DARPA’s OFFensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics (OFFSET) program deployed swarms of autonomous air and ground vehicles to demonstrate a raid in an urban area during the agency's third field experiment.
According to DARPA, OFFSET sees a day where swarms of up to 250 collaborative autonomous systems will provide important insights to small ground units in urban areas where limited sight lines and tight spaces can obscure hazards, as well as constrain mobility and communications.
Technology
Technology
Skyfront, Silvus Technologies partner to produce long-range UAS
As a result of a partnership with Silvus Technologies, hybrid-electric UAS provider Skyfront has combined its five-hour endurance Perimeter UAS with Silvus’ high-power StreamCaster radios, resulting in the Perimeter XLRS, which can fly for up to five hours while maintaining command and control links and streaming real-time video up to 60 miles from the ground control station.
“We are very excited to be partnering with Silvus Technologies to bring long-range aerial platforms into the mainstream,” says Troy Mestler, CEO of Skyfront.
UPS, Waymo partner to begin picking up packages using autonomous vehicles in Phoenix
UPS and Waymo have partnered to test picking up packages using an autonomous vehicle in the Metro Phoenix area.
Through the pilot, packages will be shuttled from The UPS Store locations via Waymo’s Chrysler Pacifica minivans to a local UPS sorting facility for processing.
“UPS and Waymo are exploring automated and autonomous technologies to enhance network operations,” says Scott Price, UPS chief strategy and transformation officer.
“Getting packages to our sortation facilities sooner and more frequently, while also creating an opportunity for later drop-offs for next-day service, can add enormous value for our customers.”
UC San Diego Health and partners to deliver medical products between hospitals and laboratories using UAS
To speed up the delivery of services and patient care currently managed through ground transport, UC San Diego Health will launch a pilot project in February to test using UAS to transport medical samples, supplies and documents between Jacobs Medical Center and Moores Cancer Center and the Center for Advanced Laboratory Medicine (CALM).
A collaboration with UPS and Matternet, the program builds off the UPS and Matternet drone project that is currently taking place at WakeMed Health and Hospitals in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Royal Australian Navy, Defence Science and Technology Group showcase AUVs during Summerfest event
During the inaugural ‘Summerfest’ event at HMAS Creswell, Jervis Bay in Dec. 2019, the Royal Australian Navy and the Defence Science and Technology Group showcased new capability in the use of AUVs.
During the event, 32 AUV experts from Navy, Defence Science and Technology (DST), industry and academia came together to share knowledge and potential answers to common challenges in the growing AUV environment.
Navy engineers also had the opportunity to mark the progress made in AUV applied research and operations throughout 2019.
XOCEAN's XO-450 USV conducts seabed surveys for Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm
Considered a first for the offshore wind sector, XOCEAN’s XO-450 USV recently conducted seabed surveys on seven of the turbines at the Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm, a joint venture between SSE Renewables and innogy.
To validate data collection before the vessel departed the work locations, experts located in the United Kingdom monitored the data collected from shore in real-time throughout the survey.
According to XOCEAN, the survey demonstrates the “highly flexible and collaborative nature” of this technology, which ultimately allows industry experts to have direct access to real time data, from any location.
Miso Robotics unveils next generation robotic kitchen assistant platform
Miso Robotics has announced a prototype for its newest product, the Miso Robot on a Rail (ROAR), which the company describes as the “next generation of zero-footprint, cost-efficient robotic kitchen assistant solutions for evolving commercial kitchens.”
Thanks to feedback from top Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs), Miso Robotics has moved its robotic kitchen assistant Flippy to an upside-down rail. Designed to be installed under a standard kitchen hood, the newest generation of Flippy will be able to move along a line of kitchen equipment while staying out of the path of busy cooks.
Empire Drone Company receives FAA certification to use UAS for crop spraying
Fulton, New York's Empire Drone Company (EDC) recently received a Part 137 certification from the FAA that allows the company to use UAS to spray crops.
According to EDC, using UAS for crop spraying offers a number of advantages over traditional crop spraying methods, including helping growers save on equipment, application, and labor, cutting back on time and traffic in the field, and reducing applicators exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.
“We are incredibly excited to be one of the first companies in New York to be given the go-ahead by the FAA to spray crops with drones,” says Sean Falconer, partner at Empire Drone Company.
AiRXOS adds 11 UAS partners to its Air Mobility Platform Ecosystem
In an effort to help scale and accelerate the adoption of compliant, safe, and extensible Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) platforms for agencies and enterprise organizations, AiRXOS has added 11 UAS technology, service, and business partners to its Air Mobility Platform Ecosystem, which currently includes Measure.
The new partners include Adams and Reese LLP, AeroVironment, Airborne International Response Team (AIRT) Inc., Avitas Systems, DeTect Inc., Fortem Technologies, Kongsberg Geospatial, Northeast UAS Airspace Integration Research (NUAIR) and The New York UAS Test Site, SRC Inc., SPH Engineering, and Syniverse.
Navy's first MQ-4C Triton UAS arrive in Guam for initial deployment in Pacific theater
The Navy’s first MQ-4C Triton UAS have arrived in Guam for their initial deployment in the Pacific theater.
As part of an early operational capability (EOC), the first Triton UAS squadron, known as Unmanned Patrol Squadron (VUP) 19, will operate and maintain two aircraft, with a goal of further developing the concept of operations and fleet learning associated with operating a high-altitude, long-endurance system in the maritime domain.
Both Tritons arrived at Andersen Air Force base as of Sunday, Jan. 26, and they will fall under Commander, Task Force (CTF) 72, lead for patrol, reconnaissance and surveillance forces in 7th Fleet.
