AeroVironment [AVAV] has flown a version of its Puma AE unmanned aerial vehicle that uses solar energy to power the system, the company said Monday.
The small, hand-launched UAV used the solar power coupled with a new long-endurance battery to fly for more than nine hours, the company said at the beginning of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI)’s annual convention this week.
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| Puma AE. Photo by AeroVironment |
AeroVironment’s RQ-20A Puma supplied to the military typically has a flight duration of about two hours for carrying out intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. The company said the new battery alone would add another hour to that in addition to the endurance provided by solar power.
AeroVironment developed the solar capability with Alta Devices, which provides portable power that can be embedded into materials, the company said.
AeroVironment’s vice president for unmanned systems, Roy Minson, said past efforts to embed solar technology onto small UAVs were challenged by weight and insufficient power issues, but now believes the capability is proven.
“The solar Puma AE technology can produce enough power, while adding negligible weight, so that endurance is no longer an issue for most customer missions,” he said in a statement.
The solar powered plane is currently in research and development but a production version is planned for early next year. Minson said the solar capability can prolong the life of batteries and thereby reduce overall costs to operate the system.
Puma weighs about 13 pounds and has wingspan of just more than nine feet. It has a communications range of 15 kilometers.