Swiss drone startup Jedsy has embarked on a pilot project to deliver laboratory samples for the Dr. Risch lab group in Switzerland using its Glider unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
The drone is unique in that it is capable of vertically docking outside of upper-story windows and balconies, much like a moth landing on a wall. This allows both sender and recipient to load and unload the UAV from the window in any weather in a matter of seconds. The docking stations the Glider lands on — the company calls them mailboxes — charge the drone, which can be back in the air within a minute.
The Glider takes off and lands vertically and transitions to and from forward flight when it is clear of the landing zone. The aircraft is also fully autonomous, and one operator can monitor several flights at once, Jedsy said.
The Glider has been designed to be “considerably quieter” than typical multicopter drones, and all of its systems are redundant to make it failsafe, the company said. To preserve patient privacy, the livestream feed used by the drone operator becomes blurry (except for the docking station) when the aircraft approaches the lab to pick up the sample.
Switzerland’s Federal Office of Civil Aviation has approved the drone’s first flight route between the Risch lab in Buchs SG and Vaduz. The use of drones to ferry samples from Risch’s smaller labs where they are collected to the larger regional labs where they are analyzed is expected to reduce travel time and improve reliability compared to the current courier delivery process, Jedsy said.
“The last two years during the Covid pandemic have shown convincingly how important this service is for the healthcare sector,” Risch CEO Martin Risch said. “If, however, the courier vehicles are stuck in traffic or if they are driving during rush hour, the planned daily routine regarding the analysis and the medical diagnosis is delayed.”
Drone transport has been under development in Switzerland for years, but most pilot projects were discontinued, Jedsy said, noting that while those drones often required three people — one person at both takeoff and landing and one person to fly the drone — its gliders only require an operator. Complex checklists and packages also hampered previous drone programs, often adding at least 20 minutes of preparation time to flights, the company said. New legislation from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency stands to complicate the operation of other drone systems even further, Jedsy said, but its drones are expected to be relatively easy to certify under the new rules, the company noted.
The start-up Jedsy has developed a completely new type of drone that can dock outside the window or balcony. The loading and unloading of the drone then only takes a few seconds and can take place in any weather, conveniently from the window. The docking station also charges the drone’s battery, so that the aircraft is ready for use at any time and is in the air within 60 seconds. Jedsy has designed the so-called glider to be considerably quieter than well-known multicopters. All systems are redundant and therefore designed to be fail-safe. Jedsy and Dr. Risch attach great value to privacy: The operator follows the drone’s flight via livestream, but as soon as it approaches the building, the surroundings become blurred, with the exception of the docking station.
“With the new drone, we have already gained important flying experience in Malawi, where over 5,000 flights have been performed as part of the UNICEF drone corridor”, explains Herbert Weirather, CEO of Jedsy. “Health centres have already been supplied with critical medicines by Jedsy and the service is being expanded continuously”.
The Delivery Glider AG with the brand name Jedsy is a Swiss start-up that develops and operates one of the most advanced delivery drones. The company was founded by the aerospace engineer Herbert Weirather and the three-time Aerobatic Helicopters World Cup champion Mirko Cesena at the beginning of 2021 and has dedicated itself to its mission “Delivery when it matters”.
Jedsy is the first company in the world to dock directly at the window or balcony with the delivery drone, allowing medical goods to be sent even more quickly and easily. The docking station or Mailbox is also the charging station, which allows Jedsy to attain a very high level of automation and decentralisation of the route network. In this way, Jedsy achieves not only a fast but also cost-efficient delivery.
Renowned investors such as Europe’s most active tech investor Cornelius Boersch have invested in Jedsy.