Storm Warnings!

 Well, for some of us, last night was terrifying. I can say it was for me--I made the excellent decision to go to a native plant society meeting, left my house at 6pm, and made it to the meeting location shortly after 7. In other words, I spent an hour driving through the absolute worst non-hurricane storm I've ever seen, and honestly thought at times that I was in severe physical danger, given  the size of things I saw flying around. 

Don't want to be like me? Good idea! Let's look at some inventions that can keep us safe, and should have been involved in my decision making last night. 

1. Tornado Warning System, US 6,295,001. I actually didn't realize how local this patent was until after I'd downloaded it! Aside from focusing on not just Texas but Harris County, this was a system that probably relied too much on transient, personal technology. While pagers were once indispensable, by the time this was granted in 2001, they were on their way out. Also, it likely would have required people connect their pagers to the system or buy a pager specifically to use with it. It has some good structure and concepts, though, and isn't terribly unlike the Rice Alert system.

Yeah, I could have used this last night

2. Airborne weather radar system and radar display, US 7,109,913. This actually is meant for aircraft, so it is airborne in that regard, rather than a radar system that is independently airborne, which was my original assumption. I liked it more, conceptually, as a floating radar station than this practical aviation safety device, but aviation safety is more important.

A simple diagram of a technically complex invention

3. System and method for the detection of severe weather conditions, US 8,593,289. What I like about this invention is that it actually uses radio frequency to detect weather severity. It's both interesting and likely possible for more people to implement than many other detection systems. Tune your radio to 525 AM!

4. Short-term thunderstorm forecast and severe weather alert system and method, US 10,782,448. This is one of those patents that is less of an actual device, and more of a description of how to use specific devices to accomplish something. While most of it is outside my realm of expertise, I think it's a good example of how patents can be granted for innovative processes, not just physical "things".

5. Storm detection apparatus and method, US 11,194,075. Oh, this one looks like it was made for storm chasers. It is specifically meant to be mobile, and can be mounted on "varied mobile platforms". However, it does allow for creating data quickly and sending via cloud technology. If you're interested in how tech is changing life across the board, it might be worth a read.

Stay safe out there...

Anyway, heed weather warnings and check the radar frequently. I really could have avoided a harrowing drive.

But nothing can keep this cute native flower down! Two new blooms this morning, after such a huge storm.

Yeah I used my trash bin for the background, it was the only solid black thing I had