17patents
15 issued (14 US, 1 Japan), 1 allowed and 1 pending, across 10 families. Earliest priority: Nov 14, 2014.
2.5 hours. One gallon. Patented.
Primus Volatus LLC is the owner of the patents invented by Top Flight Technologies, whose MIT-trained engineers built a hybrid engine that flew 2.5 hours on one gallon of gasoline. This core patented technology for hybrid autonomous drones is available for sale and license.
Patented
US 9,764,837US 9,751,625US 9,751,626US 10,035,596US 10,266,262US 10,017,266JP 6,570,095US 10,308,358US 9,902,495US 10,065,726US 10,469,007US 10,400,840US 10,198,011US 10,571,932US 12,358,642
The portfolio
17 patents. For sale and license.
What the lead technology made possible
2.5+ hours on 1 gallon
A demonstrated world record for Top Flight's patented hybrid engine, against 20 to 30 minutes on batteries.
2042
Families in force to between 2035 and 2042.
US& JP
JP 6,570,095 is the Japanese counterpart of the lead patent.
PurchaseThe patents are for sale
LicenseNon-exclusive licenses
Claim chartsAvailable under NDA
15 issued14 US and 1 Japanese patent
Hybrid-electric propulsion, visual navigation and security for autonomous aircraft
Battery aircraft land after thirty minutes. Cargo, inspection and defense aircraft need hours, and they need to be secure. The inventions that make both possible are patented, and they are available today.
FIG. 2, US 10,017,266
01 · 12 patents
Hybrid-electric propulsion.
A combustion engine drives only a generator. Electric motors, placed away from the engine and controlled independently of it, move the aircraft, with a battery buffering the two. It is the architecture of the engine- and turbine-hybrid VTOL aircraft being built today.
US 9,764,837 · US 9,751,625 · US 9,751,626 · US 10,035,596 · US 10,266,262 · US 10,017,266 · JP 6,570,095 · US 10,308,358 · US 9,902,495 · US 10,065,726 · US 10,469,007 · US 10,400,840
FIG. 2, US 10,571,932
02 · 2 patents
Visual navigation.
The aircraft compares what its own sensors see with the stored signature of a route, such as a power line, pipeline, rail line or road, to fix its position and follow the corridor, independent of GPS.
US 10,198,011 · US 10,571,932
FIG. 1A, US 12,358,642
03 · 3 assets
Security & mission management.
An onboard security engine detects unauthorized access to the vehicle's navigation and status data and triggers an automated alert and response. A related application, allowed, covers mission management for unmanned vehicles.
US 12,358,642 · 1 application pending · 1 application allowed
Where the patents apply
Cargo & logistics VTOLHybrid & turbine-electric eVTOLDefense unmanned aircraftPower line, pipeline & rail inspectionGPS-denied & BVLOS autonomyHybrid powertrains & turbogenerators
The patents
17 patents. Available now.
Patented
US 9,764,837Issued Sep 19, 2017
Micro Hybrid Generator System Drone
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 9,751,625Issued Sep 05, 2017
Micro Hybrid Generator System Drone
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 9,751,626Issued Sep 05, 2017
Micro Hybrid Generator System Drone
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,035,596Issued Jul 31, 2018
Micro Hybrid Generator System Drone
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,266,262Issued Apr 23, 2019
Micro Hybrid Generator System Drone
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,017,266Issued Jul 10, 2018
Power Generation and Distribution for Vehicle Propulsion
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
JP 6,570,095Issued Aug 16, 2019
Power Generation and Distribution for Vehicle Propulsion
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,308,358Issued Jun 04, 2019
Passenger Carrying UAV Powered by a Hybrid Generator System
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 9,902,495Issued Feb 27, 2018
Data Center Powered by a Hybrid Generator System
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,065,726Issued Sep 04, 2018
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles with Multiple Configurations
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,469,007Issued Nov 05, 2019
Hybrid Power System Characterization
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,400,840Issued Sep 03, 2019
Flight Test Stand
Sale or licenseHybrid-electric propulsion
Patented
US 10,198,011Issued Feb 05, 2019
Navigation System for a Drone
Sale or licenseVisual navigation
Patented
US 10,571,932Issued Feb 25, 2020
Navigation System for a Drone
Sale or licenseVisual navigation
Patented
US 12,358,642Issued Jul 15, 2025
Security System for an Unmanned Vehicle
Sale or licenseSecurity & mission management
Pending
US applicationApplication pending
Security System for an Unmanned Vehicle (continuation)
PendingSecurity & mission management
Allowed
US applicationAllowed, issue fee paid
Management System for Unmanned Vehicles
AllowedSecurity & mission management
Lineage
Invented by MIT-trained engineers. Owned by Primus Volatus.
2014Top Flight Technologies is founded by MIT-trained engineers. Earliest priority date: Nov 14, 2014.
2016–17The propulsion and navigation families are filed. The lead patent issues on Track One in 2018.
2022The portfolio is extended by Istari Digital with the security and mission-management families.
2025US 12,358,642, security system for an unmanned vehicle, issues.
2026Primus Volatus LLC owns the patents and makes them available for sale and license.
The inventors
MIT-trained engineers. An Air Force acquisition chief.
Long N. Phan
Founder of Top Flight Technologies and named inventor on every issued family.
Sanjay E. Sarma
Co-founder of Top Flight Technologies and co-inventor on the navigation and security families.
William Roper Jr.
Inventor on the security and mission-management families, developed at Istari Digital.
With Samir Nayfeh, Luan Duong, Matthew Sweetland, Eli Davis, Paul DeBitetto, Scott Rasmussen, Christopher Benson, Thomas Campbell and James Dion.
License the patents.
- Non-exclusive licenses
- Hybrid VTOL, cargo, defense, inspection, autonomy
- Claim charts under NDA
Purchase patents.
- Issued US and Japanese patents
- Priority dates from 2014
- Claim charts under NDA