TOMSK, Aug 31 – RIA Tomsk. Scientists of Tomsk State University of Control Systems and Radioelectronics (TUSUR) are testing a high-precision orientation system for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which will allow for the search and exploration of solid mineral deposits, the university's press service reported on Monday.
The developers of TUSUR created a prototype of a small-sized high-precision UAV navigation system with the ability to measure at different altitudes. Classic altimeters measure only the height to the nearest obstacle. However, this is not enough for high-precision unmanned geophysical survey of the terrain.
"The innovative method of measurements at different heights will allow to implement a new tomographic approach to the processing of the obtained data with high-precision determination of the location of diamond pipes, iron ore deposits, accumulations of polymetallic ores and valuable minerals in the depths of the earth. There are no analogues of such systems in the world", – the message said.
The development team solved such problems as the creation of a miniature navigation system and a radio altimeter capable of simultaneously determining two heights with recording of measurements in real time.
The navigation system is fully ready. It is a compact device that operates in differential mode, that is, it determines coordinates relative to the reference base station. The navigation module is responsible for determining coordinates and exact position in space with an accuracy of half a meter and above.According to the university, by the end of 2020, the improved prototype will be handed over to the customer for flight tests. The creation of a new orientation system for UAVs is carried out by specialists from the Research Institute of Radio Engineering Systems of TUSUR within the framework of the "Aerotomography" Russian project, which is being implemented on the basis of Novosibirsk State University in cooperation with the Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics of the SB RAS.