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Google is looking into drones that get up close and personal with office workers

Video conferencing is an art that tech companies have yet to perfect. Every system seems to have its issues, from pixelated videos, dropped calls or difficult set-ups.

But it looks as though Google is hoping to move past longstanding methods involving laptops and webcams that often offer a blurry angle of your coworker’s double chin for technology that can get up close and personal.

The tech giant was awarded a new patent on Tuesday for a small screen-carrying drone that could project videos as its hovers around the office.

“(It allows) the remote user to feel as if they are present, at the same location as that of the second user,” said the patent.

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Google said that the device could be controlled by a smartphone docked in the drone or another device that is paired with it remotely.

Blueprints show a quadcopter drone with a smartphone sitting between the propellers, while a screen appears to hang off the front.

This sketch shows a Google patent for a teleconferencing drone. 
This sketch shows a Google patent for a teleconferencing drone. 

A second sketch appears to show a projection camera located on the underside of the drone, like an inverted version R2D2’s hologram projector in “A New Hope.”

<span style=line-height: 19.2px;>This sketch shows a Google patent for a teleconferencing drone.&nbsp;</span>
This sketch shows a Google patent for a teleconferencing drone. 

In the patent, Google said one of the device’s main attractions is that it would be more mobile than a laptop.

“(It) may provide significant improvements in, for example, speed, manoeuvrability, energy consumptions and the like, facilitating access to spaces which may be otherwise difficult to access by a larger and less manoeuvrable platform,” said the patent.

“Such a telepresence robot may be remotely navigated, for example, through corridors, into and out of offices, conference rooms and other work spaces.”

There are limits to the technology: Google said complicated and small spaces could prove difficult for the drones, and it would not be able to go up or down stairs.

But it could take the elevator with a little help from its human counterparts.

In contrast, the patent said traditional video conferencing technology can limit participants in terms of scheduling and where they can conduct meetings.

Google said having a conference room with the adequate equipment can also be “relatively expensive” to install and “maintain.”

However, there are downsides to drone technology.

They too come with a hefty price tag: from several hundred dollars to several thousand at the high-end.

Drones also don’t exactly make for the perfect silent observer in meetings; their trademark buzz is probably loud enough to mask the sound of one of your coworkers snoring in the corner.

An employee who comes face-to-face with a drone’s propeller isn’t likely to get off scoff-free, either.

There’s also the issue of battery life. The lightness and mobility of drones come at the cost of its inability to lug much of a power source.  With most lasting between 10 to 20 minutes, that likely is shorter than your average meeting (although that may be a good excuse to cut one short).

While the patent offers an intriguing option, it is up in the air whether you’ll be seeing a drone in an office meeting in the near future.