WeRobotics drone successfully delivers anti-venom in the Amazon
WeRobotics worked with Peru Flying Labs and the Peruvian ministry of health to modify a $3,000 drone so that it could transport a cold pack containing snakebite anti-venom to a remote Amazonian location and return to its base in Contamana with a blood sample. The destination, a village called Pampa Hermosa, is generally only accessible by boat, a journey that takes six hours. The drone did the same journey in just 35 minutes.

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Aerial drones (or UAVs) are capable of rapid deployment over terrain that’s challenging for conventional transport, and we’ve seen how they’re being used in diverse emergency situations such as natural disaster mapping and food aid delivery. Now WeRobotics are harnessing drones to deliver emergency snake bite anti-venom to remote Amzonian communities.

In collaboration with their local offshoot, Peru Flying Labs and the Ministry of Health in Peru, WeRobotics modified a relatively inexpensive (USD 3000) terrain-mapping UAV to carry a cold pack containing anti-venom. The UAV successfully carried out two flights, following pre-programmed flights using GPS guidance, carrying the cargo between Contamana and Pampa Hermosa, a remote Amazonian village usually only accessible by boat requiring a 6-hour travel time. The UAV delivery took only 35 minutes to complete the journey, and successfully returned a blood sample back to base intact. WeRobotics are planning further tests looking at delivering across greater distances.

What other services could UAVs deliver to hard-to-access communities?