Blaze interceptor drone from Latvian company Origin Robotics
Abroad, the concept of a light unmanned aerial vehicle designed to intercept other UAVs or high-precision weapons. Another example of this kind was recently presented by the Latvian company Origin Robotics. It developed and brought to testing a promising product called Blaze, which combines high combat qualities and cost effectiveness.
Interception tool
Origin Robotics was founded in Riga not so long ago and immediately began developing UAVs. Earlier, it presented the Beak quadcopter, built on ready-made components and capable of carrying a light combat load. By now, this drone has reached small-scale production and has even been supplied to Ukraine.
A few days ago, Origin Robotics revealed information about its new UAV. Project Blaze ("Flame") involves the creation of a lightweight interceptor drone. With the help of such a product, it is proposed to attack flying attack UAVs of heavier classes or other air targets of similar size and weight.
According to the developers, the Blaze UAV should occupy a tactical niche between anti-aircraft artillery and full-fledged missile complexes. Thus, an unmanned interceptor compares favorably with any guns due to its greater firing range and increased warhead power. At the same time, it is several or tens of times cheaper than anti-aircraft missiles with comparable or higher characteristics.
In addition, when forming the economic part of the project, the characteristics of the targets were taken into account. The Blaze product should be at least 10 times cheaper than a typical air target in the form of a heavy strike drone. It is reported that these tasks of the project have been successfully solved, but the exact cost of the interceptor has not yet been disclosed.
By now, the Flame project has reached the stage of assembly and testing of experimental equipment. Official materials from Origin Robotics include photographs and videos showing the UAV at the testing ground. The process of preparation for launch, takeoff and flight, as well as the last moments before hitting the training target are demonstrated.
UAV before takeoff
The developer company plans to complete work on the new UAV in the near future and bring it to market. First of all, the finished Blaze system is going to be offered to Ukraine. Probably, they want to provide advertising through this, which will help further sales. However, the success of such an advertising campaign is, at the very least, questionable.
Unmanned system
The Blaze project developed the interceptor drone itself and a set of auxiliary equipment. This is a transport and launch container, an operator console and several other devices. The system can be transported by any suitable transport and quickly prepared for use.
The basis of the interception system is an original UAV. It is made according to the "tailsitter" scheme, due to which it simultaneously has the features of an airplane and a quadcopter. In addition, the device combines the flight characteristics of both classes of equipment.
The drone's airframe is made of plastic or composite. Its basis is a streamlined fuselage, on which four wings and a stabilizer of a similar design are attached. The nose of the device contains an optical-electronic system for target search and guidance. The remaining volumes contain control devices, a battery, and a warhead.
Four fixed propeller-motor groups are located on the wingtips. Electric motors of an unnamed type operate from a common battery. Such a propulsion system allows the device to take off vertically and switch to horizontal flight. Mode changes and maneuvers are carried out due to synchronous or differentiated changes in the thrust of different engines.
The exact flight characteristics of the Blaze product have not yet been published. However, the intended range of targets has been disclosed, and this information allows us to present the required parameters. The interceptor must fly at a speed of at least 200-250 km/h, and the flight range must exceed 5-7 km.
Origin Robotics offers a combined target acquisition and guidance system. The nose of the UAV houses a miniature EOE with two degrees of freedom and an active radar homing head. The airspace is surveyed using a camera and a thermal imager on the EOE. In turn, the ARGSN is responsible for target acquisition and destruction.
In all modes, the video signal from the OES and the data from the seeker are transmitted via radio to the operator's console. The operator can monitor the UAV's operation and issue commands. In addition, there is software with artificial intelligence that simplifies the search and recognition of targets. However, the final decision to carry out an attack remains with the person.
The UAV contains a high-explosive fragmentation warhead of limited dimensions. It is detonated upon contact with the target or when passing close to it. If necessary, the drone can hit the target simply by striking it, without an explosion.
The Plamya UAV is transported in a special protected container and must take off directly from it. The lower part of the container is made in the form of a kind of launch pad, and the upper part is a removable cover. After placement in position, preparation for the first launch of the drone takes no more than 5 minutes. Subsequent launches can be performed at intervals of 1 minute.
The tailsitter drone takes off on its own and without the help of any devices. It is also capable of performing a vertical landing - if the target is not found or the operator decides to return it for some other reason.
New solution
The concept of a specialized interceptor drone capable of fighting other UAVs or similar aerial targets has emerged not so long ago, but is already enjoying great popularity. Companies from different countries are developing their own projects for such equipment, and now a new interceptor has been presented by a company from Latvia.
Operator at work
The Blaze project is based on several interesting ideas that, in theory, allow for the desired results. The proposed UAV is fairly simple to manufacture and operate, should have a limited cost and at the same time demonstrate sufficient combat qualities. The developer company also expects a high probability of interception, provided by the presence of two guidance systems at once.
During recent tests, Blaze demonstrated its ability to target a small quadcopter. The developers believe that such a UAV will also be able to fight larger and less maneuverable targets. First of all, for obvious reasons, the Russian Geran or Iranian Shahed are considered for this purpose.
At the same time, the proposed UAV may have some drawbacks. First of all, questions arise about the developer company. It does not have much experience in creating unmanned aviation and control systems. This casts doubt on the real capabilities of both the Flame itself and the accompanying devices. In particular, the effectiveness of the AI-based software that should assist the operator and guide the UAV to the target is questionable.
The Blaze UAV has high flight characteristics for equipment of this class, but they may be insufficient. Thus, at speeds of up to 250 km/h, the interceptor simply will not be able to catch up with a modern cruise missile or guided bomb. In addition, attack UAVs are gradually increasing their flight speed, and a number of such models are already invulnerable to the Latvian interceptor.
Current trends
The Latvian company Origin Robotics has developed a new interceptor drone and brought it to testing, and is also starting to look for customers. What the future of the Blaze product will be is still unknown. However, the very fact of the emergence of this project and some of its features demonstrate the presence of interesting trends.
It is clear that the concept of a drone to intercept UAVs is gaining popularity. Even companies and countries without much experience in the field of unmanned aviation are starting to engage in it. In addition, promising technologies such as artificial intelligence for image recognition are gaining popularity. However, it is still unknown whether newcomers in this field will be able to realize the full potential of all developments and live up to their own expectations.
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