Truck-drone joint delivery network for rural area: Optimization and implications

Parcel delivery in rural areas suffers from low efficiency due to low drop density and high delivery costs. In the sense, we examine a new method of delivering packages using trucks and drones together. Specifically, we optimize the truck-drone delivery network and compare the performance of two modes: truck with one drone and truck with multiple drones. The existing model is extened by intergrating different types of truck-drone coordinated trajectory and accounting for both time-related and monetary costs. Furthermore, the specific influences of the truck and drone unit cost to the truck-drone joint delivery are tested and the advantages of such delivery in rural areas are explored with the comparison of the urban case. The results indicate that the truck-drone joint delivery is a feasible option for rural areas, as it can significantly reduce the costs. However, the practical application of this method requires optimal network incorporating designing suitable truck and drone coordinated trajectory as well as appropriate drone unit cost. It also shows that using multiple drones can lower down the costs, but only when the demand volume exceeds a certain threshold in the rural area under study.