What do Potholes, Submarines and Earbuds have in Common?

Table of Contents

Share at:

31 August 2015

Short answer: intellectual property protection.

It has been busy in the exciting world of intellectual property protection.

Here is a rundown of some exciting developments.

Google’s pothole solution

Google has patented a system of marking the position of potholes with GPS and motion sensor technology. Using this information, Google will be able to redirect you to the smoothest route, or alert you to avoid particular sections of a road. Hopefully this becomes a crowdsourced tech that gets shared with the government, so our tax dollars can be put to good use.

Shape-shifting drone-marine

Boeing just patented new technology that sees a drone change into a submarine upon entry into the water.
Boeing’s Patent

On breaking the water surface, the irrelevant parts fall off the drone, and the submarine will be able to conduct reconnaissance. When that’s done, it swims back to the surface to beam the information to the mothership. “Beam me up, Scotty!”

If you’re a “why read the book when I can watch the movie” type person, here’s a good video of how it will work.

“Swipe to Unlock”

Germany’s top civil court ruled, on the 25th of August, that Apple’s “Swipe to Unlock” feature is not an inventive step, finding in favour of Motorola Mobility Holdings Ltd. This means that Apple’s patent application is unsuccessful, and it will not get protection for that feature.

Apple’s noise-cancelling solution

Apple’s patent application for new noise-cancelling wireless earbuds technology was made public this week. It incorporates bone conduction technology, and has internal microphones in the earbuds that collects data on noise and wind level. This data is combined with other information like the position of the earbuds to provide listening heaven.

Anything that makes listening to Taylor Swift better makes me happy.

Learn more about “What is a Patent?” and “The Patent Application Process”.

To find out more about how you can protect your invention, or to sing a Swifty song for us, give us a call on 1800 LAWPATH.

Let us know what you think about the developments by tagging us #lawpath or @lawpath

Share at:

Simplify creating legal documents today

Browse through Lawpath's AI tools which can be used to draft, review and refine legal documents today!

Related Articles

Couple reviewing family trust paperwork at home

How to Close a Family Trust in Australia: Step-by-Step Guide (2026)

Trusts are widely used for investment and business purposes and can be complex in nature. Find out here how you can dissolve a trust.
Home office — the changing face of small business in Australia

The changing face of small business in Australia

Australia has 2.8 million trading businesses, and solo operators drove almost all of last year's growth. See which industries and places are leading.

How to Start a Small-Scale Mining Business: Essential Legal, Financial, and Operational Steps

Our guide on how to start a small mining business in Australia can help you capitalise on your skills.

How To Fire An Independent Contractor (2026 Update)

Have you hired an independent contractor and aren't happy with how things are going? Learn more about the legal avenues available to you.

How to Find Your ABN (2026 Update)

Your ABN is your business's key identifier. But what happens if you misplace it? Read to find out more.

How Often Should Employees Have Performance Reviews?

Performance reviews are a popular method of measuring and evaluating an employees' capability. So how often should you conduct performance reviews?