What's next for the Pentagon after the Replicator programme?
Although the Replicator initiative has made several accomplishments, there are still multiple gaps to plug across the US Department of Defense (DoD) and its services.
Indago UAS monitors coast
The Lockheed Martin Indago quad rotor unmanned aerial system (UAS) has conducted aerial coastal erosion monitoring over Australia’s Seabird coastline, expanding the system’s application into new areas. Lockheed Martin announced the work on 7 August.
The UAS was operated by the Heliwest Group in partnership with geoscience company Total Earth Solutions.
The team conducted two surveys of the Seabird coastline, with the first survey capturing initial data on the terrain, and the second survey conducted after several days of storms to help map erosion and changes to the terrain.
Indago captured imagery of coastal features from different angles, which allowed Total Earth Solutions to create a 3D terrain surface in a video. The team also created planametric maps, and after ground control points are placed, change detection processes will be run after subsequent captures to measure erosion as well as any movement, especially in cliff areas.
Jay McConville, director of business development for Unmanned Solutions, Lockheed Martin, said: ‘This new application of the Indago quad rotor demonstrates the breadth of use cases for small UAS across a range of civil and commercial interests. Because of its weather tolerance and endurance, users can field a stable, high resolution mapping capability comparable to larger fixed wing systems.’
Indago is a five-pound, compact quad rotor with interchangeable payloads designed for firefighting, first response, agriculture, surveying and military operations. The UAS provides operators with eye-in-the-sky 360-degree surveillance of an area. With an endurance of more than 45 minutes, and range of up to 3 miles (5 km) it is carried in a single backpack.
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