Hexacopter Has Two Robotic Arms

A new hexacopter has been introduced that is equipped with two internally-developed robotic arms, enabling it to directly accomplish a variety of tasks.

PRODRONE showcased the new PD6B-AW-ARM at InterDrone, The International Drone Conference and Exposition held this week in Las Vegas.

PRODRONE, headquartered in Nagoya, Japan, has developed a wide range of commercial and industrial drones through development agreements with numerous industrial drone companies.

Up to now the industrial and commercial drone market has focused on using drones for photography and filming, mapping, surveying, spraying pesticides, etc., but there is increasingly strong demand for drones to be able to directly perform specific “hands-on” operations.

Examples of these operations include the abilities to grasp and carry differently shaped cargo using its arms; to attach or join things; to cut cables; to turn dials; to flick switches; to drop lifesaving buoys; to retrieve hazardous materials, etc. Drones must be able to perform a variety of operations at high altitudes, over long distances, and in places where it would be too dangerous for humans.

The PD6B-AW-ARM is based on PRODRONE’s large capacity PD6B-AW airframe, which has a maximum payload of 44 lbs. For the new model the company’s development team designed, produced and attached two high-performance, completely original 5-axis robotic arms. They give the drone versatility to perform across a wide range of situations. The robot arms can carry a maximum payload of approximately 22 lbs, and with flight time of up to 30 minutes, this drone can also excel at longer tasks.

"PRODRONE has won high acclaim from numerous industrial drone businesses because we develop highly reliable, highly safe, high-performance industrial drones," said PRODRONE CEO, Masakazu Kono. "We are firmly focused on the future of commercial drones and on being world pioneers in developing ‘task-oriented drones.’ The PD6B-AW-ARM makes a whole new range of tasks possible, and I am confident that nobody else could have made it."

(Image provided with PRODRONE news release)

FMI: www.prodrone.jp/en