Last mile delivery drone selection and evaluation using the interval-valued inferential fuzzy TOPSIS

Abstract

The last mile delivery option has become a focal point of academic research and industrial development in recent years. Multiple factors such as increased demands on delivery flexibility, customer requirements, delivery urgency, and many others are enforcing to adopt this option. For fulfilling this paradigm shift in delivery and providing additional flexibility, drones can be considered as a viable option to use for last mile delivery cases. Numerous drones are available in the market with varying capacities and functionalities, posing a significant challenge for decision-makers to select the most appropriate drone type for a specific application. In this purpose, this study proposes a comprehensive list of criterions that can be used to compare a set of available last mile delivery drones. Additionally, we introduced a systematic multi-criterion, multi-personnel decision making approach, referred to as interval-valued inferential fuzzy TOPSIS method. This method is robust and can handle the fuzziness in decision making, thereby providing quality drone selection decisions under different applications. We then apply this method to a real-life test setting. Results suggest that smaller drones or quadcopters are considered viable to use in urban environments while long-range drones are preferred for the last mile delivery needs in rural settings.

A decision support model for selecting unmanned aerial vehicle for medical supplies: context of COVID-19 pandemic

“…This is also a critical element in choosing this drone. This result is also consistent with a previous study (Nur et al. , 2020) in which, for urban region scenarios, the drone with handling flexibility and the ability to climb high altitudes received maximum preference.…”

“…The results also indicate that it was preferred to other drone alternatives because Drone D has a long flight distance. This finding is consistent with a previously published paper (Nur et al, 2020) that also focused on selecting a medical supplies delivery drone for the disaster-affected area. In addition, as in disaster-affected areas, traditional means of communication are completely destroyed or inaccessible, and refueling/recharge facilities are scarce.…”

“…This is also a critical element in choosing this drone. This result is also consistent with a previous study (Nur et al, 2020) in which, for urban region scenarios, the drone with handling flexibility and the ability to climb high altitudes received maximum preference. The most beneficial aspect of this drone has in a city is its movement is not limited to a fixed transportation network; rather, it can generate its path while considering obstacles.…”

“…As a result, various humanitarian agencies are continuously searching for ways to optimize their medical supplies delivery by incorporating drones. Selecting the best drone for a particular scenario is very challenging for organizations since there are a variety of drones available in the market with different specifications that makes them suitable for a particular scenario (Nur et al, 2020). Some drones are faster but are able to carry only lightweight products, while others have the capability to carry higher loads at the cost of slower speed and shorter flight distances.…”

Picture Fuzzy Decision-Making Approach for Sustainable Last-Mile Delivery

“…However, it is possible to identify some critical success factors and barriers that arise during their implementation [6], [7]. Additionally, depending on the territory where the implementation of these systems is planned, it is necessary to analyze and select its appropriate technical characteristics, primarily the type of drone and autonomous robots [34]. In addition to these delivery methods, research was conducted in which walking, bike-sharing, community bus, and on-demand ride-sharing services were singled out as modes of transport within LMD [52].…”