Indago 3 offered with MANET capability

4th October 2019 - 09:30 GMT | by The Shephard News Team

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Lockheed Martin Procerus Technologies (LMPT) will begin to offer its Indago 3 unmanned aerial vehicle integrated with Persistent Systems’ Wave Relay mobile ad hoc network (MANET) capability.

Joining the so-called Wave Relay Ecosystem, an industry alliance of unmanned platform and sensor manufacturers using the MANET, Lockheed will be able to offer special operations users the networking capability.

‘This is a big win for users in the special operations community,’ Shane Flint, VP of business development for Persistent, said.

‘The users understand that, to truly network the battlefield, you need a robust, scalable solution that allows for unmanned systems and sensors to operate on a common network, empowering the whole team, and reducing weight on the operator. LMPT’s integration of Wave Relay makes this possible.’

MANET networks radios on the ground or in the air to be able to act as both a receiver and a relay station, so users can share voice, video, text, sensor and location data without having to depend upon fixed communications infrastructure.

‘The Indago 3 not only provides full motion video to the SOF team, but also extends the MANET through its advantaged airborne position over the team,’ added Flint.

Persistent’s MPU5 radio connects to the UAV’s controller, while a lightweight embedded module available in either S- or L-band is integrated inside the air platform.

Indago 3 UAS weighs sub 5lb, is compactly transported, can be airborne in 2.5min, and can remain airborne for up to 40min while carrying a 250g payload.