The Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Laboratory (AIRL) at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore has announced a significant achievement in the field of unmanned aerial systems.

In a remarkable milestone, the team at AIRL, led by Professor Suresh Sundaram, Associate Professor at the Department of Aerospace Engineering, has successfully developed an indigenous industrial-grade autopilot system for drones.

This pioneering accomplishment has been made possible through the utilisation of Indian-made Vega Microcontrollers, developed by CDAC, as part of the Digital India RISC-V Program (DIR-V).

The groundbreaking development of this autopilot system is a direct result of the collaborative efforts under the “SwaYaan-Capacity Building for human resource development in Unmanned Aircraft System (Drone and related Technology)” Programme, with generous support from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeITY).

With the exponential rise in drone usage across various sectors, particularly in military applications, the necessity for indigenous avionics systems becomes crucial, addressing the current heavy reliance on foreign technologies.

“This marks a crucial milestone in the development of indigenous drone technology. Our autopilot system, powered by Vega Microcontrollers, showcases the immense potential of homegrown solutions in the unmanned aerial systems domain. We are confident that this breakthrough will pave the way for further advancements in this field and contribute to the growth of the drone ecosystem in India,” Prof. Suresh Sundaram, Associate Professor at the Department of Aerospace Engineering, said.