The Uncertainty of Autonomous Unmanned Aerial Vehicles’ Energy consumption

Battery-operated autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) promise enormous potential for delivery electrification. However, airspace regulations have a significant impact on the determination of UAV energy consumption. This paper investigates the impact of several degrees of international UAV policies and regulations on the energy consumption of autonomous UAV last-mile delivery operations in rural and urban contexts. Simulations based on quadcopter kinematics and Newton-Euler derived differential equations for control are performed for three degrees of regulation strictness. Energy consumption based on the brushless DC rotors’ thrust and angular acceleration shows up to a 400% increase in energy demand due to flight path changes.