Programmable waterfowl decoy and method therefor

Andrew Godowns, Yemassee, SC (US); Fletcher Flowers, Yemassee, SC (US)

USPTO: us-12622430 · published 2026-05-12 · patents · A01M 31/06· B60L 15/20· B60L 53/16· B60L 53/80· B63H 21/17· B63H 21/21· B60L 2200/32

Programmable waterfowl decoy and method therefor

Fletcher Flowers, Yemassee, SC (US) , Andrew Godowns, Yemassee, SC (US) This is my paper

Pith reviewed 2026-05-17 18:35 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification patents A01M 31/06B60L 15/20B60L 53/16B60L 53/80B63H 21/17B63H 21/21B60L 2200/32

keywords saidcontrolbodysectionsystemunitwaterfowlwaterfowl-shaped

0 comments

The pith

A battery-powered, app-programmable duck decoy uses dual propellers, GPS, and obstacle sensors to follow user-defined movement patterns on water.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The device is a plastic duck body that floats. Underneath are two small electric motors with propellers that push it through the water. A battery powers the motors and can be swapped when it runs down. Inside the body is a small computer that stores movement programs, receives instructions over wireless from a phone, knows its location via GPS, and can detect things in its way so it does not collide. The base of the duck extends down between the propellers to keep them underwater.

Core claim

A programmable waterfowl decoy comprising a waterfowl-shaped body, a propulsion assembly with a pair of motorized propellers, a rechargeable and removable battery, and a programmable control system with processor, sensor assembly, transceiver, and GPS unit that automatically controls movement according to a user-selected program.

Load-bearing premise

The patent assumes that integrating standard GPS, wireless transceiver, obstacle sensors, and dual-propeller drive into a buoyant duck-shaped body produces a novel and non-obvious device without providing comparative data or prior-art analysis.

read the original abstract

20 . A programmable waterfowl decoy comprising: a waterfowl-shaped body comprising buoyant material, wherein said waterfowl-shaped body is shaped to resemble a duck; a propulsion assembly mounted at a bottom portion of said waterfowl-shaped body and configured to propel the waterfowl decoy through water, wherein: the propulsion assembly comprises a pair of motorized propellors, a battery unit, and a steering assembly operatively connected to said programmable control system, said battery unit is rechargeable via a charging port disposed in said waterfowl-shaped body, said battery unit is removable to permit exchanging of a discharged battery unit with a charged battery unit; said waterfowl-shaped body having a base section extending below an upper section, said upper section being shaped to resemble a waterfowl, said base section extending downwardly from said upper section between said pair of motorized propellors, a bottommost edge of said base section being vertically spaced beneath said pair of motorized propellors; and a programmable control system disposed in said waterfowl-shaped body and operatively connected to said propulsion assembly to automatically control the movement of the waterfowl decoy in water according to a user-selected program, wherein: said control system comprises a processor configured to store operational information and programs, said control system comprises a sensor assembly operatively connected to said processor and configured to detect obstructions in the path of movement of the waterfowl decoy, said control system comprises a transceiver operatively connected to said processor and configured to receive operational information wirelessly from a computer application on an electronic device, said control system comprises a GPS unit operati

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Desk Editor's Note private letter to a colleague

This patent simply describes an app-controlled motorized duck decoy with GPS and obstacle sensors; the integration is incremental and the document is a parts list rather than a research result.

read the letter

The core claim is a buoyant duck-shaped body with dual propellers, a removable rechargeable battery, GPS, wireless transceiver, and a processor that runs user-selected movement programs while avoiding obstacles. That combination is presented as the invention. The text does a clean job laying out how the components fit together mechanically and electrically, including the base section that sits below the props and the charging port location. It is easy to visualize the assembly from the description. No equations or performance numbers appear, which is normal for this kind of filing. The main limitation is that the document offers no data on actual range, battery life, or how well the obstacle avoidance works in real water conditions, and it does not walk through prior-art distinctions beyond listing the parts. Because this is a U.S. patent specification rather than a scientific preprint, it contains no derivations, fitted parameters, or falsifiable predictions to evaluate. A reader interested in recreational hunting hardware or in the narrow patent landscape around remote-controlled decoys might find the claim language useful for reference. For any research or technical review process, however, the document does not supply enough substance to justify referee time. I would not bring it to a reading group or cite it in technical work.

Referee Report

0 major / 3 minor

Summary. The manuscript is a U.S. patent specification that claims a programmable waterfowl decoy consisting of a buoyant, duck-shaped body, a bottom-mounted propulsion assembly using a pair of motorized propellers with a removable rechargeable battery and steering mechanism, and an onboard programmable control system that includes a processor, obstruction-detecting sensor assembly, wireless transceiver for app-based commands, and GPS unit to execute user-selected movement programs.

Significance. If the combination functions as described, the device could provide a practical means for automated, GPS-guided decoy motion with obstacle avoidance in hunting scenarios, extending existing remote-controlled decoy concepts through integration of standard consumer electronics.

minor comments (3)

[Abstract] Abstract line 20 and claim text: spelling of 'propellors' should be corrected to 'propellers' for consistency with standard technical usage.
[Abstract] The provided abstract text is truncated mid-sentence at 'GPS unit operati'; the full claim language should be supplied to allow complete evaluation of scope.
[Detailed Description] No quantitative performance metrics, power-consumption figures, or field-test descriptions appear in the specification; adding at least a brief operational example would strengthen the enablement section.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

0 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for the careful reading and positive assessment of the patent specification. The recommendation for minor revision is noted; however, the report lists no specific major comments requiring textual changes. We therefore submit the manuscript as-is while remaining open to any further editorial suggestions.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 0 axioms · 0 invented entities

No scientific axioms, free parameters, or invented physical entities are introduced; the device relies on off-the-shelf electronics and standard buoyancy principles.

pith-pipeline@v0.9.0 · 5651 in / 987 out tokens · 229300 ms · 2026-05-17T18:35:42.193671+00:00 · methodology

discussion (0)

Lean theorems connected to this paper

Citations machine-checked in the Pith Canon. Every link opens the source theorem in the public Lean library.

IndisputableMonolith/Foundation/RealityFromDistinction.lean reality_from_one_distinction unclear

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unclear
Relation between the paper passage and the cited Recognition theorem.

A programmable waterfowl decoy comprising: a waterfowl-shaped body... pair of motorized propellors... programmable control system... GPS unit
IndisputableMonolith/Cost/FunctionalEquation.lean washburn_uniqueness_aczel unclear

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unclear
Relation between the paper passage and the cited Recognition theorem.

The patent assumes that integrating standard GPS, wireless transceiver, obstacle sensors, and dual-propeller drive into a buoyant waterfowl-shaped body produces a novel device

What do these tags mean?

matches: The paper's claim is directly supported by a theorem in the formal canon.
supports: The theorem supports part of the paper's argument, but the paper may add assumptions or extra steps.
extends: The paper goes beyond the formal theorem; the theorem is a base layer rather than the whole result.
uses: The paper appears to rely on the theorem as machinery.
contradicts: The paper's claim conflicts with a theorem or certificate in the canon.
unclear: Pith found a possible connection, but the passage is too broad, indirect, or ambiguous to say the theorem truly supports the claim.