The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has Revealed the Idea of a ‘Sticky Car’ to Prevent Harm to Pedestrians…

Google has already showed growing interest in the automotive sector; they’ve been funnelling plenty of their copious resources into the development of the driverless car. Now, it has been revealed, they seem to be setting their sights more on safety than convenience.
A recently published patent application from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has revealed the idea of a ‘sticky car’. That might sound like a slightly ludicrous idea if you’re looking to save lives, but, in reality, it might be able to do just that.

The idea is simple. If a motorist hits a pedestrian with their vehicle, a sticky glue-like adhesive layer positioned on the front hood, front bumper and the sides of the vehicle will ensure that the unlucky person in question adheres to the car instead of bouncing right back onto the road or over the roof.

In theory, this would prevent injury. The initial impact of car against pedestrian would naturally not be avoided, but the injuries caused by that collision are often severely worsened by the secondary impact of the pedestrian with the road surface or other object. One impact against the hood is certainly better in isolation rather than being followed up by a slam to the pavement, especially since there is a possibility of being struck by another vehicle that has not had time to react.

This adhesive might sound like a lovely way to coat your vehicle in dirt, dust, and creepy-crawlies, but Google is one step ahead. They insist that the adhesive surface will be masked by a thicker layer that will be designed to break upon impact and expose the sticky stuff just below.
Of course, a rather more serious concern is what would happen when being stuck to a car isn’t advantageous. A motorist whose view is blocked by a person stuck to the bonnet is likely to lose control of the vehicle; this would probably put them in rather a lot more danger.

However, Google applied for the patent way back in 2014, so they’ve had plenty of time to iron out such kinks. On the other hand, Jaguar have recently unveiled a hood that rises up upon impact in order to cushion the blow of hitting a solid engine, and its more than conceivable that the sticky car will remain nothing more than a patent.
As one Google spokesperson noted, “Some of those ideas later mature into real products and services, some don’t.”