Recent patents are starting to fill in some of those blanks, with companies working on systems to transfer cargo from drone-to-drone in midair, airships that drop drones closer to their targets, and lamp posts that double as recharge stations. Now, Amazon has outlined plans to pack parachutes into shipping labels, so packages can be safely dropped as the drone buzzes by.

According to the patent, the label should be about the same size as a regular one, and fairly inexpensive. The difference is that folded up inside this one is a parachute, connected to the package with cords made of nylon, cotton or, in the case of heavy objects, Kevlar. When the drone arrives at its destination, it simply drops the package, with a piece of string pulling the parachute open as it falls.