Fon luang
Fon luang ( Thai : ฝน หลวง pronunciation : [ fǒn lǔaŋ ], royal rain ) is the name for the artificial rain in Thailand , in which Thai pilots use chemicals and dry ice to rain clouds that would otherwise move on, resulting in periods of drought prevent.
history
In 1956, during a trip to the Isan , the northeast region of Thailand, which was plagued by drought, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand (Rama IX) noticed that there were clouds in the sky, but they did not rain. In the following years the king financed a project which aimed to force these clouds to rain down. Under his direction, a (non-toxic) chemical was developed to make the clouds rain.
13 years later, in 1969, was on June 1, in the district of Pak Chong in the province of Nakhon Ratchasima produced for the first time successfully artificial rain. At the request of the king, this artificial rain has been used since 1972 until today in the agricultural areas of Thailand threatened by drought and also passed on to other interested neighboring countries.
On September 15 and 17, 2003, patents were filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the European Patent Office on behalf of the King for weather modification by royal rain-making technology . On October 12, 2005, the European Patent Office granted the corresponding patent number EP 1 491 088, which was valid for 31 European states (all possible contracting and extension states at the time of application ). The grant of a US patent was rejected several times because the elements of the process mentioned were all state of the art and their combination was obvious. A complaint that was initially filed on November 9, 2012 was no longer substantiated. The US patent application is therefore deemed withdrawn with effect from July 10, 2013. At about the same time, the payment of the patent fees for the European patents was stopped, so that in the period from September 2013 to April 2014 all European patents expired.
Effects on the king's popularity
The fon luang is still for many Thais one of the greatest achievements of King Bhumibol. The royal rain occurs in almost all homages ; the spots with the royal anthem that are played in the cinema before the main film always begin with a view of the parched ground, on which the rain falls, after which the image of the king appears. The rain is also a symbol of the king for the well-being of his country and his subjects.
Web links
- thairice.org ( Memento of February 5, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (English) [last accessed on March 22, 2009]
- Thai modern monarchy (in English; PDF; 1.7 MB) [last accessed 2012]
- Article on Royal Rain by the Chaipattana Foundation ( November 10, 2007 memento on the Internet Archive ) (1.61 MB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ United States Patent Application Publication US2005 / 0056705
- ↑ European patent EP 1 491 088 , Weather modification by royal rainmaking technology
- ^ German patent DE 603 01 876 , translation of the European patent specification
- ↑ Final Rejection , March 4, 2008
- ^ Final Rejection , April 9, 2009
- ↑ Final Rejection , March 17, 2010
- ↑ Final Rejection , May 9, 2012
- ^ Notice of Appeal
- ↑ Notice of Abandonment
- ^ Legal status of European patent EP 1 491 088