A common set of problems commercial delivery companies face is finding ways to increase the efficiency and reliability of the “last mile” of a package’s journey, all while reducing operating costs. This need for efficiency has driven many companies to explore using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, to get packages to their final destination. Although UAVs have great potential to help increase efficiency in commercial package delivery, this comes at a potential cost to the privacy of people who intersect the flight paths of these unmanned vehicles. This thesis explores the effect of a mobile phone application for commercial delivery drones on bystander privacy perception of drone delivery systems. Further, it presents a method for determining what privacy measures should be implemented to engender trust in unmanned delivery platforms. This thesis proposes that the acceptance and adoption of commercial drone delivery systems by the general public requires policies and technologies that address the public’s most significant concerns: safety and privacy. This thesis presents evidence that a user-centered mobile application could increase trust in commercial drone flights. This thesis contextualizes and expands upon the author’s previously published work by presenting a literature review of the state of the drone delivery field and proposing the experimental design for a follow-up study that expands on the findings of the initial study [1].
","abstract_html":"<p>A common set of problems commercial delivery companies face is finding ways to increase the efficiency and reliability of the “last mile” of a package’s journey, all while reducing operating costs. This need for efficiency has driven many companies to explore using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, to get packages to their final destination. Although UAVs have great potential to help increase efficiency in commercial package delivery, this comes at a potential cost to the privacy of people who intersect the flight paths of these unmanned vehicles. This thesis explores the effect of a mobile phone application for commercial delivery drones on bystander privacy perception of drone delivery systems. Further, it presents a method for determining what privacy measures should be implemented to engender trust in unmanned delivery platforms. This thesis proposes that the acceptance and adoption of commercial drone delivery systems by the general public requires policies and technologies that address the public’s most significant concerns: safety and privacy. This thesis presents evidence that a user-centered mobile application could increase trust in commercial drone flights. This thesis contextualizes and expands upon the author’s previously published work by presenting a literature review of the state of the drone delivery field and proposing the experimental design for a follow-up study that expands on the findings of the initial study [1].</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Famula, Jurgen Heinz"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.S. in Computer Science and Engineering","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kerstin S. Haring","Keith E. Miller","Chris J. GauthierDickey"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-06-15T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2024-06-15T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:01:48Z","subjects":["Autonomous aerial vehicles","Bystanders","Logistics","Mobile applications","Privacy","Value-centered design","Computer Sciences","Information Security","Other Computer Sciences","Physical Sciences and Mathematics","Software Engineering"],"languages":["English (eng)"],"rights":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
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"],"dc:subject":["Autonomous aerial vehicles","Bystanders","Logistics","Mobile applications","Privacy","Value-centered design","Computer Sciences","Information Security","Other Computer Sciences","Physical Sciences and Mathematics","Software Engineering"],"dc:title":["Trust, Transparency, and Transport: The Impact of Privacy Protection on the Acceptance of Last-Mile Drone Delivery"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.S. in Computer Science and Engineering"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:01:48Z"}