AUS&R 2013 Air Show Update: The Ground Display
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עברית (Hebrew)
Hundreds of professionals, members of the unmanned vehicles community, visited the ground display at the YES Planet compound. 25 Israeli companies are taking part in the display. The following products and platforms may not be as attractive as UAVs, but impressive nonetheless and vital on the modern battlefields.
A new product by Magal was displayed for the first time. Magal, a global leader in defense and security solutions, presented its RoboGuard for the first time. The fully operational, rail-mounted robotic platform was installed on a mock-fence erected as part of the display.
The RoboGuard patrols along the rail, equipped with cameras and various payloads that allow it to quickly respond to infiltration alerts. The RoboGuard can reach up to 50 kph and responds immediately to any changes along the fence it protects.
IAI presented the Rex, a small, wheeled, ATV-sized vehicle that assists soldiers in the field by carrying various types of loads. It can carry logistic support, medicine, ammo, food and water, and even up to two casualties. It can be used for surveillance and intelligence gathering, and in the future might be fitted with weapons. The Rex is controlled remotely using a standard control unit and features a GPS system. It’s very simple to operate, so much so that any soldier can control it with very little training.
IHLS – Israel Homeland Security
A strange aircraft greeted visitors at the entrance, an autonomous rotorcraft with its rotors missing – or so it seemed at first glance. The developers, Urban Aero, explained that the rotors are protected inside the aircraft, in order to counter various vulnerabilities common to open rotors. It can fly in harsh environments inaccessible to normal helicopters, such as mountains, forests and urban environments. The aircraft is ideal for medical evacuations from difficult areas, and can remain in flight for five hours. Only one prototype exists so far, the one on display.
Accubeat presented its ultra-precise time and frequency synchronization units. These components are integrated into various military systems, used for navigation, communications, intelligence and weapon systems. These kinds of system require precision on a nano-second level. Every fraction of a second can be critical when tracking targets, for example. Accubeat achieves this high precision using various crystals, the element rubidium and highly advanced, miniaturized electronics. The components are undergoing constant miniaturization, eventually expected to reach the size of microchips. The components are used in aircraft, unmanned vehicles, ships and submarines, while civilian uses include the Galileo project, European GPS systems, Boeing, Rockwell-Collins – and the Israeli defense establishment.
