里”挑戰(zhàn)，這是遞送鏈最復(fù)雜且成本最高的一環(huán)。亞馬遜Prime Air可能是這個解決方案的一部分。無人機運營商聲稱，與多數(shù)其他選擇相比，無人機送貨可能會更快、更安全且更環(huán)保。

If the necessary infrastructure were in place, drones could be used for the bulk of Amazon’s deliveries. According to Mr Bezos, Amazon’s drones can deliver packages weighing up to 5lb (a little over 2kg), covering 86 per cent of the items it delivers.

如果必要的基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施到位，可以用無人機完成亞馬遜的絕大多數(shù)投遞業(yè)務(wù)。貝索斯表示，亞馬遜的無人機可以遞送最重5磅（2公斤多一點）的貨物，可以滿足其遞送商品的86%。

The critical question is whether that infrastructure will ever be built. Will we allow the mass use of commercial drones over populated areas? Can we envisage a day when thousands of commercial drones buzz through our cities delivering parcels to specially designated drop-off points on rooftops and in car parks?

關(guān)鍵的問題是這些基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施是否會建立起來。我們是否會允許在人口稠密的地區(qū)大規(guī)模使用商用無人機？我們能否設(shè)想有一天數(shù)千架商用無人機嗡嗡地飛過城市上空，把包裹投遞到屋頂和停車場的專用降落點？

In many countries, we are at the beginning of a fumbling triangular dance between operators, regulators and the public about the safety and acceptability of such deliveries.

在很多國家，運營商、監(jiān)管者和公眾圍繞這種快遞方式的安全性和可接受性的笨拙角力剛剛開始。

Operators argue that commercial drones have been successfully used for years in sparsely populated areas of the world. In the early 1980s the Japanese pioneered the use of drones to spray pesticides on rice fields. Energy companies regularly use drones to survey remote oil pipelines, damaged power lines and wind turbines.

運營商辯稱，商用無人機在全球人口稀少的地區(qū)已成功使用多年。上世紀(jì)80年代初，日本率先使用無人機向稻田噴灑殺蟲劑。能源公司經(jīng)常利用無人機勘察遙遠(yuǎn)的石油管線、受損的電力線路和風(fēng)力渦輪。

Their use is particularly effective in parts of the developing world where drones can leapfrog poor conventional infrastructure. Rural parts of Rwanda are already benefiting from drone-delivered, time-sensitive medicines.

這些用途在發(fā)展中國家一些地區(qū)尤為有效，在那里無人機可以超越薄弱的傳統(tǒng)基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施。盧旺達(dá)的農(nóng)村地區(qū)已受益于用無人機投遞有時效性的藥品。

A recent report by PwC highlighted the speed at which the industry is developing, identifying 200 drone manufacturers globally. “The drone sector is on the verge of becoming a mass industry, with enormous potential to disrupt various types of business,” it concluded.

普華永道(PwC)最近的一份報告突顯出該行業(yè)發(fā)展的速度，報告確定全球有200家無人機制造商。報告總結(jié)稱：“無人機行業(yè)正接近成為一個大規(guī)模行業(yè)，有著顛覆各種行業(yè)的巨大潛力。”

But allowing autonomous commercial drones to deliver customers’ parcels in cities would cross a perception threshold. It would certainly be the most visible — and possibly controversial — use of the technology so far.

但允許自動商用無人機在城市遞送客戶包裹將跨越一個認(rèn)知門檻。這肯定是迄今這項技術(shù)最明顯也最可能備受爭議的用途。

Regulators in some countries, such as the UK, Japan and Poland, are adopting an accommodating approach, encouraging drone operators to experiment provided they meet defined safety standards. However, other countries — most notably the US — are far more cautious about whether to allow operators to fly autonomous drones beyond the line of sight.

英國、日本和波蘭等一些國家的監(jiān)管機構(gòu)正采取包容政策，一旦無人機運營商符合規(guī)定的安全標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，就鼓勵它們進(jìn)行試驗。然而其他國家（特別是美國）對于是否允許運營商讓自動無人機飛到視線以外要謹(jǐn)慎得多。

Ed Leon Klinger, chief executive of Flock, an early stage start-up company serving the drone industry, says the UK is at the forefront of global thinking on commercial drone use. “The drone industry is developing at an incredible pace. We will see drones in cities within three years,” he predicts.

為無人機行業(yè)提供服務(wù)的早期初創(chuàng)企業(yè)Flock的首席執(zhí)行官埃德?萊昂?克林格(Ed Leon Klinger)表示，英國處于商用無人機應(yīng)用全球思考的前沿。他預(yù)測：“無人機行業(yè)正以驚人的速度發(fā)展。我們將在3年內(nèi)在城市看到無人機?！?/p>

His company, which provides real-time data analytics on weather and traffic conditions to operators, enables drones to fly more safely and smartly in cities and helps insurance companies price risk.

他的公司向無人機運營商提供有關(guān)天氣和交通狀況的實時數(shù)據(jù)分析，能夠確保無人機在城市更安全和更智能地飛行，并幫助保險公司為風(fēng)險定價。

Even though regulators and operators are learning to bump along together, the public appears to be trailing a long way behind. One of the commercial drone industry’s biggest fears is that irresponsible hobbyists will destroy public trust in the technology before responsible operators can prove themselves. Public concern is rising about how hobbyist drones have been used to snoop on neighbours, deliver drugs to prisoners and endanger aircraft. Securityservices are already installing “geofences” around sensitive sites