Objectives of the service
Apian’s primary focus is to enable the National Health Service (NHS) to make use of drone technology, and deliver faster, smarter, greener healthcare. The NHS Drone Platform (NHSDP) enables Apian to fulfil this commitment whilst doing so in a simple, user-friendly way. This platform is designed to integrate seamlessly into existing workflows, with no additional logins or ordering steps. This will help NHS employees significantly improve turnaround times for test results, potentially reducing patient wait times in hospitals from hours or days to much faster results.
Initially developed to fight COVID-19, the Dreadnought service has an objective to enable integration into healthcare systems and with drone operators, and to trial the concept of a drone-based delivery service in a safe regulatory environment ahead of a larger programme of work in the UK.
Small scale drone trials are a key step in the industry’s infancy but the sooner that drones are able to operate at scale, the sooner the benefits will really start to make an impact to the NHS.
Users and their needs
The Dreadnought service is designed to be used by clinicians and staff at NHS Trusts throughout the UK. The platform supporting the service works to integrate drone operators with healthcare workers. As a clinician in the NHS, medical professionals have to manage patient care alongside the administration and ordering of tests, medications and procedures. It is often the case that each system has a different login and has to be navigated slightly differently which is inefficient.
The Dreadnought features are designed to enable a clinician to sign in, schedule and track an order to give the clarity which is needed especially in advance of a planned or unplanned surgery. Apian is working closely with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust to develop a deeper understanding of these specific needs of the clinicians and staff. This includes data analysis to identify patterns of unmet needs, surveys, interviews, or staff workshops.
Service/ system concept
Using drones to deliver medical supplies, pathology samples and equipment means that healthcare professionals can have a service which is:
- Fast
- Low emission
- Highly traceable
- On demand
The Apian Dreadnought platform enables users to schedule and track deliveries in real-time using telemetry data through our specially designed interface. Once an order is created, delivery requests are matched to the drone capacity of an NHS-certified drone company, ensuring compliance with regulatory and NHS requirements. Ultimately, the platform will act as a centralised solution, bringing together NHS systems, the drone industry, and regulators.
Space Added Value
The NHS Drone Platform (NHSDP) is essential for the widespread adoption of drone technology by the NHS, Europe's largest employer. This platform's success is underpinned by several critical space technologies, enabling efficient, reliable, and scalable drone operations:
Satellite Navigation: each drone is equipped with four GNSS receivers. These receivers interface with the drone’s flight controller to provide precise positioning, crucial for safe navigation and precise delivery.
Satellite Communications (Satcom): the location information is transmitted in real-time via the most reliable network available, which could be cellular or satellite communication, to provide the telemetry data to the NHSDP without delay.
Satellite Imagery: used for route planning, terrain analysis, and hazard identification. Providing detailed and up-to-date geographical data both pre demonstration and during operations. Some satellite-based weather forecasting is also used to plan demonstrations and optimise operational efficiency and reliability.
Current Status
Apian have successfully completed the BDR and CDR milestone meetings, and most recently, the Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT). The FAT milestone meeting took place in Dublin on 16 September 2024 during which evidences were provided to ESA that the service is ready for pilot operations. The team is now focusing on preparing for the onSite Acceptance Tests (SAT) milestone which aims to take place in October 2024.
