Techdirt. Stories filed under "shipping"

Move Over 'TacoCopter': Here Comes The 'Internet Of Drones'

Glyn Moody — Tue, 8 Jan 2013 00:00:00 PST

As we know, the Internet works by breaking digital information up into IP packets which are then routed independently over the network, and then re-assembled at their destination. Anything made up of 0s and 1s can be sent anywhere with an Internet connection in this way, but that isn't much good for physical objects.

It's true that we are fast approaching the day when we will be able to use a 3D scanner to send a digital file representing an object across the Internet so that it can then be printed at the destination. But that only works for simple, fungible items like cups or replacement parts, and is useless if you want to deliver a particular, personal item rather than just a generic copy.

To do that, we need an Internet of drones:

A short distance drone delivery service built on an open protocol. Think short haul logistics.

It's a system that will explode in a way that is very similar to the way the Internet grew up -- where connections were bought by individuals and installed one modem and IP address at a time, and where the early providers are local geeks with shelves full of modems and an expensive T-1 lines.

It's an approach that uses "uncontrolled airspace" and incremental purchases of cheap, standards compliant pads/drones to roll itself out (very similar to the way the Internet was able to piggy back on the old telephone system).

As a result of this open approach and decentralization, it's something that could grow VERY fast.

If you're still unsure how this would work in practice, the post by John Robb quoted above goes on to spell out the details for a simple example. The bottom line for returning a forgotten smartphone to its owner 30 miles away: Costs? Probably less than $0.25 per 10 mi. or so. So, about $0.75 in this instance. Time? An hour or so.
Of course, this is just a generalization of an idea we discussed back in March of last year, the so-called "TacoCopter", but taken to the next level, modelled on the Internet's IP packets. As we pointed out then, it's a great idea with lots of practical problems, mostly regulatory ones. Arguably the far greater potential of the Internet of drones concept makes the argument for loosening up those restrictions to permit innovation in this area even more compelling.

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Honest Mistake: Order A TV From Amazon, Receive An Illegal Assault Rifle

Timothy Geigner — Thu, 9 Aug 2012 10:44:01 PDT

With guns and violence in the news lately, you would think that everyone involved in the chain of the firearms business would be a teensy-weensy bit more careful, from manufacturers, to retailers, all the way up to those handling the shipping and distribution. As with any other business, you have to expect to deal with some human error, but one would imagine that the firearms industry would have the tightest of controls in place right now.

As it turns out, such notions are exactly that: imagination. Or, at least that appears to be the case in the Wired story of a man from Washington D.C. who ordered a television on Amazon and was shipped a Sig Sauer 716 Patrol Rifle. For anyone keeping score at home, that's a military grade weapon. Seth Horvitz, the guy who is guilty of attempted TV-buying, is not a military grade citizen.

“When I saw some metal parts inside the box, I thought, ‘Maybe this is a TV stand or mount or something,’” Horvitz said in a phone interview with Wired. “When I realized it was an assault rifle, it was pure shock and disbelief.”

The Wired interviewer chooses not to ask Horvitz if he attempted to point the weapon at his wall and pull the trigger to see if flat-panel televisions shot out, which is disappointing. In any case, Horvitz did the responsible thing and immediately called the D.C. police, who informed him that the weapon is illegal to own in the District of Columbia. There is no word yet on whether flat-panel displays are also illegal, but I'm guessing not.

The story then details how the mistake happened, which essentially appears to boil down to a lovely bit of insight into the shipping warehouses of UPS, in which the Label Fairy made a mistake and put two shipping labels (only one of which was correct) on the box-'o-death and allowed the box to be shipped anyway. Everyone from the guy who let it leave the warehouse to the guy who delivered the rifle to Horvitz's door apparently decided to play the new hit game "Shipping Address Coin Flip", resulting in Horvitz getting his new Rambo Halloween costume accessory. Amazon, predictably, disavowed any responsibility for the mistake, which it's looking like it has every right to do. On the other hand, when Horvitz tried to post a review of his purchase, Amazon blocked it. Admittedly, the review was hillarious, and guns and funny just don't mix:

I'm not sure what pretending all this didn't happen accomplishes from Amazon's end, other than to perhaps flip open the cover to the Streisand Effect alarm, press it, and wait for the derision to ensue.

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Zappos Gives Up On Canada Due To Customs Problems

Mike Masnick — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 01:01:00 PDT

A few years ago, when I was in Toronto, I remember being shocked when a friend there told me how difficult it was to get any sort of serious e-commerce there. Because of problems with customs and other issues, many of the big e-commerce players wouldn't ship to Canada, or made it quite difficult. This particular friend would order stuff to be shipped to a relative in the States, to be "delivered" later. It appears that Zappos has had enough. Rob Hyndman points us to the somewhat surprising news that Zappos has bailed out on Canada, saying it will no longer ship there, due to issues with customs:

We have made the difficult decision to shut down the canada.zappos.com site and stop shipping to Canada. One of our core values is to "deliver WOW through service". That means the best selection of brands and products that can meet just about every individual’s needs as well as fast, free shipping and free returns, all at competitive pricing. Our Canadian customers know that we have not lived up to these service levels.

Product selection on canada.zappos.com is limited due to distribution agreements with the brands we sell in the United States. In addition, we have struggled with general uncertainty and unpredictability of delivering orders to our Canadian customers given customs and other logistics constraints.

While this is just one e-commerce outlet (albeit a subsidiary of Amazon.com), combined with what I'd heard in the past, it really does seem like a pretty major issue for Canada. If people there can't reliably order e-commerce products, then Canadians are missing out on quite a big part of what the internet enables. You would think there would be a more concerted effort to make things right, rather than spending so much time doing things like passing laws that Hollywood wants, which will limit consumers even more.

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DailyDirt: The Biggest Shipping Days Of The Year

Michael Ho — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:00:00 PST

The biggest shipping days of the year are upon us this week, as brown paper packages tied up with string are flown around the US. All sorts of free shipping deals are encouraging Americans to spend more -- and to send their gifts through the inclement weather via various courier services. This year, over 650 million packages will be shipped by FedEx or UPS between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve, and the vast majority of it isn't fondled by the TSA. This all reminds me it's been awhile since I watched Brazil... Oh yah, and here are some interesting stories about shipping stuff:

The biggest drawing on the world was traced out by a package containing a GPS device, sent to specific locations around the globe. It only really works on certain 2D map projections, though, but it's still kinda neat. UPDATE: It would be neat -- if it weren't completely fake, that is. Apparently, the artist didn't actually send anything anywhere. [url]
A guy tracks down why his package never arrives at its destination, using a car alarm. But predictably, he still doesn't get satisfaction from his efforts. [url]
Popular Mechanics puts some sensors in packages to find out which shipping company is the most careful with its deliveries. The winner is USPS, and the sensor data is nice to know (if somewhat anecdotal). [url]
For some extra cash, USPS could take on a side-job of surveillance -- since it already has all these trucks meandering around everyday. Probably not going to happen, but it would be interesting if the USPS vehicle fleet created public road map data. [url]
Forget about trucks and mailmen (mailpersons?) -- just use a series of tubes. Yes, actual tubes. Just gotta lay down a huge network of underground pipes first.... [url]

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Port Data Gives Clues On The Economy

Joseph Weisenthal — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 13:11:23 PDT

Measuring the activity at US trading ports is a good way to get a picture of global trading activity. For example, take a look at the statistics from the Port of Los Angeles, where you can see that the percentage of ships that arrive empty is dwarfed by the number of ships that leave empty, indicative of the fact that the US imports way more than it exports, at least when it comes to physical goods. While imports have been on a tear, there is some evidence that imports from overseas are starting to slow. There are a number of possible reasons for this, although the most worrisome possibility is that the economy is weakening. On the other hand, higher commodity costs and increased concerns over the quality of items being shipped from China, could also be weighing down the numbers. Either way, this statistic will be an important one to watch, as it could portend a significant economic shift.

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