Every year, global automakers submit many patent and trademark applications. According to statistics, Toyota and Ford ranked the top two in the list of patent applications submitted in 20 18, and their patent applications both exceeded 2,000.
Then maybe you have questions. What are so many patents? Are they all applicable to the cars we use? Of course not. Not all patented ideas can be applied. Some are very practical, others can only be said to be very intelligent. Like this. ?
Tear gas distributor, wind turbine and retractable rear end
Although it is called "tear gas distributor", it is mainly used to distribute perfume in cars. Only Toyota, which applied for a patent, thought it could be used as a tear gas distributor for self-defense, so it was named as a tear gas distributor.
In order to find alternative energy sources for cars, Toyota also submitted a patent for a turbine system installed on the roof on 20 12, which can convert wind energy into electric energy to drive electric vehicles. As for why it was not put into use, I believe everyone knows the reason. ?
In order to improve the aerodynamic performance of the car, Toyota filed a patent for the retractable "tail wing" on 20 16. Can you imagine that Toyota Supra has such a weird tail?
Asymmetric car, viscous car hood and laser wiper.
"Asymmetric car" is actually not the name of the car, it is just a car customization service, which means that users can design their own models according to their own preferences, and even allow asymmetric car design. But I really want to know what an asymmetric car looks like.
In order to reduce the harm to pedestrians, Google submitted a patent for sticky car hood. According to Google's idea, pedestrians will be stuck on the hood after colliding with cars, not being hit. It is also interesting to think about this patent. If there is no accident, isn't the front of the car covered with "flowers and plants"?
Tesla believes that the process of ordinary wiper cleaning dust and drying glass will lead to "inefficient time", and chemicals in wiper fluid may damage the electronic equipment of the camera. They think it will be faster to burn off excess garbage with a laser, and it is more likely to keep everything running normally. This patent sounds much more reliable and practical, but it has not been passed yet.
Flying cars and drones wash cars.
Toyota has always dreamed of being a flying car, so they applied for such a patent on 20 14. According to their design, the wings are usually hidden inside the car body and only extend when necessary. The propeller at the tail is also hidden. The idea is good, but it is really not easy to realize, otherwise Toyota will not start investing in another flying car company.
Drone car washing is BMW's idea, just like in science fiction movies, they want to use drones to clean vehicles. In fact, the idea is for fun. Can drones really wash cars? Besides, it's better to go to the roadside car wash shop in 20 yuan. ?
Lighting signs for mobile conference rooms and driverless cars?
These two ideas were put forward by Ford Motor Company relying on autonomous driving technology. "Mobile conference room" is to add a round passenger car at the back of the car. Is it simple?
The other is a lighting system that can remind pedestrians and help them cross the road more safely. I have to say that these two things are possible in the future, but they are not used yet.
Rotating cab and vertical parking
The technology of rotating cab is nothing new at present. After all, common flathead trucks in China have this technology. However, considering that this patent application was submitted by 1945, it is actually quite creative, but this design has no practical significance in passenger cars.
The patent of vertical parking was put forward by 1923, and its main purpose should be to save space. But no one has realized this idea in recent 100 years, which shows that this idea is really unnecessary. In addition, the land in most cities is not so tight now, and vertical parking needs supporting platform equipment, which is not cost-effective.
This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.