Unmanned Systems Technology 021 | Robot Aviation FX450 l Imaging Sensors focus l UAVs Insight l Liquid-Piston X-Mini l Riptide l Eurosatory 2018 show report l Zipline l Electric Motors focus l ASTS show report

77 A s retail companies and tech firms continue to trial multi- rotor aerial craft for delivery tasks, one Silicon Valley company has already established a successful network of unmanned systems – and is on an urgent mission. In October 2016, Zipline was contracted by the government of Rwanda, East Africa, to establish a distribution centre with 15 UAVs to carry much- needed medical packages to 21 hospitals in the western half of the country. Rwanda has high rates of communicable diseases and maternal mortality relative to the rest of the world, and the quality of healthcare and medical supply lines has historically been low. Zipline’s systems have therefore become critical to the safe and timely delivery of medical supplies such as blood, plasma and platelets to hospitals. Since operations began, the company has flown more than 300,000 km, delivering 7000 units of blood over 4000 flights; about one-third of those deliveries have been for emergency, life-saving reasons. More than 20% of Rwanda’s blood supply outside the capital of Kigali is now transported through Zipline’s supply chains. The company has also recently announced an overhaul of its logistics system and technologies, to cut the time between receiving an order and launching a UAV from 10 minutes to one. Zipline’s CEO Keller Rinaudo says, “We’ve taken everything we’ve learned from making all those life-critical deliveries, and redesigned our system and operation from top to bottom. The new aircraft design and pre-flight checking system will help us scale up, to meet the needs of countries around the world.” Zipline’s UAV The fixed-wing UAV (called the Zip) is central to the supply operation. A typical Zip consists of three key parts: a 5 ft long fuselage-and-tail section, with a carbon fibre rod connecting the foam fuselage to the tail; a wing section 10 ft across that integrates atop the fuselage; and a battery pack section that integrates into the front of the wings. Each of the three sections is stored in racks in a Zipline hangar, with enough components kept in-house to put together 30 Zips in total. The sections are assembled and put on a launcher when it’s time for a mission. The Zip’s cruising speed is 101 kph – an improvement of 21 kph over the previous generation of UAVs – with a top speed of 128 kph. The craft has two motors mounted on a shaft above the rear of the fuselage, with one push rotor and one pull rotor, and a typical flight endurance range of 150-160 km while carrying up to 1.75 kg of cargo. In addition to the battery, the fuselage houses the autopilot, GPS, INS and package/payload bay. A total of eight flight control surfaces – one flap and one aileron per wing, and two ‘ruddervators’ on each half of the UAV’s V-tail rear section – are operated by the Zip’s autopilot. The vehicle flies fully autonomously, with pre-planned flight routes and GPS data integrated into a Zipline air traffic management system. The data is then transmitted to local flight regulators to allow airspace integration. Zipline | In operation Rory Jackson goes behind the scenes of a UAV fleet that delivers medical supplies to hospitals in East Africa Blood vessels Unmanned Systems Technology | August/September 2018 Blood supplies are stored in the Zipline refrigeration facilities, where they are boxed in parachute-equipped, padded containers following the arrival of a new order