Sony Corporation's product line already includes mobile phones, digital cameras, home entertainment systems, and gaming consoles; now it will enter the drone market. The tech giant will be teaming up with a Japanese robotics company to produce small planes with the startup. Unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with image sensors and self-driving car tech will initially sell its services, but the flying machines will be unavailable to the general public.
Sony's Mobile Communications division will work together with ZMP, a robot manufacturer based in Tokyo. Aerosense is the joint company's name.
The collaboration will combine Sony's experience in imaging and telecom, while ZMP will share its robotics technologies and driverless car tech. A 2016 drone launch is planned.
Sony noted in a blog post that ZMP's work has mostly been land-based technology, including self-driving car projects, according to PC Mag. Now Aerosense will make new services.
The multinational company will benefit from the new project as the flying devices will be an application of its image sensors that are already found on Apple and Samsung smartphones, according to ArsTechnica. It can also avoid head-to-head competition with industry leaders including Lockheed Martin.
The drone industry is booming. Available products vary in size ranging from wrist-worn models to tank-sized military units.
On July 17, Friday, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-approved package delivery drone transported medical supplies to a Virginia medical center, greatly reducing a 90-minute driving time. It was slashed to around 20 minutes.
The FAA is creating new regulations that will make commercial drones' use in the United States less restricted. Package delivery such as through Amazon will then be possible.
This will not be the first joint task of Sony and ZMP. In the past they joined forces on various autonomous vehicle projects, while the former is now laboring with a video game company to design driverless taxis.
Sony was founded in May 1946. Its name was derived from the American expression "sonny boy," which itself likely originated from a1928 hit song.