Twitter files patent for drones controllled by tweets

Twitter is officially joining the drone race with their latest tweet-controlled drone patent joining other tech giants including Facebook and Google. The patented document of its drone was released by Twitter on Tuesday showing how the drone will work.

The patented technology raises questions to several observers as there is no record on how the company is planning to use it. TechCrunch reported that the "messaging-enabled unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)" was patented in June this year and can be used to message with or from the drone by other Twitter users.

According to the description of the patent, "An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) carries a camera, sends data from the camera and receives commands. The UAV is connected to a messaging platform. Pictures or video clips received from the UAV are selected and placed in messages broadcast by an account associated with the UAV."

During an interview with the CNBC, a Twitter spokesperson declined to comment regarding the latest patent but told the reporter "two words: drone selfies."

It is predicted that the drone will be used together with Twitter video streaming service; Periscope. The drone might also be used to cover any sports event and also for interviewing purposes.

Slash Gear reported that Twitter did not plan to produce their own drone for the time being and the company is just patenting the technology behind their idea for future uses.

The news portal also reported that the latest patent could be just another revolutionary way to take a selfie as there is no company planning to integrate drone with social media just yet.

Although it is still unclear on the direction of the crowd-sourced piloted drone, the company could be taking the huge first step in introducing the new technology for social media users. The drone which will be controlled via command embedded tweet called "democratic means".

The integration between technology and social media by Twitter is something that can be further explored by other companies as well as one observer pointed out.

The latest patent by Twitter shows that there are still lots of other features that can be developed in the drone industry. Previously Amazon unveiled its plan to use a drone for delivering their products to the customer and Facebook is using the drone to provide the internet across Africa.

The US government is also accepting the use of drones in everyday life and is currently working on a better regulation for drone users.