How Delivery Drones Self-Calibrate and Pass Safety Checks Before Takeoff
A system for automated drone maintenance stations that check if a drone is safe to fly by verifying its GPS, weight, and physical condition without human help.
Original patent title: “Autonomous drone diagnosis”
A system for automated drone maintenance stations that check if a drone is safe to fly by verifying its GPS, weight, and physical condition without human help. Granted to United Parcel Service of America Inc in 2024 with 21 claims and 9 forward citations.
Key facts
Coverage
What does this patent actually cover?
This patent describes an automated inspection station designed to live on a delivery vehicle (like a truck). Before a drone takes off, the station runs a series of diagnostic tests to ensure the drone is airworthy. It checks the drone's GPS accuracy by comparing the drone's reported location against the vehicle's known location, and it can automatically send correction data to the drone if the sensors are misaligned. The station also uses cameras to inspect propellers for damage, heat sensors to check battery safety, and force sensors to ensure the drone and its parcel are within safe weight limits.
The gap
What does this patent NOT cover?
- Does not cover drones that perform diagnostic checks while in flight.
- Does not cover manual inspection methods performed by human technicians.
- Does not cover inspection stations that are not physically coupled to a deployment vehicle.
- Does not cover software-only diagnostic systems that lack the specified physical sensors like directional-force or optical cameras.
These exclusions are unique to PatentBrief — derived from the actual claim language, not patent-office boilerplate.
What made this novel
The system uses the deployment vehicle itself as a 'ground truth' reference point to calibrate the drone's GPS sensors, ensuring the drone knows exactly where it is relative to its launch point before it leaves the truck.
Schematic visualization of the patent's claim structure. Hand-drawn diagrams in progress for each landmark patent.
Where you've seen this
Real-world examples
UPS Flight Forward delivery drone systems
Automated drone-in-a-box delivery hubs
Mobile drone launch platforms on delivery trucks
Why it matters
The bigger picture
As companies like UPS scale drone delivery, they cannot afford to have a human technician inspect every drone before every flight. This system automates the 'pre-flight' checklist, which is a critical safety requirement for autonomous aviation. It enables a 'set-and-forget' workflow for delivery trucks, allowing them to operate as mobile drone hubs.
Filed
November 10, 2021
Granted
January 2, 2024
Market context
Who's building on this
Companies in this space
United Parcel Service (UPS) is the primary assigneeassigneeThe entity that owns the patent — usually the inventor's employer or a company.Read more → and is actively integrating these systems into their logistics network. Other major players in the autonomous delivery space, such as Amazon Prime Air and various drone-as-a-service startups, are developing similar automated ground-based maintenance infrastructure.
Market impact
This patent supports the transition of drone delivery from experimental pilot programs to scalable logistics operations. By automating the maintenance loop, it reduces the operational cost per delivery and addresses regulatory safety requirements for autonomous flight, which is essential for the widespread adoption of drone-based shipping.
Claim 1 — Plain English
What this patent covers
This patent describes an automated inspection station designed to live on a delivery vehicle (like a truck). Before a drone takes off, the station runs a series of diagnostic tests to ensure the drone is airworthy. It checks the drone's GPS accuracy by comparing the drone's reported location against the vehicle's known location, and it can automatically send correction data to the drone if the sensors are misaligned. The station also uses cameras to inspect propellers for damage, heat sensors to check battery safety, and force sensors to ensure the drone and its parcel are within safe weight limits.
The clever bit
The system uses the deployment vehicle itself as a 'ground truth' reference point to calibrate the drone's GPS sensors, ensuring the drone knows exactly where it is relative to its launch point before it leaves the truck.
What it does not cover
- Does not cover drones that perform diagnostic checks while in flight.
- Does not cover manual inspection methods performed by human technicians.
- Does not cover inspection stations that are not physically coupled to a deployment vehicle.
- Does not cover software-only diagnostic systems that lack the specified physical sensors like directional-force or optical cameras.
Patent timeline
Application submitted to the patent office
Application published, typically 18 months after filing
Patent officially issued
PatentBrief Score
Impact Score
Moderate
Citation count
20/40
Early citations
Claim breadth
14/20
Broad claimsclaimsThe numbered statements at the end of a patent that legally define what the inventor owns.Read more →
Recency
20/20
Granted within 5 years
Assignee scale
0/20
Independent or smaller assigneeassigneeThe entity that owns the patent — usually the inventor's employer or a company.Read more →
PatentBrief Impact Score — based on citation count, claim breadth, recency, and assignee scale. Not a legal assessment.
Heuristic Value Estimate
What this patent might be worth
$84K – $270K
Midpoint $168K · 15.4 yr remaining · industry ×0.9
Heuristic only — blends forward/backward citation counts, claim scope, time remaining, litigation history, and CPC-derived industry baseline. Real valuations need a professional appraisal.
The original legal language
Original claims
21 claims as filed with the patent office.
Concepts involved
Citations
Patent lineage
Cite this patent
Gil, J. (2024). How Delivery Drones Self-Calibrate and Pass Safety Checks Before Takeoff (U.S. Patent No. 11,858,662). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/11858662/starlink-aviation
Auto-generated from the patent record. Double-check author order and the issue date against the official USPTO document before submitting.
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Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What does How Delivery Drones Self-Calibrate and Pass Safety Checks Before Takeoff cover?
A system for automated drone maintenance stations that check if a drone is safe to fly by verifying its GPS, weight, and physical condition without human help.
Who owns patent US 11858662?
United Parcel Service of America Inc owns this patent, granted in 2024.
When does this patent expire?
This patent is expected to expire on January 2, 2044, when the invention enters the public domain.
What is patent US 11858662 cited by?
This patent has been cited by 9 later patents that build on its ideas.
What problem does this patent solve?
As companies like UPS scale drone delivery, they cannot afford to have a human technician inspect every drone before every flight. This system automates the 'pre-flight' checklist, which is a critical safety requirement for autonomous aviation. It enables a 'set-and-forget' workflow for delivery trucks, allowing them to operate as mobile drone hubs.
What does this patent NOT cover?
Does not cover drones that perform diagnostic checks while in flight.
Patent monitoring