The latest drone industry startup to attract new funding is U.S. California-based Ware that deploys autonomous drones for warehouse inventory counting, reports a company press release.
The investment is driven by industry insiders who realise the potential market for warehouse applications. Investors include Tom McInerne, an angel investor in companies like Uber and drone industry expert Adam Bry, CEO of Skydio.
Warehouse inventory counting represents a major market niche where drones can make the process more efficient. The release says, “…Ware combines drones’ ability to quickly access and capture data of an entire facility, then apply proprietary algorithmic data processing to deliver accurate reports, ultimately transforming the way warehouses and distribution centres count and manage their inventory.” It continues, “This is especially important as increased consumer e-commerce spending due to COVID-19 has created additional stresses for warehouses.”
The drone process is varied. First, the craft flies through a warehouse collecting images of pallet locations, data from barcodes and other information. Next, once the pre-programmed flight is complete, it returns to base where it transmits the data collected to Ware’s Cloud and is recharged for future work. The sent data is then analysed by an inventory group who decide what actions need to be taken.
Ware’s CEO, Ian Smith, comments, “Understanding the true state of inventory in today’s massive warehouses requires a significant amount of manual labour and time-consuming routines. Our investors understand how Ware is meeting this challenge.”
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