It admittedly isn’t the kind of invention marking a radical departure from its previous drone-related innovations, but a recently published US patent application by the Ford Motor Co. does offer additional evidence the automotive giant is intent on integrating UAVs into its future cars and trucks.
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As reported in past posted, the Ford Motor Co. is busy working on ways to integrate drones for use with its cars, trucks, and vans, with a newly published patent indicating how the automotive giant is looking to facilitate delivery craft landing on moving vehicles.
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Drones are being used to inspect structures, deliver lunches, shuttle transplant organs, rush defibrillators to cardiac victims, and capture incredible first-person footage to thrill and entertain. Now the Ford Motor Company is looking to expand that list of UAV applications by cutting the waiting time for drivers with flat car batteries needing a jump start.
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A US patent filing by Ford Motor Co. published this month provides details on a system the automotive giant is developing to permit secure drone flights over public roads.
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It’s still unknown whether Apple will one day expand its range of high performing and incomparably cool products to the not-exactly-chopped-liver world of drones, but a patent granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office takes that tantalizing prospect one step closer to imaginable.
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Scientific Applications & Research Associates (SARA) has sued drone delivery company Zipline in a California court, claiming that Zipline’s new acoustics-based drone detection and avoidance (DAA) system violates a patent covering SARA’s technology.
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Tech giant Huawei has been granted a patent for a new method of controlling drones that leans on AI to get the job done smartly. The patent was filed all the way back on July 18, 2018, with it being made public on the first of this year.
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According to a patent, camera giant Canon looks to be working on a new all-in-one gimbal and camera that looks similar to the DJI Osmo Pro released a few years ago. Canon’s design looks to have a large rear screen for viewing and two joystick buttons for control.
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While sifting through the ever-increasing amount of DJI patents, I came across an interesting one that allows a drone to detect propellers automatically. A safety feature that will stop you from taking off with loose propellers or none at all.
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A recent patent from Disney has shown off drones being used during live performances making sets come alive with flying objects. Disney Enterprises, Inc. is wanting to use drones in a new way that could bring the stage anywhere the drones can go.
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Amazon‘s latest drone patent points at a new way of using a drone that doesn’t involve delivering packages. Amazon wants to replace ski lifts. The drone uses a rope to pull people up the side of a mountain, just like Casey Neistat did in this video in December 2016.
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The DJI Mavic 3 design has appeared to leak in the latest round of DJI patents uploaded to the Chinese patent office, featuring a new larger camera, updated battery, and new sensor locations. While we aren’t 100% that this is the Mavic 3 it looks likely that it is.
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Two patents from DJI have publicly been released today regards to what looks to be a bi-copter and a new drone frame, possibly for an FPV or racing style drone. The drawings show what looks to be a rectangular shaped bi-copter and a triangular drone frame.
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Along with new drone patents, two new gimbal patents from DJI have been made public. One being a two-handed gimbal and the other being fully integrated. DJI looks to be taking a new approach on the original Osmo line of gimbals.
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New patents from DJI have shown off what looks to be a new camera module and an optical image stabilization (OIS) system for a possible upcoming DJI product. The new camera module is rumored to be a modular system that can be equipped on various products.
Camera and lens manufacturer Olympus looks to be experimenting with drone technology, according to a new patent discovered this week. The drone, according to the patent, is said to be equipped with “a high-performance lens having a zoom function, an autofocus function.”
Amazon delivery drones might be used to spy on your home. An Amazon patent filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office on June 12, 2015, and granted June 4 of this year, indicates that the e-commerce giant is planning to use its network of drones to form a neighborhood watch system and keep an eye on your home. The company calls it “surveillance as a service” and it would have its delivery drones record footage of your home when they are out delivering packages.
As Walmart and Amazon are battling it out for supremacy in the fast-changing retail world, Walmart is on track to file more drone patents than Amazon for the second year in a row. According to research by the accounting firm BDO Walmart has filed 97 new drone applications with the World Intellectual Property Organization since July 2018. In the year before, Walmart applied for 57 patents compared to Amazon’s 54, according to an article in the Financial Times. More interestingly though, if you look at the 2017/18 time frame, DJI filed more drone patents that Walmart and Amazon combined.
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The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a patent to Amazon for a delivery drone that responds to human gestures, such as flailing arms as well as screaming voices. The patent includes several interesting illustrations. In one, a person is shown outside their house waving his arms in an “unwelcoming manner” accompanied with a voice bubble, indicating that the drone would be able to hear the person and possibly respond to the input.
Drone delivery is a hot topic this week. Last Tuesday, Amazon received yet another patent that may help to make a more efficient and greener way to deliver packages, a reality sooner than you think. This latest patent protects a method to literally ‘drop’ packages from as high as 25 feet on your doorstep or patio. The packages and their contents would be protected by an airbag.
Is Korean-based, LG Electronics going to get involved in the drone industry? That is a question that has been on people’s minds for some time now. LG is a very competitive electronics giant and has been expanding in the automotive and VR space. Recently they partnered with Huawei to deliver 1.5Gbps connectivity to customers from 300 feet altitude using a drone. And now with this new patent, that was made public on December 14, 2017, it seems that LG is getting serious about the drones.
On November 28th, Amazon was granted a patent for the “directed fragmentation of an unmanned aerial vehicle” or a self-destructing delivery drone. Oftentimes patents are simply filed to claim and protect a certain idea. The actual invention may never be developed or built at all. That may apply to this patent filing for a self-destructing delivery drone from Amazon as well.
