Turkish defense industry will conduct surveillance with "baby drone"
Lapis Aviation, which carries out unmanned aerial vehicle projects, exhibited the hybrid thrust robot HİRO at the 3rd Military Logistics and Support Summit. HİRO, which has the ability to fly with its rotating wings that move on land with its wheels, also contains a micro unmanned aerial vehicle, a "baby drone", in its main body.
Lapis Aviation Deputy General Manager Tansel Nuran Birdir made a statement to the AA correspondent about the hybrid propulsion robot HİRO project, which was developed to be used in surveillance missions in narrow and closed spaces.
Stating that the system has 3 basic features, Birdir said that they created a hybrid solution in this context.
Pointing out that HİRO can operate both on land and in the air, Birdir stated that they developed the vehicle especially for use in narrow and closed environments.
Birdir explained that the vehicle gained the ability to perform its duties in a closed environment for a long time by leaving the modems on it at certain intervals, and stated that they equipped the vehicle with many obstacle detection sensors. Birdir said:
"In this way, our vehicle can detect 360-degree obstacles and perform its mission by centering the completely closed environment, thanks to the LAPİS autopilot to which artificial intelligence algorithms have been added. We prefer it to go in land mode to extend its mission time. However, when it encounters an obstacle, it can overcome it by taking off. We also have a baby drone. This daughter drone is also designed to penetrate into narrower areas in an indoor environment. Both our main drone and our daughter drone have electrooptical and infrared sensors. Thus, we can take images in the dark or in a light environment. Thanks to the image processing software developed with deep learning models, object and object "We can detect it. It is a newly developed product. We aim to pass the tests and be ready for use in a short time."
The target is to be ready in the first half of next year
Stating that HIRO's mission period varies due to its hybrid structure, Birdir said that while this period is longer on the ground, the time in air missions is a little more limited.
Stating that they have completed the critical design phase of HİRO, Birdir said:
"We have produced our prototype products. We are carrying out testing and improvement studies on these prototype products. We are making some iterations in the design to improve its performance. Our intention is to have it ready for use in the first 3-4 months of next year.
There are different products in the world, non-military products that can perform hybrid missions but are used in a more civilian sense. We developed HIRO for military use. That's why we can think that it will be one of the few products in this field in the world."
The entire system weighs less than 1 kilogram
Tansel Nuran Birdir stated that the widest length of the large drone in HİRO is 28 centimeters, the size of the "baby drone" is 10-15 centimeters, and its weight is limited to 100-150 grams.
Birdir pointed out that the entire weight of HİRO, including the modems, will be less than 1 kilogram, and emphasized that the product can work both outdoors and indoors with all these features it has.