Aevum UAV’s Ravn X to Deliver Cargo AND Launch RocketsJune 1, 2021

The Ravn X (Aevum) unmanned aircraft will be used to both deliver cargo and launch rockets, pending approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.

For its intellectual efforts in this space, the company was awarded U.S. Patent No. 10,994,842. The heart of the invention concerns a payload delivery system for an aircraft. Aevum is the first to come up with use of a ventral surface and an empennage with an elongated cavity defined within the aircraft. The elongated cavity extends from the rear of said empennage to a transverse bulkhead disposed within said aircraft, and the transverse bulkhead has at least one payload service connection and at least one payload module securement fitting.

Aevum has also developed a computer-based mission controller adapted to autonomously cause said system to execute payload delivery missions. The mission controller is also stores one or more mission histories, and even uses a learning engine and a decision engine. The learning and decision engines operate to autonomously adjust flight parameters in response to unplanned circumstances.

Rural Iowans should take note that Aevum seeks to open up air cargo transport options to rural and other underutilized markets. This could have significant economic implications for Des Moines DSM regional airport and smaller job markets.

In addition to this expansion of serviceable destinations, Aevum will begin its personal delivery services through use of its patented technology. The patent will hopefully ward off competitors while the startup gains more footing in the personal delivery space.

The Ravn X can carry up a fleet of smaller drones, each of them carrying individual packages and weighing up to 55 lbs. The UAV can even fly up to 14,000 feet in the air, just outside of a city center such as Des Moines, and air release the smaller drones. Releasing smaller drones from the air allows the drones to use gravity to their advantage and thus gain significantly farther range for each individual smaller drone in the fleet.

As a startup, Aevum’s decision to invest time and energy in procuring intellectual property rights has proved fruitful and is essential in carving out space in a crowded market. All new startups should consider whether or not pursuing patents and seeking other types of intellectual property protections is a good strategy for their business, ideally before any products are sold. All of MVS’s attorneys are trained to walk you through which legal protections may be right for your business.

Gregory “Lars” Gunnerson is a Patent Attorney in the Mechanical and Electrical Patent Practice Groups at McKee, Voorhees & Sease, PLC. For additional information please visit www.ipmvs.com or contact Lars directly via email at gregory.gunnerson@ipmvs.com.

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