Small drones for military use are being leveraged beyond short-range reconnaissance. Draper develops detection capabilities for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) elements, so that military units can send sUAVs ahead to scout locations and identify hazards without risking personnel.
Previously, detection of CBRN elements may be performed using handheld or vehicle-mounted sensors, explains Draper.
“Customers are asking, can an sUAV sniff out these CBRN hazards in place of humans? How smart does an sUAV need to be to search, map and locate these CBRN hazard without a remote operator? When an sUAV encounters a building or obstacle, can it fly in and around it safely? These are just some of the questions our team is exploring,” Won Kim, Draper Program Manager, said.
The Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) has funded the Draper program, called CSIRP: CBRN Sensor Integration on Robotics Platform. “The team investigated the customer needs through field observations, noting requirements such as sensor efficiency and resolution, flight speed, height, duration, autonomous operation, sensor-driven mapping, networked command and enhanced situational awareness through shared interactive digital maps,” says the press release.