TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A drone developed by the Industrial Technology Research Institute won second place in the Harsh Environment Drone Challenge at the World Robot Summit, showcasing its advanced search and reconnaissance capabilities, CNA reported.
The event, held Oct. 10-12 in Japan’s Fukushima Prefecture, drew 34 teams from universities, research institutes, and companies across eight countries, including Japan, Singapore, and Ecuador.
This year’s competition simulated extreme post-disaster conditions with limited communications. Teams were required to complete three tasks within one hour: long-range aerial mapping, victim identification and supply delivery, and indoor reconnaissance.
ITRI said that it was its first time participating in the event. The team combined expertise from its mechanical, mechatronics, and ICT divisions to develop drone propulsion, flight control, communications, image recognition, and sensing technologies.
The team tackled challenges such as cross-sea flight paths, wind interference, and limited communication frequencies. They became the first in the competition’s history to use a multirotor drone to carry out a rescue drone offshore. Its drone also completed a 13-kilometer over-sea flight route.
Additionally, the team deployed a small first-person view (FPV) drone by having it delivered to the mission site via a larger drone. The FPV drone overcame low-latency communication constraints to navigate narrow spaces and obstructed areas, successfully entering and exiting a building three times for indoor reconnaissance.
Chen Wen-chuan (陳文泉), director of ITRI's Mechanical and Mechatronics Systems Lab, said the team faced challenges during the competition primarily due to Japan’s strict regulations on communication frequencies and flight rules. However, the team overcame these obstacles by demonstrating strong adaptability in communication signal calibration and interpretation. He hopes the experience gained from the event will help advance its drone applications in disaster relief and public safety.
The competition tested the drone's overall system capabilities, including communication performance, sensor applications, and computing capability, Chen added. The team will continue optimizing the drone’s onboard chip for faster data processing and lightweight airframe design.
