Doosan Mobility Innovation and 42air Signs MOU for Hydrogen-Powered Fuel Cell Drone Delivery Service at CES 2022.
SAN FRANCISCO and GYEONGGI-DO, South Korea, Jan. 6, 2022 – Doosan Mobility Innovation (DMI) and 42air signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) today at CES 2022 for a collaboration to develop hydrogen fuel cell unmanned aerial vehicles for delivery services (UAV). This agreement formalizes their shared commitment and strengthens both parties’ future involvement in increasing hydrogen fuel cell drone operations for marine drone deliveries.
DMI and 42air agree that drone delivery is a crucial future use case for drones and that by collaborating, the two businesses can become market leaders in the drone delivery industry.
To enable the new aerial delivery ecosystem, DMI and 42air plan to collaborate to create new business models and develop a service model that includes specifying and integrating fuel cell power systems, automation software, logistics software, cargo handling systems, and other technologies and processes.
Commercial drone platforms with fuel cell power packs are available from DMI, a market leader in hydrogen fuel cell drones. Fuel cells have a 4 to 5 times higher energy density than lithium-ion batteries, allowing the hydrogen-powered fuel cell drones to stay aloft for more than two hours. As a result, hydrogen-powered drones are capable of flying beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) and are well suited for distribution.
This year, DMI’s hydrogen fuel cell VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) in the “Drones & Unmanned Systems” category and Solar inspection solution with hydrogen drone (DP30+DS30W) in the “Sustainability, Eco-Design & Smart Energy” category earned two CES ‘Honoree’ awards. DMI earned the ‘Best of Innovations’ and ‘Honoree’ honors at CES 2020, and this builds on their achievements.
42air, the US subsidiary of South Korean startup 42dot, which specializes in autonomous Transport as a Service (aTaaS), has pioneered delivery to ships on the Mississippi River, using Part 107 regulations and visual flight restrictions. With the help of DMI, 42air plans to expand operations beyond visual line of sight, as well as use heavier and faster vehicles than Part 107 allows. Future deliveries to ships in anchorages near the Port of Los Angeles, as well as to oil installations in the Gulf of Mexico, are planned. The 42air technology is based on the 42dot UMOS (Urban Mobility Operating System) and extends it to include aerial deliveries and logistics.
“Hydrogen Fuel Cell technology has shown its strength in endurance by making our drone fly for two hours. By working with 42air, we will now show that this technology is happening now, not for the future, and that it is a very promising technology for drone delivery”, said Doosoon Lee, CEO of DMI.
“42air aims to improve the economics and convenience of maritime deliveries. By partnering with DMI, we can provide safe and environmentally friendly delivery, improving the life for crews on board of ships that may be stuck in distant anchorages for a long time”, said Henk Goosen, CEO of 42air.
Doosan Mobility Innovation creates the world’s first commercialized hydrogen fuel cell system for drones, which have two hours of flight time- four times longer flight time than battery drones. With two hours of flight time, DMI’s hydrogen drones are utilized in various industrial fields including utility inspection, delivery, emergency monitoring, and public safety. Based on this green technology, DMI has successfully launched our products in the USA, China, and Korea in 2019 and DMI is ready to expand our business to the rest of the world.
For more information visit: https://www.doosanmobility.com/en/
SOURCE Doosan Mobility Innovation