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Aeryon Labs Inc., a leader in small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS), and Persistent Systems LLC (Persistent Systems), a leader in mobile ad hoc network (MANET) technology and developers of the Wave Relay system, have announced the integration of Wave Relay technology into the airframe of the Aeryon SkyRanger sUAS. This integration will enable command and control (C2) and video downlinks from the sUAS into a Wave Relay MANET.
Traditionally, sUAS operators have relied on Wi-Fi (or similar) networking standards to deliver line-of-sight connections from ground control station (GCS) to aircraft. With Wave Relay now integrated, the Aeryon SkyRanger offers a powerful set of new capabilities to military, public safety, and commercial UAV operators, including:
• Eliminating the need for a dedicated base station to provide the wireless link from the operator to the aircraft. This enables operators to deploy more flexibly and with less equipment;
• Operating the aircraft as a relay node within the MANET, enabling an “over the hill” communications link between ground-based personnel who would otherwise be out of radio contact, to a range of two or more miles (three or more kilometres) between the ground-based teams;
• Extending the operational range of the aircraft to the maximum range of the MANET; and
• Permitting all personnel within the MANET to view the video and telemetry feeds from the aircraft.
“Our partnership with Persistent Systems will bring significant benefits to our mutual customers and help them to do their jobs more safely and efficiently”, said Dave Kroetsch, president and CEO, Aeryon Labs.
Dr. Herbert Rubens, CEO of Persistent Systems, offered a similar perspective, “Persistent Systems and Aeryon share a deep engineering heritage and a commitment to deliver to our customers, in all sectors, flexible and robust networking solutions. We are confident that this collaboration will bring a unique, best-of-breed solution to market.”
