Terminology
From the article:
>IBM has filed a patent for mood-sensing coffee delivery drones
No. You can file a patent application but it is the Patent Office (in this case the US Patent and Trademark Office) that grants patent. People seem to think you can just file anything and get it granted. In reality about 50 percent of all applications are granted. This one took a bit under 3 years to get granted.
The USPTO has unfortunately rather bad computer infrastructure (hardware and software) but Google Patents is far more user friendly: US10040551. It is one of the more bizarre patents I have seen, it appears to home in on sleepy people to perk them up with coffee (rather than, say, electroshock.)
Records show that IBM never brought the application into international phase which indicates they see little use of this. At least some sanity remains. It also means you can use this invention if you so feel in the UK without being stopped by this US patent, in which case I am sure the Reg will be very happy to write an article about it.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
