Drone delivery specialist Flirtey has been granted a patent that the company says will “enhance its fundamental technology”. The patent refers to an automatic parachute deployment system to support drone flights and aerial deliveries being carried out safely.

The patent recognizes the ability of a drone’s technology to detect an error in operation while in flight and ultimately deploying a safety mechanism, if necessary.

Flirtey has big ambitions for its technology to be used both for urgent medical deliveries and for more everyday parcel drops. A safety system capable of preventing payload damage and ensuring the safety of people below is vital.

There are currently two notable drone parachute systems on the market, from Parazero and Indemnis. Both deploy automatically when a fault or loss of power is detected.  

Read more: Flirtey Unveils New Delivery Drone

Flirtey launched a new delivery drone in September 2019, the Flirtey Eagle. Also unveiled was the Flirtey Portal, a takeoff and landing platform that enables scalable store-to-door operations. The company’s software platform enables drones to deliver items with one Flirtey operator overseeing ten Flirtey delivery drones.

Read more: Drones In Construction: Inside the Approval of a Waiver for Flight Over Humans with Hensel Phelps and ParaZero

Flirtey currently holds over 25 patents, granted and pending, in the United States and worldwide.

The company is known its 2015, FAA-approved drone delivery demonstration. In the intervening years, the company has carried out trails proving the concept of autonomous, domestic drone deliveries.

In 2018, Flirtey was Accepted into the FAA and Department of Transportation’s UAS Integration Pilot Program and last year received FAA approval to conduct drone deliveries beyond visual line of sight.

Flirtey was founded in Australia in 2013 by Matt Sweeny, Ahmed Haider and Tom Bass. The company then relocated to the Reno, Nevada after partnering with the University of Nevada.