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78 F ollowing the success of previous Commercial UAV Expo shows in Las Vegas, the event’s organisers elected to bring the event across the Atlantic, with visitors from 50 countries converging on the first Commercial UAV Expo Europe at the Square – Brussels Meeting Centre. Xamen Technologies, a French manufacturer of industrial inspection UASs, showcased its LE 4-8X Dual ATEX UAV, billed as the first UAV that complies with the EU’s ATEX directive on operating in explosive atmospheres. Thibault Sergent told us, “ATEX certification is compulsory for sites of this kind. For example, if you want to enter an oil or gas facility with even something as ubiquitous and unassuming as a smartphone, you would have to have an ATEX-certified version of it. Many sites will not allow non-ATEX drones. “ATEX is a specific type of certification that is required around the world, but mainly in Europe and for European companies operating abroad.” To achieve the certification, the UAV’s navigation, propellers and electronics have dual redundancy to improve safety. It includes a 20 MP EO ATEX camera and an IR ATEX camera, which were built and developed in-house, and uses wooden instead of carbon propellers to avoid generating any static electricity. Rory Jackson reports from the first Commercial UAV Expo Europe show, with his selection of the most interesting products that were on display Euro file August/September 2017 | Unmanned Systems Technology The CUAV Expo proved as popular in Europe as it has in the USA The ATEX-compliant LE 4-8X from Xamen Technologies