Future Transport and Logistics in Smart Cities

Abstract

Flying objects are increasingly introduced to cities ranging from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) or drones to autonomous aerial vehicles (AAV), Uber flying cabs, and urban aerial mobility (UAM), as new forms of personal transport. UAVs have been studied from military and law perspectives, with mentions in political, social justice, and some environmental studies. Very few studies have looked at the interaction of UAVs with cities and public spaces. FAA announced drone rules would not be ready until 2022; there is a good opportunity for urban designers, planners, and architects to plan and design urban aerial spaces of cities to accommodate different mobile flying objects in the skies of future cities. This chapter studies drones as the most common flying objects using the future-oriented technology analysis method to review their applications, potentials and problems, and the latest regulations applied by authorities in different countries. It discusses and analyzes some existing or proposed solutions by industry or other researchers to offer planning and design solutions for both Smart Cities and non-Smart Cities including remote sensing, Global Positioning System, Global Navigation Satellite System, and radio wave technologies to create smart platforms to monitor, track, and prevent unauthorized interactions of UAVs and AAVs in urban environments.