Namma UAV Gets Rave Reviews in US
By Anantha Krishnan M
BANGALORE: Dawon, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) named after the mythological tiger of goddess Durga and designed by M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology (MSRIT) students, won rave reviews at an international event held in the United States recently.
The seven-member team from MSRIT – Edhitha- competed with 50 universities from 20 countries at the Patuxent River Naval Airbase at Maryland.
In an interaction with Express on Monday, M Akash, a seventh semester Mechanical Engineering student of the college, said the competition was backed by aerospace giants like Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.
“We came 10th in journal presentation, seventh in oral flight readiness review and 25th in executing the mission. The jury appreciated the UAV’s unique design and in-house fabrication,” Akash said.
The competition demanded students to develop a UAV capable of autonomous GPS navigation and with a real-time imagery system relaying information of strategic importance in intelligence and reconnaissance mission. In addition, the UAV needed to have a mechanism for aerial drop tasks and an infrared imaging system for night vision.
The Edhitha team was led by Vishnu B N.
“The UAV Dawon flew for 30 minutes and even undertook a digital image processing mission. It also dropped an egg-shaped canister on an assigned target. The entire airframe, fabrication and electronics of the UAV cost us `6 lakh,” Akash said.
Two-and-a-half metre long Dawson, with a wingspan of three metres, 90-minute endurance and one litre fuel-carrying capacity, is currently kept at the college lab.
The team is also exploring whether the UAV can be put to military or civil use.
“We are looking at regulations controlling UAVs in India. We are keen to see it put to good use,” Akash said.
http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/Namma-UAV-Gets-Rave-Reviews-in-US/2014/09/09/article2422102.ece
