The Nishant remotely piloted vehicle [RPV] has undergone test flights at Kolar in Karnataka. The Nishant unmanned air vehicle has a range of at least 100 km. The 360 kg vehicle is designed for electronic intelligence and electro-optic reconnaissance for the Indian Army. Flying at 40 to 60 meters per second, Nishant is capable of battlefield surveillance with data sent in real time. The Aeronautics Development Establishment under the DRDO [Defense Research and Development Organization] is the lead laboratory for the Nishant's development and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is the production agency.
A single LRU integrated avionics package (IAP) has been developed to perform flight control, navigation and mission functions of Nishant aircraft. It consists of onboard encoder/decoder, GPS, flight control, mission and navigation modules. The digital flight control function is backed up by an analog stand-by module. IAP also manages automated safe launch, in-flight programmable way point navigation, and operation of payloads. It has been proven in more than 20 test flights of Nishant.
Several configurations of ground stations have been developed for UAV programs to meet diverse needs of aerial targets and reconnaissance missions. Integrated telemetry, telecommand and tracking system designs have been realised. The mobile ground control station (GCS) incorporates a microprocessor-based encoder/decoder unit which interfaces with the jam-resistant data link to exchange command and data from Nishant. The air vehicle controller and the payload operator are provided with cues in the form of synthetic electronic displays which provide flight and trajectory data. A digital map display using GIS technology aids the controller to fly the UAV.
A 35 mm Mini Pan Camera has been designed and developed at the CSIO, Chandigarh, which is suitable for use in low-speed aircraft operating at a low altitude, during daylight conditions. The Camera works on the principle of rotating mirror-lens-slit combination and moving film, resulting in recording of a much wider swath of the ground compared to frame strip camera. The design and development of this camera for Remotely Piloted Vehicle (RPV) was sponsored by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bangalore. Three units of the camera have since been developed and submitted to ADE. The units were successfully interfaced with main Payload Interface Unit and subjected to prelaid environmental tests prescribed for Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV). One unit was mounted on `Nishant 3-4' and its performance during the flight trials was found to be satisfactory.
Specifications | |
| length | 1.2 meters |
| wing span | 1.5 meters |
| weight | 300 kg |
| payload | 45 kg |
| engine | German ALVIS AR-801 |
| endurance | five hours |
| altitude | up to 1,000 metres |
