What's the best way to convince millenials to get their suits drycleaned? No one knows, but Philadelphia's Manayunk Cleaners is trying drones.
The drone is a modified DJI Phantom quadcopter, which is a commercially available drone capable of carrying about 1 or 2 pounds. Clothes on hangers are attached to a hanging clip on the drone's legs, while the drone buzzes along through the air.
It's hardly an autonomous system, though. The drone needs two operators: one person to fly the drone, and another person to make sure the path ahead is clear. The dronecleaner doesn't have a camera, so the pilot has to watch the drone with his own eyes the entire time.
All told, this is a way less efficient way to delivery laundry than just sending someone over on foot or on a bike.
Of course, the point isn't really to make this cost-competitive. The point is that drones are awesome (when they aren't, you know, hurting people). And, okay, making drones do an otherwise-menial task is pretty fantastic marketing.
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