Amazon drone could dismantle itself in sky, rain down in parts

Nobody, it can be imagined, wants a drone falling on their head, especially if it’s a drone large enough to deliver packages for Amazon.

But the e-commerce behemoth clearly sees a future in which bad things happen to good technology, and a malfunctioning drone ought not plummet from the sky. Better to do it piece by piece.

In November, Amazon received a patent outlining a possible plan for “directed fragmentation for unmanned airborne (aerial) vehicles” used in deliveries.

“The use of UAVs is accompanied by the need for new solutions to various problems, such as service disruptions due to unsuitable weather conditions, equipment malfunctions, and other problems,” reads the text of the patent, which the firm applied for in June 2016.

Core to the technology is a “fragmentation sequence” that the drone constantly updates with an eye to flight path, flying conditions, and what lies in the terrain below.

“Terrain topology information or data can identify certain preferred locations for dropping one or more of the components of the UAV,” the patent document says.

“For example, the terrain topology information can identify bodies of water, forested areas, open fields, and other locations more suitable for dropping components of the UAV if or when flight operation errors, malfunctions, or unexpected conditions occur.

“Terrain topology data can identify the locations and boundaries of residential, commercial, and industrial buildings and developments, highways and surface streets, parking lots, stadiums, schools, recreational areas, and other artificial features.”

What might cause an Amazon delivery drone to need to divest itself from itself, in parts?

“Unexpected heat, cold, wind, rain, hail, high or low ... pressure regions, or other meteorological conditions,” according to the patent document.

The idea behind the patent is not to let the drone dismantle itself until there’s nothing left.

“During the fragmentation sequence, one or more parts or components of the UAV can be released. In doing so, the weight, speed, air drag coefficient, and other factors related to the UAV can be altered. At the same time, the momentum and trajectory of the UAV are also altered.

“According to aspects of the embodiments, the fragmentation sequence is tailored to modify or alter the manner in which the UAV descends, to control the descent in a preferred, controlled manner.”

The drone’s systems would allow it to control where the falling parts land, so they would “descend in a calculated or estimated trajectory to the preferred locations”.

Parts could be released using latches, hooks or springs, or “small explosive charges” or compressed gas.

“The fragmentation sequence engine can select the order based on various factors, such as the replacement value or components’ cost,” the patent document says.

However, just because Amazon patented this system doesn’t guarantee it will be put into practice. But the company’s recognition of the possibility of what the patent document calls “catastrophic failure” of a delivery drone indicates that some solution is needed before the company starts delivering goods via drones.