Online retailer Amazon has been granted a new patent by the US Patent and Trademark Office for a delivery drone that can respond to human gestures.
The concept is a part of Amazon’s aim to develop unmanned aerial vehicles that can deliver packages to customers within 30 minutes.
The patent could help Amazon understand how these vehicles would interact with customers waiting on their doorstep for their order.
According to the patent, the drone can adjust its behaviour according to a person’s gestures, such as a welcoming thumbs up or even shouting .
This drone is designed to not only release but also even abort the package it is carrying, change its flight path in case of obstacles to avoid crashing, and ask questions to customers.
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By GlobalDataThe patent reads: “The human recipient and/or the other humans can communicate with the vehicle using human gestures to aid the vehicle along its path to the delivery location.”
The drone features several sensors, including a depth sensor and cameras to detect visible, infrared and ultraviolet light. Besides being able to recognise hand and body gestures, it can make out human voices and movement.
The drones can release boxes with extra padding from the air or they can land on ground and then offer the parcels to customers, the patent says.
Since announcing its plans to develop an air delivery service, Amazon has applied for several patents that include drones that can self-destruct during an emergency.
