Students from IIT-K develop country's first indigenous superpower drone

Students from IIT-Kharagpur have designed a drone that can efficiently enter war zones and set up communication networks between civilians, soldiers, and even rescue teams through the “Internet of Things”. The drone is named BHIM, inspired by the mighty and muscular epic warrior of the Mahabharata, Bhima.

The drone is designed to operate in emergencies. It is a meter long, but can carry emergency supplies like food and medicine with the help of parachutes, and can also create a Wi-Fi zone within a one km radius, according to an IndianCEO report.

It is light in weight, considering the operational tasks it has been assigned to do. According to a Times Of India report, the automated drone has a vision-based guidance system with built-in intelligence that helps to identify if an area is crowded or not. If so, the drone will fly away and land in a safer place. The drone also flaunts a battery backup of seven hours, and can fly into a disaster or war zone. But the real power of the drone is its ability to maintain long flight times and deliver emergency supplies with the help of parachutes.

According to the report, Sudip Mishra, faculty member of the computer science and engineering department, said,

Such advanced built-in intelligence is not available in drones now. The design is completely in-house. The controlling and guiding algorithms of the drone have been developed in our lab. Disaster management becomes much easier through seamless wireless communication that only the internet can provide. However, when disaster strikes and Wi-Fi facilities on the ground are destroyed, an aerial Wi-Fi broadcast can come as a boon, since radio communication has limited reach.

The drone's light weight also ensures that its cost is just one-fourth the price of any average drone used for surveillance in India now.

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