Unmanned Systems Technology 001 | UAV Factory Penguin C | Real-time operating systems | Hirth S1218 two-stroke twin | Base stations | ASV C-Enduro | Composites | Datacomms

23 electrical generator, which is belt-driven from the rear of the crankshaft. This brushless 15-35 V generator supplies a 100 W generator power unit (GPU), which in turn provides a dual-voltage (6 and 12 V) regulated power supply to the aircraft. Mounted under the engine, close to the generator and within the power module, the GPU is housed in a sealed aluminium enclosure. It monitors engine (generator) speed, battery current and voltage, and has an integrated lithium-polymer charging unit, which is used as a back- up battery for pre-flight checks and in the event of engine/generator failure. The engine is started by an external starter. Controlling the Penguin C The Penguin C is not designed for runway operation, but for catapult or car- top launch. The Penguin B has landing wheels, whereas the C is designed for parachute landing only: the absence of (non-retractable) landing gear reduces drag, and an airbag is used to ensure a safe grounding. Popiks says he wasn’t satisfied with the quality of existing catapult and car- top launch systems so UAV Factory developed its own. He adds, “They were surprisingly difficult to develop but we now have systems that are simple and affordable, but effective. With the catapult, you are controlling a pneumatic explosion and it must work reliably thousands of times – if it fails then you lose both the catapult and the aircraft. Ours works perfectly, like a Swiss watch, and we sell it to many other UAV manufacturers.” Weighing 110 kg when packed, the UAV Factory catapult can be carried by one person. For take-off and landing the gimbal payload can be retracted into its bay; the payload has anti-vibration dampening. Its automatic retraction not only enables the gimbal and its precious camera to be protected from possible damage on landing but also reduces drag when it isn’t required in flight. Sandwiched between the payload bay and the power module further behind is an electronics bay. Above that is the parachute bay, and beneath that is the airbag bay, which extends back beneath the fuel tank at the front of the power module. The airbag is made from the same material as a typical life vest, and only low pressure from an impeller is needed to quickly inflate it, once the floor of its bay has been jettisoned. A (light but extremely strong) Dyneema cable keeps the jettisoned panel connected to the aircraft. The impeller and the detaching of the We now have launch systems that are simple, affordable and effective. Our catapult system works like a Swiss watch UAV Factory employs 39 at its base in Jelgava, which is not far from Latvia’s capital Riga. Since it was established in 2009 it has supplied more than 100 Penguin B airframes. It sells subsystems through to complete UAVs, and has customers in 30 countries – customers that include a good number of universities around the world, the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) and Greenpeace. UAV Factory has a four-axis CNC machine for manufacturing the metal moulds, brackets and other components of the Penguins, as well as accessories such as catapults and ground stations. It also has in-house all the facilities it needs for producing advanced composites and associated components. In addition, it has facilities for the manufacture of electronic components and for designing and developing every aspect of an unmanned aircraft, including engine development. An engineering-led company, UAV Factory’s products range from individual components to turnkey Penguin C aircraft. In May 2014, Toivo Annus, co-founder of Skype (and its former head of engineering), led a private investment in UAV Factory, which is co-owned by founder Konstantins Popiks and UAV Factory USA. UAV Factory UAV Factory Chief Technology Office Konstantins Popiks says, “our success story would not have been possible without the engineering and business team I have built over the last five years. We have attracted and retained some of the top talents in their respective fields. Our key personnel have been with us since the beginning and are leading the development and deployment of the Penguin C system.” The photograph shows, left to right: Nils Vilums, Production Manager; Andrejs Kostromins, Senior Software Engineer; Peteris Duka, Microcontroller Programmer; Popiks; Aleksandrs Guks, Director of Engineering; Viktors Boroviks, Microcontroller Programmer; Vadims Bogdanovs, Software Engineer Unmanned Systems Technology | November 2014