How it works
- It holds on with its propellers.The drone tips onto the wall, and its propellers keep pushing it there. No suction and no magnets.
- It drives on motorized wheels.It moves along the wall at a set speed instead of drifting in the air.
- It carries its own paint and battery.Nothing trails down to the ground, so it can work where a hose or cable would snag.
Patents
The patents cover a drone that is not tied to the ground, drives along a wall on motorized wheels while it hovers, and paints from a tank it carries. They run to 22 April 2035.
| US 9,815,078 B2 | United States, granted 14 November 2017 |
|---|---|
| EP 3 134 316 B1 | Europe, granted 22 May 2019, in force in Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain |
| IL 248346 | Israel, in force since 1 July 2017 |
What has been done
- International patent filing for the invention.
- A 5 kg printing drone shown on video.
- The sixth prototype held itself on an indoor wall, drove on four wheels and printed up to four A4 sheets per flight while driving.
- A detailed design for a full-size painting drone of about 24 kg, with a parts list, a test plan and a budget.
The prototype at work
The sixth prototype, held on an indoor wall by its own propellers and powered through a cable, printing an image on paper sheets while it drives (2023–2024). More in the videos.
What we are looking for
A partner to fund building and testing the first full-size drone, with a team it chooses, or a company that wants to license the patents.