Drone firm from Taiwan flies high in global market

2016/03/14

A Taiwan firm is soaring to new heights in the unmanned aerial vehicle industry on the strength of its state-of-the-art technology and an R&D team boasting extensive experience in the military aircraft industry.

Carbon-Based Technology Inc. (UAVER) has produced fixed-wing UAVs made of composites since its establishment in 2007. The Taichung City-based outfit’s drones are used in such fields as aerial mapping, agricultural survey and forest monitoring.

UAVER Chairwoman Lu Ching-wen said the firm’s No. 2 ranking in the global market is down to an innovative and experienced team taking great pride in thinking outside of the box.

“My husband and General Manager Lin Cheng-yun assisted the ROC Ministry of National Defense in developing the Indigenous Defense Fighter for more than 20 years,” Lu said. “Many of our employees developed their know-how and expertise while working for National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology.”

This rich knowledge and talent base is reflected in the popularity of UAVER’s Avian RTK. The drone can fly at speeds of 63 to 81 kph and photograph an area of 6 square kilometers.

“We are planning to equip Avian with devices like heat and infrared sensors to make it more suitable for surveying landscapes after natural disasters and pinpointing the location of survivors,” Lu said. “And a model fitted with a radiation detector is set for release this month in Japan.”

Another UAVER achievement is the launch of a hand-thrown UAV in 2015. The lightweight Besra can remain aloft for 40 minutes and transmit images in real time.

Lu said the sky is the limit for UAVER and sees numerous opportunities for market expansion. “We are working to provide complete solutions and anticipate rolling out precision image analysis software in the near future.”

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=242875&ctNode=2194&mp=9)