T-Mobile said today that it will provide connectivity for drones to be used for washing high-rise windows and other cleaning applications. The new opportunity comes via a deal with Lucid Drone Technologies that makes T-Mobile Lucid’s exclusive IoT connectivity provider for Lucid’s industrial spraying drone fleet.
The drones will initially be used for high-risk facilities maintenance work like exterior soft-wash cleaning and high-rise window washing. The companies also envision using T-Mobile connectivity to fly drones beyond line-of-sight and to power more data-intensive capabilities such as video streaming.
Lucid and T-Mobile see the drones offering commercial property management firms a much safer alternative than traditional exterior soft-wash cleaning and high-rise window washing, which include expensive liability insurance premiums and equipment fees.
In addition to high-rise buildings, the companies expect the next generation of drones to be able to offer exterior washing for outdoor stadiums and arenas, hotels and university structures.
IoT technology will provide the drones with critical operational information, including real-time sharing of flight data, battery utilization information, hardware diagnostics, and delivery of firmware and software updates.
T-Mobile for Business will initially provide 4G LTE connectivity to Lucid Drone Technologies industrial spraying drones, with 5G available at an undetermined future date.
“Lucid Drone Technologies is a great example of a customer using originality and new technology to solve complicated problems,” said Callie Field, president, T-Mobile Business Group, in a prepared statement. “It’s not very often that you get to collaborate with these kinds of thinkers, and we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to offer our technology to help bring their vision to life.”
T-Mobile and other carriers have increasingly been finding opportunities to provide connectivity for drones for everything from video of baseball games to news reporting and weather monitoring.
It will be interesting to see if T-Mobile will “clean up” with this deal. Kidding aside, this seems like another example where automation and electrification are going to change and expand traditional businesses. The potential upside is a safer work environment and cleaner buildings.
The type of drone washing