Ford patents autonomous cars.

Ford is trying to patent a technique for repossessing a vehicle on its own.

As The Drive first discovered, Ford's patent application, titled "Systems and Methods to Repossess a Vehicle," was filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on August 20, 2021, but was was published by the USPTO on February 23.

The document describes using the vehicle's built-in data connection to remotely disable "the functionality of one or more components of the vehicle" to issue a warning if the owner defaults on car payments.

According to the document, the disabling begins with features like "cruise control, automatic window control, automatic seat control, some components of the infotainment system (radio GPS, MP3 player, etc.)" and continues with "air conditioning systems, remote key fobs and automatic door lock/unlock system" and then escalating to features like "air conditioning system, remote key fob, and automatic door lock/unlock system. If this is still not stimulating enough, "incessant and unpleasant sounds" could be played "every time the owner is in the car."

If the bank still does not receive payment, the vehicle can lock out the owner. However, in the event of an emergency, the document claims that the vehicle can be used again, and explains that on-board sensors are used to determine if the emergency is legitimate.

The sensors can also be used to determine if the vehicle is in a garage, and if not, the patent application uses built-in autonomous driving capabilities to assist in the seizure by positioning the vehicle so that it can be easily picked up by a tow truck or by running the vehicle describing the vehicle.

"In other cases, the vehicle can be an autonomous vehicle, and the mortgage enforcement system computer can work with the vehicle computer to move the vehicle from the owner's premises to, for example, the premises of the mortgage enforcement agency, the lending institution, the impound pound, or other predesignated autonomously to a location such as an impound pound or other pre-designated location.

"Pre-designated locations" include scrapyards. If the lending institution analyzes the market value of the vehicle and determines that it falls below the financial viability threshold for repossession, "the repossession system computer, in cooperation with the vehicle computer, may autonomously move the vehicle from the owner's premises to a scrapyard.

Such a system would rely on autonomous driving technology, which Ford has recently throttled down. Along with Volkswagen, Ford last year cut off further investment in the startup Argo AI, forcing it to shut down.

Also, patent applications do not necessarily indicate production intentions. Ford, in particular, regularly files patents with the USPTO, although this does not sound as dystopian.