AB5 JetQuad

JetQuad is the world’s smallest and most powerful jet-powered drone with vertical take-off and landing capabilities. It is like an unmanned, scaled-down version of the Harrier Jump-Jet

The AB5 JetQuad is a new type of aircraft. This is not a quadcopter, nor a helicopter, nor an aeroplane. Four microturbine jet-engines produce a combined 200-Horsepower at full throttle and are all coupled with proprietary Thrust Vectoring Systems. We refer to this design as the “H-Configuration” – this is the first-ever configuration in which the jet-engines alone provide the power for both vertical and horizontal flight as well as complete attitude control of the vehicle. The result is a compact, fully-autonomous, all-diesel drone, that can take-off and land virtually from any surface and capable of high speeds and payload capacity. FusionFlight has been developing JetQuad since 2016.

Extensive Payload Accomodations

The naturally sleek and flat configuration of the JetQuad allows for both highly aerodynamic horizontal flight as well as the ability to accommodate many different style payloads. Payloads of various weights and sizes may be easily mounted on the front, back, and top. Extra-large payloads may be easily mounted underneath the vehicle in a very similar configuration to the NASA Mars Curiosity Rover Sky Crane System.

In the “Sky-Crane” configuration, the JetQuad would hover about 15ft at the payload drop off location, and slowly lower the payload to the ground using four electric reels. The Thrust Vectoring Systems are designed specifically to divert all hot gases away from the vehicle during hover allowing for the undercarriage payload to remain cool throughout the flight and payload deployment operation. In addition, the jet-engines can also generate plenty of on-board electricity to power sophisticated computer vision systems necessary for the safe operation of such high-speed drone.

Versatile and Scalable

The design of the AB5 JetQuad is simple and easily scalable. A scaled-up version of the JetQuad, fitted with larger fuel tanks, may accommodate all aviation-grade jet-engines. Such a drone can support ultra-heavy cargo capacity missions without the expensive price-tag of renting out a similar (by size) helicopter. The same scaled-up platform would also enable the construction of the first flying car that does not have any external propellers; such a machine would look and feel like an ordinary car and be able to park in standard parking space.

Furthermore, the jet-engines are inherently simple and reliable devices that may also be augmented with additional features to greatly boost their performance, resulting a faster and even more capable vehicle. Afterburners, for example, can be readily combined with the proprietary Thrust Vectoring Systems to allow the JetQuad to travel faster then the speed of sound – no other VTOL drone technology in the world today has such potential.  Finally, the form-factor of the JetQuad is ideal for use within a Lifting-body shell. The lifting-body will greatly improve aerodynamics and most importantly provide natural lift during high-velocity cruise. Additional lift means the engines can be slightly de-throttled, ultimately saving fuel, and greatly extending the endurance and range of the vehicle.

Key Advantages: Jet-Engines and Diesel

The performance of the AB5 JetQuad surpasses all other drone technologies for two main reasons: the use of jet-engines for propulsion, and diesel for fuel. The microturbines (small jet-engines) have the highest power-to-mass and power-to-volume densities of all known air-breathing engines. This means that when compared to similar-sized Internal Combustion Engines or electrical motors (as used in most modern drone designs) the jet-engines can output significantly more power. Furthermore, diesel fuel which is readily available anywhere in the world has 40-times more energy density then conventional Lithium Polymer batteries and takes minutes to refuel instead of hours that it takes to recharge batteries. When combined together, the product is a very compact and reliable drone that can go faster and carry more then any other drone of similar size.

Patent Pending “AirBooster Technology”

All manned and unmanned designs that utilize our current platform (AB5 – horizontal engine “H” configuration), as well as our previous platform (AB4 – vertical engine configuration), are protected by the pending patent – “AirBooster Technology”. The patent has been filed in 2016 and is currently under review by USPTO.

Technical Specifications

Please note that these specifications are for the current AB5 Prototype. A production model will have optimized aerodynamics and Thrust Vectoring Systems resulting in significantly better specifications.

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