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 google patent human flypaper


Google patents human flypaper for self-driving car crashes

Engadget

Self-driving cars are pretty smart, but it's inevitable that one will eventually hit a pedestrian. To avoid any nasty injuries, Google has patented a simple but crazy solution: an adhesive coating that would stick humans to the hood like flypaper. There's no guarantee that such a system will be used -- Google stressed this to the San Jose Mercury News -- but it does hint at the company's crazier, off-the-wall thinking. The patent describes an "eggshell-like" coating that would protect the adhesive layer during normal driving conditions. Only the force dealt by a collision would be enough to break it, catching the pedestrian near-instantaneously.