ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 30 -- United States Patent no. 12,428,173, issued on Sept. 30, was assigned to Solaris Suborbital Inc. (San Francisco).
"Solar powered stratospheric glider" was invented by Andrew Charles Elson (Fowey, Great Britain) and Daniel Michael Doulton (San Francisco).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A glider system capable of sustained long-term flight includes a fixed-wing glider having a dual fuselage system. The top surface of the glider is covered with a plurality of photovoltaic cells capable of powering onboard sensors, propeller systems, and/or onboard processers. The glider includes wing spars with a composite material covering an inner foam core, with the type of foam cor...