The State Research Institute of Aviation Systems (GosNIIAS) is developing UAVs to search for fugitive criminals, as well as track and photograph rare animals in wooded areas.
This was announced in a commentary by TASS by the deputy head of the department for software complexes of the enterprise, Boris Vishnyakov.
“Work is underway to create drones capable of moving at high speeds in forests and searching for any objects ... It will be simply impossible to escape such pursuit.
The drones will indicate the location of objects and continuously transmit their coordinates to the control center, ”Vishnyakov said.
According to the specialist, the creation of such unmanned aerial vehicles is "a matter of the near future."
According to Vishnyakov's forecast, the GosNIIAS team will be able to manufacture UAVs for use in wooded areas within one to two years.
GosNIIAS is one of the leading developers of various modeling methods for the design of automatic systems of any complexity.
The enterprise participates in the creation of aviation equipment at all stages of its life cycle - from the development of the concept of aircraft to their modernization.
Recently, GosNIIAS has been paying attention to the development of artificial intelligence technologies in the field of unmanned aviation.
According to scientists, their application will allow solving problems of observation, detection, navigation and control of drones.
In a conversation with RT, the editor-in-chief of the specialized publication Unmanned Aviation Denis Fedutinov noted that the development of UAVs for finding fugitive criminals and tracking rare animals is being carried out by GosNIIAS in broad cooperation with other enterprises.
As the expert suggests, the state-owned company will manufacture onboard systems, and the drone itself will be created by another organization.
“GosNIIAS is known for its developments in the field of intelligent systems, including machine vision.
Based on this, it can be assumed that the unmanned vehicle, which will serve as a platform for solving these problems, can be taken from a third-party supplier, ”the analyst says.
"Hidden Objects"
Experts believe that the emergence of drones capable of effectively operating in wooded areas will greatly facilitate the task of searching for animals and people, including fugitive criminals, who often try to "dissolve" in the so-called closed area - in an area covered with forests and shrubs with mountainous, hilly or flat terrain.
Helicopters over the forest belt
© Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
In a commentary to RT, honored military pilot, deputy editor-in-chief of Aviapanorama magazine, Vladimir Popov, said that search and detection in wooded areas is a very difficult task.
To solve it, one has to either "comb" the forest, which requires the involvement of a large number of people, or to raise aircraft into the air.
“If we talk about the use of aircraft, then traditionally, helicopters and light aircraft are used for this, but their effectiveness is limited, especially when a person disguises himself or just tries to hide under the crowns of trees,” Popov explained.
The RF Ministry of Defense uses the Orlan-10 and Eleron drones to “scan” forest areas.
In September, an exercise was held in the Amur Combined Arms Formation of the Eastern Military District (VVO) to "detect groups of people, as well as hidden objects of a simulated enemy in a wooded area."
The drones carried out electronic reconnaissance and used observation equipment that worked in the optical and infrared spectrum in adverse weather conditions.
“During the exercise, the UAVs operated from heights of 2,000 to 6,000 meters and transmitted information to the ground operator in real time.
The data was analyzed at the command posts of our troops, after which decisions were made to neutralize and destroy the detected objects, ”the press service of the Air Defense Forces said.
Meanwhile, modern drone models have a number of shortcomings that impair search and identification capabilities.
For example, an article written by three colonels was published in the August issue of Voennaya Mysl magazine, in which it was stated that Orlan-10, at the stage of analyzing the electronic situation, identifies "no more than 60% of objects subject to fire damage."
There are also certain difficulties with the operation of drones with an airplane type of landing on the terrain (Orlan-10 and Eleron land with the help of special parachutes).
So, in the materials of the 924th State Center for Unmanned Aviation of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, it is reported that such UAVs require mandatory binding to ground infrastructure, the use of glide path and "other landing equipment."
According to Popov, there is a rather rapid process of improving UAVs all over the world, including in terms of technical vision devices that allow "scanning" forests.
It is known that earlier, to search under tree crowns, employees of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA) suggested using autonomous drones equipped with LIDAR systems (Light Identification Detection and Ranging).
The equipment produces pulses of ultraviolet, near infrared, or visible light.
After the ray is reflected from the target, its properties are analyzed, the result of which is information about the object.
The principle of operation of lidar systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is based on the analysis of clusters of trees, each of which is a unique structure.
If the equipment installed on the drone detected a person, then his coordinates are transmitted to an electronic map.
UAV
RIA News
© Vitaly Timkiv
The disadvantage of their development, American researchers call the need to periodically establish communication between the UAV and the ground control point.
In a conversation with RT, Dmitry Litovkin, editor of the Nezavisimoye Voennoye Obozreniye newspaper, drew attention to the imperfection of modern surveillance and reconnaissance systems that receive information from drones.
“If we talk about the capabilities of the UAV in general, then the main obstacle now is insufficiently effective software.
This is a complex and expensive product, but it is the software that must provide information analysis.
Russia and other countries still have a lot to do in this area, ”Litovkin said.
Promising project
According to Popov, the GosNIIAS team is creating a line of drones with different indicators in terms of range and flight altitude.
This allows us to provide customers with an integrated approach to search activities.
“The challenges in this regard can be very different.
If efficiency is important, then in a given location it is logical to use small and medium-sized vehicles, if there is more time to search and the monitoring area is significant, then heavier and higher-altitude UAVs are needed, ”says Popov.
According to the expert, search drones should be equipped with optoelectronic and infrared equipment.
The latter - allows you to scan the forest at night and twilight.
At the same time, it makes sense to install a radar for monitoring the underlying surfaces on large-sized high-altitude drones, says Popov.
For such tasks in Russia, it is not the first year that small-sized programmed radar stations are being developed.
Such products allow mapping the terrain and selecting ground (surface) moving targets.
According to the expert's forecast, the UAVs of GosNIIAS will be “multifunctional vehicles”.
They are suitable for monitoring forests in order to identify fire pockets, search for lost people, detect wreckage of crashed aircraft and catch poachers.
Popov recalled that today search engine drones are already being used in the civilian sphere.
In particular, they are used by the volunteer squad "Lisa Alert".
According to the leaders of this non-profit organization, the use of UAVs makes a significant contribution to saving the lives of missing children.
Denis Fedutinov also believes that GosNIIAS is implementing a very promising project.
In his opinion, the state-owned enterprise will certainly constantly improve its drones, increasing the payload mass and improving the control system.
“This project could develop in terms of expanding the range of used onboard surveillance systems and complicating the navigation and control systems.
This should make it possible to make the transition from flights in a plane (over the forest) to full-fledged flights in three-dimensional space with possible descents for additional examination of certain areas, "Fedutinov summed up.