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Boeing just patented a drone that can fly forever
- Nadya 11y agoIt's amazing how simple and straightforward an idea can sound like in hindsight, but it this actually possible? I've always assumed that it takes more energy to fly a drone than to charge it. So you wouldn't be able to supply enough energy during flight to charge it. Otherwise why would a drone need 1-2 hours of charge time for a 15 minute flight? How would that 15 minute flight last 1-2 hours of flying to charge the battery fully for another 15 minutes of flight? The numbers don't add up.
- andymoe 11y agoWe looked at the tethered drone stuff extensively early on as a way to get around FAA regulation for commercial use as did others [1]. Others have looked at drones that could land on power lines to recharge... Is this kind of patent really super unique in that the tether is retractable and the drone does not land? There has got to be prior art for this. I think the patent bar is way too low these days especially in emerging fields. [1] http://aviationweek.com/awin/israeli-company-leads-development-tethered-surveillance-uavs http://aviationweek.com/awin/israeli-company-leads-developme...