US Navy launches swarm of robots in the air

A cylindrical UAV unfolds its wings and tail after launching from an air gun

on March 25 and April 3, 2015. The U.S. Navy tested swarm-type drones. Inexpensive UAVs are shot into the air from pneumatic guns (up to 30 pieces per minute). In the air, they establish communications with each other and transmit information to the base.

This is one of the first examples of the use of group robotics in military affairs , where robots use the principles of a decentralized self-organizing system, known in nature as swarm intelligence.



In March, the Navy tested the guns and flight qualities of UAVs, and in April, they tested the airborne drones communication system.

UAVs of this type are called LOCUST (Low-Cost UAV Swarming Technology). As the name implies, the group system consists of cheap devices that can be run in virtually unlimited quantities. The press release says that you can launch up to 30 drones per minute. This means that one installation with air guns will quickly fly into the sky hundreds of drones operating both in stand-alone mode and in coordination with each other according to the principle of P2P systems.

This is a rather unusual approach to the use of UAVs in military affairs. It usually uses expensive autonomous devices with rich technical capabilities. LOCUST offers the exact opposite approach.

A swarm of hundreds of drones will be difficult for the enemy to destroy. The video shows how drones circle above targets and “highlight” them for guiding missiles.

The maximum speed of LOCUST exceeds 145 km / h, weight less than 6 kg.