InDro hires Head of Strategic Innovations

InDro hires Head of Strategic Innovations

Feb 16, 2023 | InDro News, InDro Solutions, Innovation, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

As a Research and Development company, InDro Robotics is – by necessity – engineering-heavy. Our staff at Area X.O in Ottawa and in British Columbia are constantly pushing the envelope when it comes to inventing and deploying new solutions in hardware, software and service provision.

As a result, much of the focus of our hiring in the past couple of years has been expanding our engineering staff.

But with a growing number of InDro products and clients, it’s also important to identify and develop key partnerships. And on that front, we’re pleased to announce a non-engineer hire. Stacey Connors joins the InDro team as Head of Strategic Innovations.

The role is about the big picture – and a long-term vision of planning and executing InDro’s growth trajectory.

“My role is to find where we want to go, find the vertical that InDro should lean into, then determine what infrastructure we need based on our initial customer understanding and discoveries.”

It’s a big job. And Stacey comes with the requisite experience.

FedEx

Connors comes to InDro after a 12-year, high-level run at FedEx, the global leader in express transportation. Beginning as an account executive, she went on to positions in Strategic Development, became a Worldwide Account Manager, and was a District Manager when she made the leap to InDro.

Much of her work with FedEx involved B2B development. She worked with a variety of different verticals, including aerospace, retail, healthcare and manufacturing. She comes with a special knack for putting pieces together.

“What I enjoyed about it was twofold,” she says: “Finding the intersection between the solution that my organization had available and the need or problem that the customer’s trying to solve.”

Leap of faith

 

Connors says she truly enjoyed her work at FedEx. But when the opportunity at InDro came along, she felt ready for a new challenge that would push her beyond her comfort zone.

“I was craving something wildly different,” she says. “I hadn’t remotely thought about robotics and laughed when Peter (Peter King, Head of Robotic Solutions) first mentioned it. But it was a personal opportunity to get uncomfortable, be challenged, and work on the edge – where you have to be sharp.” 

Connors has quickly jumped in, traveling to Area X.O on her first week to meet a visiting robotics company from Europe and a delegation from NAV CANADA. While there, she quickly observed one of InDro’s key strengths.

“In my first few days it was very obvious that there’s a cohesiveness among all individuals in the organization. Everyone fully understands the business objectives we’re trying to achieve and the value that each of them bring,” she says. “When I walk into an organization and see that collective spirit, that’s the horse I’m going to bet on.”

 

Solutions

 

 

Drawing on her FedEx experience, Connors says she’s excited to start identifying companies that might benefit from InDro’s many robotic solutions – including a new inventory drone system that autonomously scans warehouse stock. But while sales may well result from her work, her role is really about the bigger strategic picture as InDro continues to grow.

“Yes, I’ll be leveraging our R&D capabilities to accelerate specific industries in their use of these technologies,” she says. “But I really see InDro as an integrator – and that’s almost how I would describe my role. We have research and development, the newest and latest and greatest. I’ll be going out and seeing who has other pieces we don’t have and bringing them all together. And that really gets me excited.”

Other expertise

 

Connors, in addition to her accomplishments at FedEx, has other expertise that will serve her well in this role. She has a Bachelor of Health Science from Wilfrid Laurier University,  along with a post-graduate degree from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia. She’s also a certified Talent Management Practitioner, has gone through the Ivey Sales Leadership Program, has studied Emotional Intelligence at McMaster’s DeGroote School of Business, and is also a Certified Multipliers Leader – with the latter meaning she has expertise to help bring out the greatness in others.

But she’d rather talk about InDro – and what she’s learned since coming onboard – than about herself.

“At FedEx our operators were the core and value of the company. And it is obvious that the engineers are the core value of this company,” she says. “Research and development is that incessant hunger to continue to provide new options, new solutions, new technologies. And you can feel that spirit here.”

Robot spacer

InDro’s take

 

The hiring of Stacey Connors as Head of Strategic Innovations is significant for a couple of reasons. The first, obviously, is that she brings proven skills, expertise, and an outstanding reputation.

But the second is really about the timing.

InDro Robotics has been growing steadily. In the last two years our team has developed and deployed multiple new products and services, and we are working with several global technology companies. Our engineering team has continued to grow.

“We are at a significant juncture in the company’s trajectory,” says CEO Philip Reece. “While InDro will always be an engineering-first firm, we are now at the stage of securing strategic partnerships to ensure the next phase of growth. Stacey is the right person, in the right position, at the right time.”

What InDro does

What InDro does

Sep 7, 2022 | InDro Commander, InDro News, InDro Pilot, InDro Sentinel, Innovation

By Scott Simmie

 

Have you ever wondered: What exactly InDro Robotics does?

The answer might surprise you.

InDro is often described as a research and development company. While accurate, that isn’t very explanatory. So we’ll give the first word to CEO Philip Reece.

“InDro Robotics does a lot of different things – ranging from product development to service provision to creating and building solutions for global clients,” he says. “But all of these tasks have some things in common:

“This is an engineering-first company – dedicating to inventing, enhancing and deploying technologies and products that make difficult work easier and more efficient. Customers purchase these technologies, and we are also a service provider using these InDro innovations.”

That’s a good starting point. But what does that actually look like? We thought a good way to explain this might be to look at some of the milestones the company has accomplished between September of 2021 and 2022.

There are, unfortunately, some that we’re prohibited from telling you about due to non-disclosure agreements with clients. But even without those, it’s been a very productive year.

InDro Commander

We’ll start with something that has allowed many clients to quickly customise and deploy ground robots. You’ll see this in the image below; it’s the module sitting directly on top of the robot chassis below. Specifically, it’s toward the front of the chassis above the InDro Robotics logo.

CANSEC Sentinel

The process

 

There’s an interesting backstory here. One of the things InDro is known for is building custom robots designed for specific tasks. But building robots – especially building multiple robots with different functionalities – is hard work.

We have a head start on this process, because we use the excellent platforms built by AgileX, China’s leading producer of quality robotic platforms and locomotion systems. But – and you can ask any robot builder – the real challenge is building robots that do things besides move.

You need to integrate sensors – everything from optical and thermal sensors to LiDAR and even arms with end effectors. You’ve got to figure out how to power these sensors and pull their data – a task that involves much more than wiring. With most robots, it means finding and integrating the proper software from the Robot Operating System libraries (ROS and ROS2). Then you generally need an onboard computer to process that data – along with coming up with a solution to moving that data from the robot to somewhere else.

Our engineering team thought there had to be a better way. In particular, lead engineer Arron Griffiths envisioned a module that might act like a kit to make this process much, much easier. InDro Robotics then developed and tested a module that could be added to most ground robotic platforms. It contains a powerful Jetson computer for onboard EDGE processing, multiple USB slots for adding peripheral sensors, two wide-angle cameras to give the operator a 360° view of the robot’s surroundings, and more.

That “more” includes the ability to operate the robot, in realtime, over a 5G or 4G cellular connection. The browser-based console provides data from all sensors in a clean and easy to navigate dashboard. And the operation? You can simply use an Xbox controller and operate your newly integrated robot from down the street – or across the country.

You can learn more about InDro Commander in this story. But the point here is that our engineers identified a problem and came up with a solution. Many of our products have a similar origin: Thinking of a new way to do things that’s easier and more efficient.

InDro now regularly manufactures and ships Commanders to clients globally, providing the ability to rapidly customise any ground robot utilising the Robot Operating System – without all the hassle. (If you’re interested in more details, feel free to reach out to Account Executive Luke Corbeth.)

Now that you’ve got the Commander basics, let’s take a brief look at our ground inspection robot Sentinel.

 

InDro Sentinel

Location, location, location

 

The phrase doesn’t just apply to real estate.

Many companies have valuable assets in remote locations. To inspect such locations generally means dispatching one or two employees to make the often-long trek and then simply walk around and ensure things are working as they should be. They’ll check for any signs of corrosion or wear, perhaps watch and listen for electrical arcing or test for thermal anomalies, even watch out for signs that wildlife has been chewing on wires or building nests in locations that might pose a risk. Inspectors are also frequently dispatched following violent weather events.

InDro started thinking about this problem, with a particular focus on electrical substations – often-remote and uncrewed facilities where the current from high-voltage transmission Iines is stepped-down for delivery to consumers. What if a robot could be placed on site that could carry out these inspections remotely? In fact, what if InDro took the InDro Commander module and customised a new ground robot for the task?

That’s how Sentinel came to be. The tracked robot features a 30x optical tilt-pan-zoom camera, a thermal sensor – along with any additional sensors clients would like incorporated. Sentinel can autonomously return to its wireless charging base and can literally be left on its own for months. An operator can remotely carry out regular inspections, read gauges, capture high-resolution photo and video, check for thermal anomalies – and generally accomplish nearly everything that could be carried out by a human inspector without the time and expense. Plus, Sentinel can be dispatched within minutes when necessary.

You can read more about Sentinel here. The robot also recently took part in exhaustive testing at the Electrical Power Research Institute’s (EPRI) substation test facility in Lenox, Massechusetts.

This is a great example of where one InDro innovation – the Commander module – helped pave the way for a second innovation: Sentinel.

It also contributed to a third: The ROLL-E delivery robot:

 

InDro London Drugs Roll-E

ROLL-E

 

ROLL-E is another beneficiary of the InDro Commander invention. This delivery robot is capable of remotely teleoperated urban deliveries, such as from a retail outlet to a home.

InDro has already completed trials with London Drugs at a Victoria location, delivering goods purchased online for curbside pickup.

InDro now has a second-generation ROLL-E, which the company will be unveiling shortly. ROLL-E 2.0 has been purpose-built to maximize integration into an urban environment with features like signals, brake and running lights – and a series of cameras (including depth perception cameras) to provide the operator with a 360° view of ROLL-E’s surroundings. Goods are contained in a secure cargo bay that opens only when the recipient interacts with a touch-screen.

And that’s not all.

InDro is currently building the InDro Backpack – a smaller version of Commander. Its purpose? To offer the same capabilities for teleoperation and high speed data transmission on the Unitree GO1 and its other quadrupeds.

Here’s a brief video demonstrating teleoperation of the GO1 as the backpack was under development; InDro anticipates the bolt-on 4G/5G system will be ready for clients later this fall.

 

What about drones?

 

Good question. While we were developing Commander, a similar but separate project was underway for aerial robots.

Ahmad Tamimi Area X.O

InDro Capsule

 

See that guy on the right? That’s Ahmad Tamimi, an engineer at InDro’s Area X.O location in Ottawa.

When this photo was taken in the fall of 2021, he was deep into something called NERDS (Network Enhanced Realtime Drone project). It was a technology challenge in conjunction with the Ontario Centre of Innovation, Ericsson and the ENCQOR 5G network – a testbed corridor that runs through Quebec and Ontario.

You can find full details of that project here – and a link to InDro’s White Paper on NERDS here. But in a nutshell, Tamimi created a module similar to Commander, only for Enterprise drones using the Pixhawk flight controller. It enables operations over cellular, including real-time dense-data uploads directly to the cloud during flight. It also broadcasts to nearby traditional aircraft that a drone is operating – a tremendous boost to BVLOS flights.

Here’s a picture of that module on top of our Wayfinder drone:

InDro Pilot NERDS

InDro Pilot

 

InDro didn’t stop there. The company created an entire software suite – InDro Pilot – for Enterprise drones (and, specifically, drones using the InDro Capsule).

That software makes it a snap to add and integrate other sensors onto drones and carry out low-latency flights over cellular networks. As with Commander, sensors can simply be plugged in to InDro Capsule, and the dashboard allows for drag-and-drop sensors modules to be added to the software suite. Want a winch? Simply add on the winch module and all operational controls and parameters are added to the InDro Pilot software. A robust and encrypted link between the InDro Ground Station and the drone ensures that any data collected remains secure. 

This project was completed in that 2021-2022 window we established earlier. InDro is currently creating a smaller and lighter InDro Capsule for commercialization of the entire InDro Pilot system. 

Here’s a screen grab of the winch software module:

InDro Pilot Winch

One more time

 

And here’s a look at the complete system…

Again, if you’d like a more thorough look at that system you’ll find far more details here.

InDro Pilot

That’s not all…

 

As mentioned, it’s been a highly productive year at InDro. We’ve flown drones in the NRC Wind Tunnel in Ottawa for research on urban wind tunnels. The company has partnered with UBC, Honeywell and others on a major research project involving flights over 5G and using AI software to precisely predict energy demands and costs of any planned drone mission.

As drones begin deliveries at scale in the future, the data being obtained about the capabilities of 5G networks to handle multiple drones simultaneously – as well as costs – will be tremendously useful to the industry-at-large.

All this, while carrying out service provision for clients on a global scale, including this mission in Saudi Arabia. (That’s our photogrammetry/GIS specialist Eric Saczuk in the photo).

InDro in Saudi Arabia

Before we forget…

 

InDro was also in the news this year for its role in the Drone Detection Pilot Project at the Ottawa International Airport.

During the protests in the nation’s capital, data obtained by the system revealed that scores of unauthorized drone flights were taking place in restricted airspace – including above Parliament Hill, over 24 Sussex Drive, and even near embassies and other sensitive locations.

InDro takes part in this project – and supplies the drone detection equipment for free – because there’s valuable data being obtained that contributes to both safety at YOW and informed policy and procedures.

In fact, the news even made the cover of WINGS magazine:

InDro Robotics & YOW Drone Detection Pilot Project

Wait, there’s more!

 

Hard to believe, but there is (and congrats for sticking through this long-ish read!).

InDro reached several other milestones between the fall of 2021 and 2022. The company can’t, unfortunately, share details of these due to non-disclosure agreements. But innovative solutions have been created for global clients. In one example, a prototype robot was so successful that InDro received orders for many more.

On top of that, the company has worked closely with industry and regulatory partners during this period, including delivering InDro Pilot-enabled drones to Transport Canada and assisting RPAS parachute manufacturer AVSS with testing of its latest product. 

AVSS Parachute Drone system

InDro’s Take

 

With an agile and motivated team, InDro Robotics has created multiple new and innovative products in the course of a single year. Some of these were created specifically for clients, while others were organic in nature. The development of InDro Commander has paved the way for multiple robots (Sentinel, ROLL-E, ROLL-E 2.0). In addition, the company has shipped custom Commander-enabled robots to clients – including one fully customized for Solar Farm inspection. Many clients are now order Commander modules to make the customization of their own ground robotics platforms a vastly easier process.

In addition, the development of the InDro Capsule and InDro Pilot system for Enterprise drones will soon allow clients to easily customize their RPAS with additional sensors, along with secure high-data bandwidth (direct to Cloud) and remote teleoperations via console over cellular networks. Stay tuned for more on that.

CEO Philip Reece got the first word in this summary; he also gets the last:

“I’m justifiably proud of our team for the multiple milestones we’ve surpassed during the past year,” he says. “InDro has created numerous products – and participated in multiple projects – where we’ve been able to push the envelope. Every single one of these products and processes uses technological innovations to make hard jobs easier, or to significantly expand the capabilities of drones and robots. The team has really hit its stride.”

Hopefully, this gives you a much better idea of What InDro Robotics Does. And why we proudly call ourselves an R&D company.

 

Let InDro Robotics pilot your next inspection mission – remotely

Let InDro Robotics pilot your next inspection mission – remotely

Aug 11, 2022 | InDro News, Innovation, Inspection, Scott Simmie

Picture this: You run a solar farm. And it’s time for a routine inspection to detect faulty or damaged solar cells.

Traditionally, you’ve inspected using a handheld thermal sensor – hoping to identify any anomalies on your solar panels. It does the job, but it’s time-consuming. You’re aware that drones are capable of carrying out this task much more rapidly, but that’s not a simple solution either. The time and expense of training an in-house pilot to meet the regulatory bar, along with the cost of a drone with a thermal sensor, add up.

What options do you have? Well, you could hire someone from outside on a contract basis. That gets pricey as well, since the fee generally includes travel time and other expenses for the operator. Like most solar farms, your facility is located in a rural area far from the nearest major city.

InDro Robotics is pleased to offer a solution: We ship you a fully-charged drone with thermal sensor, and we fly the mission remotely.

And how does that work? Well, just like this:

Inspections without the hassle

 

Let’s back up a bit.

InDro created this solution in response to a need. Solar and other industries told us they understood the value proposition of drone inspections but couldn’t justify the cost of purchasing a drone with the appropriate sensor for their needs. Many also said they didn’t need a drone pilot on staff.

And so we started thinking of options that would work within the current regulatory framework. In Canada, as long as the pilot is in contact with a visual observer monitoring the flight, these missions can be carried out without additional permissions beyond notifying NAVCAN of the flight.

“It’s a straightforward solution for solar farms or other clients requiring any form of aerial inspection,” explains Peter King, InDro’s Head of Robotic Solutions. “A qualified pilot instructs the client how to turn on the drone and monitor airspace. A pilot from InDro Robotics takes care of the rest, capturing and delivering meaningful data to the client – and at a significantly lower price point than having a contractor travel to the client’s location.”

And when the drone lands? The client simply powers it off, puts it back in the box, and ships it to the nearest InDro Robotics location (there are five in Canada).

 

Wait – there’s more!

InDro Pilot

Secure, remotely operated flights

 

If you follow our news, you’ll be aware we have created our own, proprietary platform for low-latency operations with high data bandwidth. We call the system InDro Pilot, and you can take a deeper dive here.

This system, which includes a special hardware module we’ve developed, is capable of exceedingly low-latency over 5G connections. It can also be operated over 4G as well. So regardless of where you need an inspection, we can carry it out as long as there’s a cellular connection. If that connection is 5G, we have the capability to upload your data in real-time to the cloud for processing – meaning you’ll receive meaningful and actionable data as soon as possible following the flight.

What’s more, the InDro Pilot system also informs traditional aircraft in the vicinity that a drone operation is underway at your location. This “Hear and be Heard” function, using a Software Defined Radio, reduces the likelihood of any conflict with low-flying aircraft.

If you check out the photo below, the black module on our WayFinder contains an Edge processor, high-speed modem, the Software Defined Radio – and much more. This is an integral ingredient in the secret sauce of InDro Pilot.

InDro Pilot NERDS

InDro’s Take

 

Not surprisingly, we’re keen on this solution.

But that’s not just because we created it. We truly believe this fills a niche in the marketplace, offering value to those who require top quality data collection and analysis but infrequent flights. For companies requiring up to four annual inspections, missions carried out remotely by InDro Robotics specialists are a cost-effective solution. We simply ship you the drone, ready to fly out of the box. All you have to do is watch the sky and keep in touch with our pilot during the flight – and the data will be your way in no time. And, by the way, InDro Robotics was the first company in North America to carry out a remote inspection in this way.

We are currently offering this solution in Canada. US operations are slightly more complex due to the FAA’s differing regulations, but not impossible.

To learn more of receive a quote for remote data acquisition, contact us here.

Some innovative Canadian tech companies to watch

Some innovative Canadian tech companies to watch

Jul 6, 2022 | Engineering, Industry News, Innovation, Scott Simmie

At InDro Robotics, we live and breathe innovation.

Not only do we like creating new products and solutions, we enjoy celebrating when other companies – particularly Canadian companies – build cool things.

InDro Robotics recently took part in a Trade Mission sponsored by NRC-IRAP – the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program. The program involved some 20 companies heading to Portugal for meetings with leading Portuguese innovation companies and agencies, as well as attending the Global Innovation Summit focussed on a sustainable future.

It was a busy, whirlwind week. But one of the highlights was meeting some of the other Canadian companies in the innovation space and learning more about that they do. So we thought we’d take a moment and highlight a few of them.

 

Oneka Technologies

 

See that buoy floating below? It’s pretty special.

Oneka Desalination
The buoy is built by Quebec’s Oneka Technologies. And it can turn sea water into drinking water, using wave power.

The Oneka system consists of buoys tethered just offshore from an area in need of fresh drinking water. The movement of the waves provides the energy to force the seawater through reverse osmosis filters. The result? Fresh water in places that need it most.

As the system performs its extraction, it also produces a brine containing roughly 30 per cent more salinity than the surrounding seawater. That brine is returned to the ocean, but quickly diluted.

Each buoy requires about 10 square metres of space on the ocean, so multiple buoys can be placed within close proximity. Use-case scenarios include communities with limited access to drinking water, natural disasters where the drinking water has been disrupted – and even seaside resorts in need of desalination.

$5.5M funding round

Last year, Oneka announced it had completed a $5.5M funding round led by Canadian investor Innovacorp and American investor Baruch Future Ventures.

“The world is running out of clean water and Oneka has a solution. It works, it’s affordable, it’s better for the environment, and it can be scaled from local disaster relief and regional demand all the way to meeting utility needs,” said Jonathan Saari, investment manager at Innovacorp in an Oneka news release. “It’s exciting to watch the team build and test their world-changing technology…”

The release says the company is working its first two commercial deploments in the US and Chile. Oneka’s solution produces zero CO2 emissions, and a single device can produce up to 10,000 litres of fresh water per week, enough for 450 people.

Earlier this year, Oneka won the US Department of Energy’s Waves to Water challenge, a competition designed to accelerate the development of small, modular, wave-energy-powered desalination systems. The three-year-long challenge netted the company $500,000 US.

Open Ocean Robotics

And here’s another Canadian company doing innovative things on the water.

Open Ocean Robotics is a Victoria-based company that really grabbed our attention during the Trade Mission trip.

Its solar-powered vehicle (with a patented self-righting system), can travel the ocean for months at a time, sending back critical data in real-time. The model seen here is called the Data Xplorer, and the company also has a model that utilizes rigid sails.

Long-term missions, zero emissions

 

The Open Ocean robotics USV is suitable for long-range missions lasting months, with the vehicle capabale of either autonomous or remotely operated missions (pending how remote those missions are). Here’s what Open Ocean says about the device:

“Powered by the sun, it can travel on the ocean for months at a time collecting ocean and environmental data using its suite of sensors.  It sends this information back in real-time through secure communication systems and clients can control the USV from anywhere in the world using our user portal. Capable of travelling in both coastal and open-ocean waters, and with a customizable platform for multiple sensor integration, it offers the ability to understand our oceans in a whole new way.  Data Xplorer is designed to endure all sea states and is self righting.”

Here’s a look at Data Xplorer in action:

This appears to be a thoughtfully engineered system that can be teleoperated where there’s a cellular signal. In more remote areas, missions can be uploaded via satellite. We’re particularly impressed by the unique self-righting system. It relies on buoyancy in that circular structure at the stern, rather than adding weight to the keel (which would reduce efficiency).

And yes, these USVs can capture a *lot* of useful data: This graphic comes from the Open Ocean Robotics website.

Open Ocean Robotics
The company has carried out multiple successful missions to date; you can find case studies here. In December of 2021, Open Ocean Robotics wrapped a $4M seed funding round.

Perhaps even more impressive? CEO Julie Angus, in addition to holding multiple degrees (including a Masters of Science in molecular biology), was the first woman to row across the Atlantic Ocean, from mainland to mainland.

 

ACEL Power

 

The Vancouver-based firm focuses on what’s likely to be a booming market in the years to come: Electric outboard motors. The company says its motors deliver 30 per cent more torque than a comparable horsepower internal combustion engine, plus offer a lifespan five times that of a conventional outboard.

All that, with zero emissions.

The company is about to commence manufacturing, and is now taking pre-orders on 50, 60, 75, 100 and 150-horsepower motors. Motors come with the complete ACEL Power system, including:

  • Engine
  • Battery
  • Inverter
  • Throttle
  • Onboard Computer Screen
  • Keyless start Fob

Here’s a look at a prototype engine in action:

And while ACEL Power’s motors are not inexpensive, the company says they will outperform and outlast conventional motors. ACEL also has its eye on potentially producing a Uncrewed Surface Vehicle using its outboards down the road.

You can find more info – and even pre-order a motor – right here.

 

And finally…

 

A brief look at one more company from the trip (though we wish we had room to highlight them all).

Ashored is not in the robotics space, but it has a very intriguing product that will help prevent sea mammal entanglements and hopefully make life easier for people in the fishery industry who use traps for lobsters, crabs etc.

Normally, those traps are dropped to the bottom and attached by lines to small buoys on the surface. Those lines can often entangle whales and other sea creatures. In fact, if whales are spotted in areas where there are active traps, fishers can be instructed to remove traps until the whales move out of the area.

The Ashored system offers a clever solution. Its MOBI (Modular Ocean Based Instrument) keeps the line on the ocean floor until the fisher returns to collect the gear. The rope and small buoy are contained in a cage that is attached to the other traps. Using an acoustic signal (or timer), a magnetic lock is released and the buoy floats to the surface.

You can check out the system in this excellent video:

InDro’s Take

 

The companies on that recent trip, without exception, had impressive innovations and/or solutions. A lot of them were in the maritime space, where we’re seeing an increased use in robotics both on and beneath the surface.

There’s also a growing emphasis on sustainability, in conjunction with net-zero carbon emissions. There can be no doubt there are good use-cases for wave-powered desalination systems, solar-powered Uncrewed Surface Vehicles, electric outboard motors – and more. We look forward to seeing more from these Canadian companies, as well as the others who were on the trip.

In closing, a quick shoutout to Andrew Bauder, Léonie Hyppolite and Scott McLean from NRC-IRAP for organizing and excellent and productive Trade Mission. Thank you.

#CANSEC2022 – a wrap on the biggest security and defence show in Canada

#CANSEC2022 – a wrap on the biggest security and defence show in Canada

Jun 7, 2022 | Drone News, Events, InDro News, Industry News, Innovation, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie, InDro Robotics

 

The biggest annual security and defence conference in Canada – CANSEC – is a wrap. Put on by the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries, the trade show is like a Who’s Who of the vast supply chain necessary to keep Canada’s armed forces equipped.

That means everything from the pointy end of the stick (weaponry) through to advanced SCUBA gear, survival suits, radar units, flight simulators and more. Major companies like Lockheed Martin, L3Harris, QINETIQ, Google, Microsoft and others were among the 306 defence and security exhibitors that filled some 150,000 square feet on the trade floor.

It was clear (if it wasn’t before) that digital technologies play a huge role on the modern battlefield. Plus, there was a lot of hardware like this:

 

CANSEC Jeep

There was also this guy, who spent his time in icy-cold water intended to show off the capabilities of the company’s survival suit. See that glove on the right? People attending the show were invited to plunge their hands in that frigid water with and without the glove on.

Trust us on this, it’s more comfortable with the glove.

CANSEC Survival Suit

Weaponized drone

 

On the drone front, there was a significant development. Norwegian drone maker GRIFF Aviation, known for its heavy-lift Enterprise drones, was displaying a variant of one of its models. In conjunction with Norwegian munitions manufacturer and defence firm Nammo, the two companies have outfitted the GRIFF 135 (payload capacity 30kg) to fire anti-tank rockets. This was the first time this machine has been publicly displayed.

CANSEC GRIFF

And here’s a look at the business end of things:

CANSEC GRIFF 135

Ukraine influence?

 

There has been a huge demand for drones since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But that conflict played no role in the development of this machine.

“This is not something we came up with because of Ukraine,” says Geir Furø, GRIFF Aviation’s VP of Sales and Business Development.

“It’s been in the planning for the last four or five years. Only in the last year has it been coming together. So this will have a live-fire test later this fall. We hope to be manufacturing by early next year.”

 While InDro Robotics does not weaponize its drones or robots, we can certainly see the business case for GRIFF Aviation. What we found most interesting about this development is that drone manufacturers have typically followed either an Enterprise/Consumer track, or else a military one. In general, companies that are defence contractors (such as Aerovironment) don’t produce Enterprise/Consumer drones, and vice-versa. 

Furø said there had been a lot of interest in the product. It will be interesting to see whether this crossover leads other Enterprise manufacturers to consider adapting their products for a combat setting.

Submersibles

A couple of other displays caught our eye, as well. In the case we’re about to explore, Canadian companies that build submersible devices. These are tethered systems that, in general, send back high-quality real-time video and other data to the surface (they can be equipped with multiple sensors). Use-case scenarios include hull inspection, sediment sampling, and even retrieval of objects on the ocean bed. First Responders also use these devices when attempting to locate human remains following drownings, boat sinkings etc., keeping divers out of harm’s way.

Two different Canadian companies had displays at the CANSEC show, both offering submersible solutions.

MarineNav

 

Established in 2005, the company is based in Prince Edward Island – which has some obvious advantages when it comes to R&D and testing its products. It builds underwater Remote Operated Vehicles (ROVs), marine-grade computers, displays etc. Its Oceanus series has been deployed in use-cases ranging from border security and environmental assessment through to scientific research. MarineNav ROVs are built on-site, using rugged plastics and marine-grade anodized aluminum.

Its three models use thrust vectoring for positioning and can carry out unlimited mission times, since power is supplied via tether.

CANSEC Oceanus Pro

Range

 

The Oceanus Pro, seen above, has a depth rating of 305m (1000′). It’s controlled from the surface using a joystick and touch-sensitive topside monitor. That monitor has 1600 nits of brightness, meaning it’s easy to view even in bright daylight. The company’s Oceanus Ultimate has the same depth rating, but with an optional upgrade can descend to 500m (1640′).

We had the opportunity to chat with MarineNav staff and were impressed with both their commitment to quality, as well as the fact their line is manufactured from the ground-up, in-house.

 

Deep Trekker

 

The other company that caught our attention was Deep Trekker, based in Kitchener, Ontario. Deep Trekker has been around for a decade, and produces not only submersibles but also waterproof crawlers, designed for pipe inspections – even a vacuum robot that can clean sediment and sludge from the bottoms of reservoirs and tanks.

When we were recently at the AUVSI conference, we had an opportunity to operate its DTG3, a highly maneuverable and affordable ROV rated for up to 200m. Impressive, and just one of many machines for specific use-case scenarios.

CANSEC Deep Trekker

In fact, Deep Trekker offers not only a broad range of products, but – not unlike drones – the option for additional sensors suitable to tasks such as Side Scan Sonar, water sampling, and even Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) tools.

 

InDro on the floor

We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention that InDro Robotics also had a presence at the show. That’s our own Peter King on the right, taking part in a demonstration with partners Microsoft Canada.

Peter was remotely operating our Sentinel robot, equipped with the InDro Commander system, over a 5G network. This was on day two of the conference (you’ll see Sentinel below). The previous day, we piloted a drone from the CANSEC show, with the drone many kilometres away at our Area X.O R&D hub.

InDro is a leader in teleoperating drones and robots over 4G and 5G networks, allowing for remote operations from around the block or across the country.

The operator monitors the mission via a web-based browser, seeing data in real-time as the mission unfolds.

Peter is a pro at this, as well as understanding the many use-cases that can benefit from such technology. For example, InDro Robotics can remotely inspect a solar farm to see if there are any malfunctioning panels. Having a human inspect those panels can literally take days, while generally a single drone flight of less than 30 minutes can usually detect any anomalies.

Interested? You can always reach Peter here.

CANSEC Sentinel

InDro’s Take

 

Conferences are a great opportunity to gain a better understanding of a particular sector, as well as a chance to see what other companies are up to in that space.

We had conversations with many companies at CANSEC and were particularly impressed with several Canadian SMEs. Deep Trekker and MarineNav have both developed very impressive products, and – as a fellow R&D company – we applaud Canadian success stories that push the boundaries of engineering. Well done.

Voliro brings a new solution to an old inspection problem with aerial Non-Destructive Testing

Voliro brings a new solution to an old inspection problem with aerial Non-Destructive Testing

Mar 28, 2022 | Engineering, Industry News, Innovation, Inspection, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie, InDro Robotics

Imagine, for a second, you’re an engineer responsible for the integrity of an aging water tower. The steel structure is elevated about 10 metres off the ground and is spherical in shape.

From your vantage point on the ground, it appears to be okay. There’s no visible rust, but you’re concerned there could be corrosion beneath the paint.

What are your options? Well, you could send someone up to inspect it visually. Or, better yet, have them take a specialized tool that can precisely measure the thickness of that metal or even the paint or coating on the surface – simply by touching it.

This is known as Non-Destructive Testing, or NDT. In the photo you’re about to see, there’s a ladder leading to a lower-level catwalk. This provides some access for an inspector – but only allows them to examine a fraction of the entire structure.

In order to make a complete inspection you’ll need to look at other options. Will you build scaffolding beneath and surrounding the structure so the worker has a safe platform from which to carry out the measurements? Will you rig them with a safety harness and ropes and lower them from the top of the tank? Might you have them attach the sensor to a super-long stick?

None of these choices are optimal, and the first two involve varying degrees of risk (falls from height are one of the leading causes of death or disability in the workplace). You’ll also have to ensure you’re fully compliant with a host of worker safety regulations – all of which exist for very good reasons. Plus, scaffolding is an expensive proposition and will require about a week for a contractor to put up and then disassemble. And sticks or poles? Well, the longer the reach the more cumbersome and awkward the task.

Take a really good look at the image below. How would you solve the problem? How would you deploy resources in order to get measurements from anywhere on the water tower’s surface? And what about that black semi-sphere at the bottom? Tricky.

Of course, you’d face the same issue if you wanted to spray-paint or apply some other coating to the surface. In fact, it’s the latter issue that the engineers who developed this product initially set out to solve.

(Photo by TheTechnician27, via Wikimedia Commons)

Voliro Non-Destructive Testing Drone

A Swiss solution

Back in 2016, engineering students Timo Müller and Mina Kamel set out to design a drone that could do that kind of work – spraying paint or coatings. They were at Switzerland’s Zürich ETH, a research university that has been a catalyst for a number of successful technology startups.

Working in the ETH Lab, they started from scratch on the project. But as it evolved, they realized there was an even greater need for a drone that could carry out Non-Destructive Testing, which requires that the sensor attached to the flying robot physically touch the surface of the asset being inspected. That asset might be the hull of a ship, the interior of a tall steel tank – even the massive pylons that support high-power transmission lines.

They knew that a standard quadcopter would not be up to the task. Turbulence was one issue. But they also wanted to design a product that could point its sensor anywhere in space – and then make precise contact with pressure.

Picture a drone inside a sphere, with a sensor pointing forward. The Voliro T is capable of directing that sensor anywhere within that sphere, then holding it against the surface with a force of up to three kilograms.

You’ll get a better idea of what we mean in this video. What this drone can do would be impossible for a standard quadcopter. (And yes, it can still paint!)

Multiple advantages…

At first glance, you might think of this as a tricopter. But it’s really very different. First of all, the motors are in a T-5 configuration – with twin rotors on each forward arm and a single rotor for stability in the rear. Traditional tricopters use a Y configuration, with a servo tilting that rear motor for yaw authority. This rear motor is fixed, but the forward motors can be tilted and rotated forward or aft for precise thrust vectoring.

This unusual design means the Voliro T can be stable when pointed in literally any direction in space. Think back to that water tank. This drone could take measurements from the bottom-up, the top-down, and everywhere in between. The design intrigued us enough that we got in touch with Voliro.

“We exist because we want to remove working at height,” explains Chris Udell, Voliro’s Business Development Lead, adding that the Voliro T “is one of the first drones to be designed from the very start to push against a surface.”

That’s not something you can do with a quadcopter, at least not reliably.

“We’ve seen a lot of cowboys where they’ve strapped an NDT sensor to a multirotor,” he says. “Standard multirotors are amazing tools…but what they cannot do is touch a surface reliably and hold position.” That’s because turbulence close to structures can really mess with a stable position hold.

“So multirotors are really the wrong tool for the job. The other advantage is that you can push between two and three kilograms of force on the surface.” That pressure is needed for some of the sensors to get accurate readings – and another reason why long poles are a challenging option. The greater the height, the more difficult it is to apply pressure from below.

Universal payload interface

One of Voliro’s value propositions is the ability to quickly swap sensors, depending on the task.

The Voliro T interfaces with three different NDT sensors, each of which is designed to capture specific kinds of data.

They are:

 

Ultrasonic Flaw Detector
Measures the thickness of materials, including metals, composites and plastics
Electro-Magnetic Acoustic Transducer (EMAT) Thickness Gauge
This one measures the thickness of conductive materials, such as iron or mild steel
ElektroPhysik MiniTest
Measures the thickness of dry films, such as paint or coatings or wraps – even metallic plating (chrome, zinc, nickel)
“Because we’ve got different sensors,” explains Udell, “we have pylon inspections, offshore and onshore storage tanks, wind turbines, commercial ships (and more).”

Years in development

 

We know, from experience, that developing new products is challenging, exhilarating, and time-consuming. Though Voliro is now in the hands of some major early adopter clients, it wasn’t an overnight slam-dunk. The Voliro team, starting with Mina Kamel and Timo Müller – who’s also a former professional Skicross athlete (think motocross on skis) – have been at this now for six years.

That’s some tough slogging. But throughout the evolution of this product, there were regular technological milestones – as well as recognition and funding – that continuously validated the vision. Voliro provided a timeline of the company’s history; it’s impressive.

Voliro NDT Non Destructive Testing Drone

Saves time, money

Of course, none of this effort would have been worthwhile if the final product didn’t offer a clear value proposition. Voliro says its field work has proven, repeatedly, that this system is faster and more cost-effective than traditional methods. In one of its case studies, using the Voliro T saved the installation and tear-down of some 615 cubic meters of scaffolding – which would have required 400 person-hours of labour. Working on a single asset, a pilot and inspector working in tandem can capture about 200 measurements per hour.

In another example, Voliro carried out ultrasonic flaw detection inside a total of five steel tanks – measuring the walls and roofs of the assets. Scaffolding would have been impossible inside this tank, and rope access (dangling an inspector with a handheld sensor) wasn’t feasible. And the old stick method? That’s limited to a height of 12 metres, meaning in this case only limited coverage would have been possible.

The Voliro T completed inspection of all five tanks in just 1.5 days, taking a total of 700 measurement points. Each of those points was geo-referenced and also captured in 4K video. In fact, the Voliro T has two 4K cameras onboard, plus a lot more, as detailed in this company handout:

 

Voliro overview NDT drone

Robot as a service model

As we’re starting to see with a number of specialized drone companies, Voliro is going with a subscription model. Rather than purchase a Voliro T, you lease one. And that, says Udell, comes with a number of benefits.

“It really helps users get their return on the investment quicker. It splits down the initial outlay, so it’s a subscription charge every year.”

And what does a client get for their money?

“We give training, and also offer upgrades. The drone industry is moving very fast…so this idea of using a robot as a service and upgrading the platform as it goes along” means the customer never gets stuck with outdated equipment, nor faces the outlay of an outright purchase.

Companies like Shell and Chevron are part of Voliro’s early adopter program. And, says Udell, “There’s worldwide interest in the device.”

 

InDro’s take

As a research and development company, we have a lot of experience identifying technology gaps and building solutions that previously didn’t exist. We appreciate new approaches, as well as fresh engineering innovations. That’s why companies like Voliro and Canadian NDT drone manufacturer Skyguage catch our attention. They’re also important leaders as the drone market evolves from a sea of standard quadcopters into more specialized, task-specific drones.

“Voliro and Skyguage have taken a fresh look at an old problem,” says InDro CEO Philip Reece. “In doing so, both firms have really pushed the technology in new directions. The end result? More efficient and economical inspections of often complex assets while reducing risk for people.

“These are exciting times in the world of aerial and ground robots. We’ll be seeing a lot more specialized solutions in the future, including more from InDro.”

Stay tuned.

(Image/graphics courtesy of Voliro Airborne Robotics)

Throughout 2022, our friends at Osprey Integrity will be operating the only commercial Voliro unit in Canada. You can find out more about their work on their website.