Drone pod for receiving, storing, and presenting a drone

A drone pod for receiving, storing, and presenting a provided drone, the drone pod comprising:

• a housing extending from an aft end to a fore end, the housing comprising:
• a drone bay;
• a pinion actuator;
• and
• a platform movably coupled to the housing by a second actuator, the platform moveably coupled between a raised position relative to a floor of the drone bay and a lowered position relative to the raised position;
• and
• a canopy extending from a first end to a second end, the canopy moveably coupled to the housing via at least the pinion actuator, wherein:
• the pinion actuator moves the canopy toward the aft end of the housing and expose the drone bay;
• and
• the pinion actuator moves the canopy toward the fore end of the housing and enclose the drone bay.

A method for receiving, storing, and presenting a provided drone via a drone pod attached to a vehicle comprising:

• activating a first actuator that movably couples a canopy to a housing of the drone pod, the first actuator configured to move the canopy to a first position relative to the housing and expose a drone bay of the housing;
• activating a second actuator that moveably couples a platform with the housing, the second actuator configured to raise the platform to a raised position relative to a floor of the drone bay;
• receiving the provided drone while the platform is in the raised position;
• activating the second actuator to lower the platform to a lowered position relative to the floor of the drone bay;
• and
• activating the first actuator to move the canopy to a second position to enclose the drone bay.