Amazon Receives Patent for Drone that Falls Apart

DooKey

DooKey

[H]F Junkie
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Amazon has been doing a lot of thinking about a possible drone failure when they start deliveries. They believe it would be much better for a drone to fall apart in little pieces before it hits the ground so a person or thing doesn't get hit by one large piece. The patent describes how a drone will figure out something is going wrong and then it starts to shed pieces of itself as it's going down. Overall this sounds like a smart idea. I know I'd rather get hit with a small part instead of a whole drone. Check out the patent here.

The internet shopping giant plans to use drones one day to deliver packages. But with so many drones in the air, what happens if one fails, falls out of the sky, and hits someone? Amazon now thinks it has the answer: fall out of the sky in the right way–by breaking apart. The company has received a patent for the “direct fragmentation for unmanned airborne vehicles.”
 
I would rather get hit with a whole drone if i'm allowed to keep the drone once it lands. If someone wants to drop a DJI Mavic Pro on me, feel free =P
 
As long as the parts required to make it collapse doesn't add significantly to the weight I guess this might be a good idea.
 
Or they could just use wheeled drones and not have to worry about all this potential liability bullshit. WTF are you going to have delivered by helicopter drone with 6=8 spinning propellers and some kind of high-output Lithium Ion battery pack (dangerous in their own way, see LiPo fires).....napkins? The drone would have to be the size of a Honda.
 
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LOL this drone delivery stuff is going to get very interesting. Will they jail me if I use my shotgun to down a drone if it's over my property or does the Government now have legal right to tell me how to use my land?
 
_l_ said:
LOL this drone delivery stuff is going to get very interesting. Will they jail me if I use my shotgun to down a drone if it's over my property or does the Government now have legal right to tell me how to use my land?
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I see "Your Land" more like the government just allowing you to think it's your land.
 
_l_ said:
LOL this drone delivery stuff is going to get very interesting. Will they jail me if I use my shotgun to down a drone if it's over my property or does the Government now have legal right to tell me how to use my land?
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I think you are forgetting the fact that you don't own the navigable airspace over your land. Now, if they are recording shit that's when it's an invasion of privacy.

Also, yes you can goto jail for destroying someone else's property.

Navigable airspace is where things get murky, flying up to the window of your house obviously does not count. Flying low and spooking the animals on your farm obviously doesn't count. It's really going to come down to context.
 
RogueTadhg said:
Amazon caring about consumers? When Pugs Fly.
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Well, caring about customer satisfaction gets repeat business, and seems amazon gets plenty of that. I'm not saying that they care about their customers, but what they care about, is repeat business. So it's beneficial to make it SEEM like they care about their customers.
 
HeadRusch said:
It's your land......cougheminentdomaincough.....but the airspace above it? That's public domain....
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I think how high it is matters? If this thing is flying 10ft over your roof I see a lot of them being 'lost'

But why not just rig a parachute to it? That had to be a lot less complicated then an exploding drone?
 
I think it opens an opportunity for hackers to trigger remote "disassembly" whenever they so choose. Oh look a drone is flying by.. jump into it.. Hummm carrying 3 lbs of package huh.. maybe it's jewelry.. trigger remote disassembly over my neighbors down the street. Walk over pick up package. Open it in car remove contents and toss wrapping (and tracker) out window. "Damn.. another 2lb bag of Gummie Bears."
 
If they need some help with the implementation, I can recommend a few car manufacturers that have used this for YEARS. At least in my experiance.
 
_l_ said:
LOL this drone delivery stuff is going to get very interesting. Will they jail me if I use my shotgun to down a drone if it's over my property or does the Government now have legal right to tell me how to use my land?
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Even ignoring the airspace ownership argument, if you order something for drone delivery you are giving them approval to fly a drone into your property. In this case the drone isn't invading your property and you can't shoot it since you allowed it to be there. Same situation where you can't invite a human into your home and then shoot him.
 
Xrave said:
Even ignoring the airspace ownership argument, if you order something for drone delivery you are giving them approval to fly a drone into your property. In this case the drone isn't invading your property and you can't shoot it since you allowed it to be there. Same situation where you can't invite a human into your home and then shoot him.
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I think the point was if it flys over his property. Not delivers to him.
 
Sure...I foresee a commercial where an Indian chief, in full tribal regalia, stands on a hilltop with the sun shining on his face as he looks out on the land. Covering that land are bits and pieces of Amazon Drones. As the camera pans to his face, you see a tear streaming down his cheek.

Or am I misunderstanding the whole "pollution and litter" law thing?

Now, if Amazon made them out of rice paper, they would be biodegradable AND edible!! I want flavored drones: please choose wasabi or teriyaki?

Of course, this would drive up the cost of rice. Damn. I guess there really isn't a free ride.

:)
 
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