© РИА Томск. Яна Резниченко
TOMSK, Nov 21 – RIA Tomsk. Employees of Tomsk State University Faculty of Innovative Technologies (FIT TSU) together with Research Institute of Semiconductor Devices (RISD) developed hardware-software complex allowing drones to "hunt" for drones engaged in industrial espionage; drones operate without operator’s participation, the university’s press service said on Thursday.
Earlier it was reported that TSU scientists are developing a smart add-on for drones that will help aircraft operate autonomously - for example, independently recognize an extraneous object, build their own trajectory to bypass obstacles. The add-on will become the basis of a complex of protection against enemy reconnaissance drones.
"The employees of FIT TSU together with an industrial partner - RISD JSC - developed a hardware and software system for hunting drones engaged in (industrial) espionage. A distinctive feature of the scientists’ invention is that the "watchman" drone does not require manual control by the operator and is able to block the control channels of the spy drone. The project was implemented with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation", - is said in the report.
It is noted that the drone consists of air and ground parts. Each of them is equipped with special sensors to obtain information about the environment and information processing facilities.
© РИА Томск. Алена Хлестунова
The highlight is that all calculations are carried out on board (of a drone). The technical difficulty was that on board the drone it was necessary to place a lot of equipment ... despite the fact that its lifting power is small ... We managed to solve the problem by means of a special algorithmic solution and the construction of a hybrid computer architecture", - the dean of FIT TSU Stanislav Shidlovsky is quoted.
It is explained that the air part of the “hunter” drone detects the intruder through visual and thermal imaging channels, then the drone can block the “spy” control channels or shoot with a special net and transport it to the right place. If the "spy" is large and heavy, after blocking it is lowered to the ground with a parachute, and the ground part arrives at the landing site and captures the intruder.
According to the press service, the developers are currently testing the new system. The flying "watchman" is designed to suppress industrial espionage on the territory of nuclear and machine-building enterprises, fuel and energy complexes and others. Its functionality can also be used in the police and special forces departments.