5 ms·

IBM patents drone-delivery of coffee straight to your mouth

28 points by binbag 8y ago

auvi 8y ago
no, today is not April 1.
fenwick67 8y ago
those images on the first page are a riot
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
satokema 8y ago
but can I patent drone delivery of medication to citizens that are not behaving or thinking in a compliant manner?
- davemp 8y ago
  This reminds me of a Vonnegut short, Harrison Bergeron. [1] [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Bergeron https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Bergeron
ihumanable 8y ago
This is what happens when you force engineers to generate so many patents every quarter / year.
matthewmcg 8y ago
Patent illustrations are a hilarious genre in general. If you like the drawings here, you’ll love this tumblr which features some true classics: http://contextfreepatentart.tumblr.com http://contextfreepatentart.tumblr.com My favorite is the one where the couch potato has to get up and shout “McDonalds!” before the Orwellian, camera-equipped Smart TV will continue playing the violent program he is watching.
- beaconstudios 8y ago
  Reminds me of the verification can greentext
mmcdaris 8y ago
It's all fun and games until someone gets a head-full of hot coffee.
fermienrico 8y ago
Sensational click-baity title. You could have just said "IBM patents drone-delivery of coffee".
- binbag 8y ago
  I wrote it like that because the absurdity amused me, not as a cheap attention grab.
  - jaclaz 8y ago
    Well, I thought the patent was for literally delivering coffee to one's mouth (think of disabled people that cannot hold the cup and bring it to mouth).
maxxxxx 8y ago
When I was contractor at IBM for a year I attended several sessions where the only task was to come up with ideas for patents. This looks exactly like the result of one of these sessions.
dougmwne 8y ago
Someone collected the employee patent bonus for this! We can clearly see that incentive is working.
mrfredward 8y ago
Trolling...but not in their usual manner.
yohann305 8y ago
Basically a ripoff of the robot-butler concept, replacing the wheels with rotors. In 1984, the TV series Riptide already had a robot serving drinks: https://www.filmaffinity.com/es/movieimage.php?imageId=981095032 https://www.filmaffinity.com/es/movieimage.php?imageId=98109... Robot butler pic here: http://bearbottoms1.com/smart-homes/ http://bearbottoms1.com/smart-homes/ One might argue that rotors and wheels are similar in nature since they both are a rotating device
virtuabhi 8y ago
I don't get this. Is this patent part of some prank? The authors are senior researchers at IBM.
- rasz 8y ago
  I seem to remember reading that IBMers got bonuses per number of patents generated.
francisofascii 8y ago
You could possibly see this in a super crowded environment. A nightclub, rock concert, or even a sporting event in the stands. A replacement for the cocktail waiter or beer vendor at a ball game.
rad_gruchalski 8y ago
Is this a Watson service?
ungerik 8y ago
Perfect example of big companies blocking innovation from small inventors by patenting every imaginable idea and combination of ideas :-(

28 points by binbag 8y ago

auvi 8y ago

no, today is not April 1.

fenwick67 8y ago

those images on the first page are a riot

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

satokema 8y ago

but can I patent drone delivery of medication to citizens that are not behaving or thinking in a compliant manner?

davemp 8y ago
This reminds me of a Vonnegut short, Harrison Bergeron. [1] [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Bergeron https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Bergeron

ihumanable 8y ago

This is what happens when you force engineers to generate so many patents every quarter / year.

matthewmcg 8y ago

Patent illustrations are a hilarious genre in general. If you like the drawings here, you’ll love this tumblr which features some true classics: http://contextfreepatentart.tumblr.com http://contextfreepatentart.tumblr.com My favorite is the one where the couch potato has to get up and shout “McDonalds!” before the Orwellian, camera-equipped Smart TV will continue playing the violent program he is watching.

beaconstudios 8y ago
Reminds me of the verification can greentext

mmcdaris 8y ago

It's all fun and games until someone gets a head-full of hot coffee.

fermienrico 8y ago

Sensational click-baity title. You could have just said "IBM patents drone-delivery of coffee".

binbag 8y ago
I wrote it like that because the absurdity amused me, not as a cheap attention grab.
- jaclaz 8y ago
  Well, I thought the patent was for literally delivering coffee to one's mouth (think of disabled people that cannot hold the cup and bring it to mouth).

maxxxxx 8y ago

When I was contractor at IBM for a year I attended several sessions where the only task was to come up with ideas for patents. This looks exactly like the result of one of these sessions.

dougmwne 8y ago

Someone collected the employee patent bonus for this! We can clearly see that incentive is working.

mrfredward 8y ago

Trolling...but not in their usual manner.

yohann305 8y ago

Basically a ripoff of the robot-butler concept, replacing the wheels with rotors. In 1984, the TV series Riptide already had a robot serving drinks: https://www.filmaffinity.com/es/movieimage.php?imageId=981095032 https://www.filmaffinity.com/es/movieimage.php?imageId=98109... Robot butler pic here: http://bearbottoms1.com/smart-homes/ http://bearbottoms1.com/smart-homes/ One might argue that rotors and wheels are similar in nature since they both are a rotating device

virtuabhi 8y ago

I don't get this. Is this patent part of some prank? The authors are senior researchers at IBM.

rasz 8y ago
I seem to remember reading that IBMers got bonuses per number of patents generated.

francisofascii 8y ago

You could possibly see this in a super crowded environment. A nightclub, rock concert, or even a sporting event in the stands. A replacement for the cocktail waiter or beer vendor at a ball game.

rad_gruchalski 8y ago

Is this a Watson service?

ungerik 8y ago

Perfect example of big companies blocking innovation from small inventors by patenting every imaginable idea and combination of ideas :-(