Japanese company Asahi Power Services believes that there is a whole market for flying umbrellas, and necessary not only during the rain, but also on a hot day, when they can also protect from the scorching sun. The device is called Free Parasol, it is equipped with a camera and an artificial intelligence algorithm that can register, track and autonomously follow the user's head. This technology is based on the one already installed in stand-alone drones, like Skydio R1, but for now the company has to overcome certain design problems.

The existing prototypes of Free Parasol weigh about 5 kg, and they can fly only 20 minutes. Walking to the subway in the rain can be much longer, but designers are confident that they can reduce the entire device to one kilogram, and the flight time to increase to an hour. True, the last parameter will depend heavily on the weather, as the umbrella will be shortened if it has to work in conditions of a real rain or very strong wind.

The sale of Free Parasol on the plan should go in 2019, and will cost a lot, about 275 dollars. Of course, there are ordinary umbrellas, which are more expensive, but forget such a device in the subway, too, will be offensive. True, it is possible that one day another system will be built into it, and it will follow you independently, even if you forget it somewhere.