Morpheus Logistik controls transport drones across Germany via mobile networks from a control centre in Dortmund. Deutsche Telekom’s IoT network ensures stable connections and allows for flexible scaling.
The Rahmedetal Bridge on the A45 near Lüdenscheid – for years, it was Germany’s most famous bridge. First because of its closure, then because of its demolition, but above all because of the consequences for an entire region. Traffic jams, diversions and delays became a daily feature of life in and around Lüdenscheid. For many businesses, this posed a logistical problem. For Morpheus, the bridge became the starting point for an idea.
Here in the Sauerland region, we saw a prime example of just how vulnerable supply chains become when a key transport route is cut off. This is particularly true for time-sensitive goods, where not only every kilometre counts, but often every minute as well. Drawing on this experience, the Koerschulte Group in Lüdenscheid came up with the idea of reorganising transport not only by road, but also by air. In February 2024, this concept took shape when Germany’s first fully automated commercial drone delivery service took off from Lüdenscheid. This led to the creation of Morpheus Logistik: a start-up that plans, obtains authorisation for, operates and monitors air logistics as a comprehensive service.
“Following the closure of the bridge, the family-run business Koerschulte faced massive logistical problems, just like all other companies in the region,” says Antonia Bolle, Marketing Manager at Morpheus, looking back on the early days. Transport routes became considerably longer, and delivery times became unpredictable. “Our managing director [and founder Norman Koerschulte, who was also managing director at the time] at Koerschulte, who originally came from the manned aviation sector, then came up with the idea of drone deliveries.” However, Morpheus does not position itself merely as a traditional drone manufacturer. Bolle: “We see ourselves as a drone airline and our offering as ‘Drone-as-a-Service’.”
This model involves more than just the aircraft itself. Morpheus selects suitable hardware, integrates various drone systems, coordinates permits, and organises maintenance and support. “We ensure that the customer’s transport concept is not only technically feasible but also eligible for authorisation,” says Bolle. It is precisely this operator-focused approach that makes the company flexible, as it is not tied to a single type of drone.
Morpheus was initially deployed in the industrial sector, for example when a missing component needed to be delivered quickly so that production could continue. The focus has since shifted to medical transport. Many hospitals today operate without their own laboratories, so samples must regularly be sent out for analysis. In addition to laboratory samples, Morpheus also transports blood units and frozen sections – that is, tissue samples for urgent examinations during surgery.
Morpheus delivers the drone to the customer’s site, after which it is loaded by the customer’s staff, who have previously completed training provided by the operator. A team of pilots controls and monitors the drones from the Morpheus control centre in Dortmund.
During normal operations, the aircraft follow approved routes largely automatically, whilst remaining controllable at all times. Safety checkpoints are defined along the route in case of an emergency. If a connection is disrupted for a prolonged period, the pilot can initiate an emergency landing or order the aircraft to return to take-off via the control centre. If the aircraft ceases to respond entirely, a parachute system is activated as a final safety measure. For dangerous goods, such as blood samples that have not yet been classified or specialised medicines, Morpheus has developed suitable transport packaging in consultation with the German Federal Aviation Authority. For medical shipments, vibrations and temperature can also be monitored in real time, thereby ensuring that the cold chain is maintained.
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As obvious as the idea of an aerial route may sound, the operational requirements are extremely high. Route information, control commands, position data and, depending on the mission, video footage for monitoring the mission are transmitted between the control centre and the drone. To do this, Morpheus requires a mobile network connection that remains consistently stable – even over long distances, over populated areas and in regions with variable network coverage. Furthermore, the safety requirements for routine operations mandate a secure fallback solution in the event that the primary data connection fails. The regulatory requirements governing this are determined by risk category SAIL III (see info box).
Added to this is the specific situation in the air: early tests showed that, at their standard cruising altitude of between 50 and 80 metres, the drones very frequently switch between mobile phone masts. This led to interference and made the connection unstable. The consumer data cards initially used were therefore not sufficient for reliable routine operation. What was needed, therefore, was a solution that works reliably, can be adapted to regulatory requirements and can also scale economically as the business grows. “In emergency situations, particularly in medical care, every minute often counts,” says Lukas Ostermann, Head of Research & Development at Morpheus. “It was therefore crucial for us to find a provider with absolutely reliable network coverage.”
SAIL III is a risk category for drone flights under the regulations of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). In Germany, the Federal Aviation Authority (Luftfahrt-Bundesamt) authorises such operations. For Morpheus, this category is crucial because it is what makes flights over densely populated areas feasible in the first place – provided that redundancies, emergency procedures and safety mechanisms have been demonstrated. Stable connectivity, defined safety checkpoints and additional protective systems therefore play a major role in operations.
Deutsche Telekom is providing Morpheus with precisely this foundation today. A special network profile stabilises the connection whilst in flight, with the radio module always selecting the best available mobile network. Two separate communication channels ensure the required reliability: one SIM connection for the actual data communication and a second as a fallback, via which the control centre can continue to intervene in an emergency. The data plan is 5G-capable; during operation, Morpheus usually uses LTE, depending on the deployment profile. The operator can manage the status, usage and costs of their IoT SIM cards via a web portal.
“At Telekom, we always had a dedicated point of contact for technical queries,” says Ostermann. “It was the overall package of support, trust and professionalism that won us over. Added to that was the flexible pricing model, which suits a growing company like ours.” For Morpheus, the connectivity solution means more than just ensuring the reliability of individual flights. It creates the conditions necessary to offer customers a robust operating model, to serve existing routes regularly and to establish new ones as well.
The right IoT connectivity coordinates IoT connections across platforms, integrates devices and data via API, and enables global control with the highest security standards. You can manage your IoT projects flexibly, efficiently, and independently of manufacturers.
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