Mercedes-Benz has decided it is time to enter into the market of drone delivery by securing a new partnership with California-based company Matternet.
Matternet has worked in the drone delivery field for a handful of years now, with successful ventures alongside the Swiss Post and with the delivery of HIV tests and results into faraway areas in Africa for UNICEF.
Mercedes-Benz is creating a new vehicle dubbed the Vision Van that would allow Matternet’s drones to take-off from the van’s rooftop to deliver packages to their final destinations.
Where the partnership gets really futuristic is Mercedes giving the Vision Van a fully automated cargo system with the option of automatically popping out the package into the waiting arms of the driver in the front cabin as he’s about to reach the intended address, or by loading a pair of Matternet’s new M2 drones with parcels to fly to one’s doorstep.
The loading system Mercedes-Benz has created is robotic, and it loads entire racks into the Vision Van with one swift movement, also saving time in that arena of package delivery. The Vision Van concept boasts a 75kW electric drivetrain with a 168-mile range.
The M2 drone is also fully autonomous—even when it comes to changing its battery pack—and has a flight range of 12 miles while carrying up to a 4.4-pound parcel. Matternet’s newest unit can also pick its cargo on its own, storing it in a special compartment that sends out information about its contents and its planned stop.
The new partnership comes alongside news of a multi-million dollar investment by Mercedes in the Silicon Valley drone company.