IIT-K develops 11 UAVs for military, DRDO
28 Mar 2015
Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur (IIT-K) on Friday demonstrated 11 indigenously developed UAVs of different kinds, which it claims to have made on a budget of Rs2 crore.
Of the 11 UAVs, six are fixed wing Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and two flapping wing unmanned air vehicles. These were flight-demonstrated before experts of IISc Bangalore and Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), a unit of DRDO.
The UAVs have been developed by a team of the institute's professors, project associates and students for the military and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
Once airborne, the Unmanned Aerial System (a UAV type), which has a camera mounted on it, becomes autonomous and gets guided by pre-fed instructions. These UAVs are capable of carrying a payload of 5-6 kg, the developers say.
The UAVs are made of composite material, including fibre, reinforced plastic, Kevlar (bullet proof cloth), etc, to keep them light weight and cost-effective.
The existing version of the UAV is operated through a ground control system and can operate on batteries, gasoline or jet turbine fuel.
ADA officials said these fixed-wing UAVs deliver excellent performance and could be used in agriculture, surveillance and checking pollution levels.
The UAVs are capable of carrying cameras, including electro-optical camera and infra red camera, and could help keep tab on pollution in Ganga and traffic congestion.