Flying Robot for Disaster Relief

A proprietary multifunctional flying robot, developed by CAS Shenyang Institute of Automation, was tested for its performance at an earthquake exercise held on May 12, 2009 in Beijing, and approved for a limited production. The flying robot, in large and small specifications, looks like a helicopter in shape, having a camera installed at the lower part of the front. With a rotating wing of 3m, and a body length of 3m, the large model is of a 120-kg lifting capacity for 40 kg of payloads, working at 100-kilometer maximum cruising speed an hour with a maximum endurance for 4 hours. The smaller model is designed with a take-off weight at 40kg, and 15-kg payloads, able to run 70 kilometers an hour for up to 2 hours. With a preset target, the flying robot is able to take off, cruise, and touch down on its own. In the field exercise, it has completed a range of preset missions, including taking off, suspension in the air, tracking, low-air information gathering, and touching down.

According to a briefing, the flying robot can be employed to work at earthquake, flood, and fire scenes, or dispatched to watch important facilities, monitor toxic gases over chemical plants, examine power lines and oil pipelines, act as regional air-land and air-sea communication relay, and spray pesticides over croplands and forests.