Problem statement: Flying a drone over water may result in the loss of the aircraft if the batteries run too low and it’s unable to return to shore.
Outcome: The aircraft can land on water without loss and be recovered.
All too often the “solution” space in product gets complicated by overthinking the problem.
The drone pilot could have invested in all kinds of (expensive) fancy gear to protect the aircraft but a pool noodle and some cable ties addressed the immediate problem. Cheap and cheerful, probably impacted it’s handling in wind but box ticked.
Conclusion? The problem space can often be filled by small, quick and cheap solutions. Investigate here first.
A quote often told to me by a great ex boss. “Don’t try and boil the ocean when solving problems”.
