AUVSI’s Innovation Challenge, which will be part of Unmanned Systems — Defense. Protection. Security (USDPS) will allow companies to pitch their technology to the show’s audience and a high-level advisory panel.
It’s an opportunity for small, start-up and early-stage companies operating in the commercial, defense, and non-traditional unmanned systems or autonomous systems spheres to present their technology to government and industry representatives.
Advisory Panel members include Orin Hoffman, autonomy and robotics HQE, DIUx; Bob Sadowski, chief roboticist, U.S. Army; Frank Kelley, deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for Unmanned Systems (DASN (UxS)); and other defense and government industry experts.
Business Solutions
Business Solutions
Autonomous vehicle could turn into 'Batmobile' through Intel and Warner Bros. collaboration
During the Los Angeles Auto Show on Nov. 29, Intel announced a collaboration with motion pictures/entertainment company Warner Bros. to develop “in-cabin, immersive experiences in autonomous vehicle (AV) settings.”
Intel CEO Brian Krzanich says that the companies are creating the AV Entertainment Experience, which is a “first-of-its-kind proof-of-concept car to demonstrate what entertainment in the vehicle could look like in the future.”
The vehicle, which is a member of the Intel 100-car test fleet, will demonstrate the potential for entertainment in the world of autonomous driving.
Air Force selects Tyndall AFB as preferred location for hosting new MQ-9 Reaper Wing
The United States Air Force has chosen Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida (Tyndall AFB) as the preferred location for hosting a new MQ-9 Reaper Wing with 24 remotely piloted aircraft (RPA).
The wing will feature an operations group with mission control elements, a launch and recovery capability, and a maintenance group.
“We selected Tyndall Air Force Base because it was the best location to meet the unique requirements of the MQ-9 Reaper,” says Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson.
uAvionix secures $5 million in latest round of funding
uAvionix has closed a $5 million round of funding that was led by new investor Airbus Ventures, and included participation from Playground Global and Redpoint Ventures, both of which are existing investors.
uAvionix says that this latest round of funding, which brings its total funding to $10 million, will be used to expand its product line and services in both unmanned and manned aviation.
Autonomous truck technology company TuSimple raises $55 million
According to Fortune.com, TuSimple, which is a China-based startup that is developing driverless commercial trucks, has raised $55 million in a Series C funding round, which was led by Composite Capital, and included contributions from existing investors Sina and ZP Capital.
TuSimple will use the funding for a variety of tasks, including scaling up its testing to two full truck fleets in China and the U.S.
The funds will also be used to hire production engineers in Tucson, Arizona; the location where TuSimple established a test facility back in August. And, some funds will also be put towards the company’s research centers in San Diego, California and Beijing, China.
Media Advisory: “So You Want to Fly a Drone” Webinar, Nov. 29
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Nov. 29, 2017
Contact: Tom McMahon, tmcmahon@auvsi.org, (571) 255-7786
SeeByte awarded Naval Sea Systems Command contract to support MK18 UUV Family of Systems
After being awarded a Naval Sea Systems Command contract worth $22.59M over five years, SeeByte will provide engineering, technical support, and training services for the MK18 Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) Family of Systems (FoS).
Thanks to the award, the government will be able to easily execute task orders with SeeByte “for the provision of various supplies and services,” including upgrades to the SeeTrack Common Operator Interface for Navy (COIN) EOD software modules, purchasing autonomy software (SeeByte’s Neptune autonomy engine) licenses for MK18 UUVs, and developing Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) modules, just to name a few things.
Velodyne LiDAR and UMS partner to test autonomous vehicles in South Korea
Through a recently announced partnership with Unmanned Solution (UMS) of South Korea, Velodyne LiDAR Inc. will integrate its advanced LiDAR sensors into UMS’ extensive autonomous technology development program.
UMS’ autonomous program represents a wide range of activities, including on-road vehicles, agricultural equipment, robots, and autonomous systems integration. In addition to those activities, an “instructional platform for educational programs serving students studying autonomous and robotics technology” is also being developed.
COPTRZ to provide UAS for Devon & Cornwall Police and Dorset Police
COPTRZ, which is a full service UAS company, will be the exclusive supplier of UAS and accompanying technologies for the United Kingdom's Devon & Cornwall Police and Dorset Police (the force). This announcement comes after the force announced earlier this year that it will employ full-time UAS pilots and create a dedicated UAS unit.
As a result of this partnership, the force will expand its fleet of UAS technology in the upcoming months, as it plans on purchasing a variety of specialist UAS that are equipped with optical zoom and thermal imaging capabilities.
Persistent Systems to provide its MPU5 radio to Endeavor Robotics for US Army UGVs
Persistent Systems, LLC, which is a leader in Mobile Ad hoc Network (MANET) technology, has announced that it is a part of Endeavor Robotics’ winning team for the US Army’s MTRS Inc II Award (Man-Transportable Robotic System Increment II), which is a $100 million contract award.
The award has an option for an additional “$58 million worth of deliverables” to provide a fleet of up to 1,200 mid-sized UGVs to the US Army.
As Endeavor’s MANET radio of choice, Persistent Systems’ MPU5 radio will provide “secure and long-range data communication” for C2 (command and control), video, CBRNe, and other vital sensor data.