Drones and IoD for Emergency Medical Deliveries in the Humanitarian Context

In recent years, the integration of smart connected devices and platforms, such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or drones, into the expanding Internet of Things (IoT) network has grown significantly. Drones provide innovative solutions for delivering value-added IoT services across various applications, including monitoring, surveillance, on-demand last-mile delivery, and warehouse inventory management. However, the use of long-range UAV flights with high payload capacities for emergency medical deliveries is still in its early stages, mainly due to technical, regulatory, and operational challenges.
This paper presents findings from several simulated long-range drone flights exceeding 1,000 km, carrying payloads of up to 150 kg. Our experiments reveal the technical and operational requirements needed to facilitate emergency medical deliveries using drones. These requirements are detailed through the description of a UAV system designed for long-range, heavy cargo operations and the medical delivery system needed for large-distance flights with high payloads. Together, these systems aim to enable IoT integration into healthcare supply chains, advancing towards the realization of Healthcare 5.0.