DGA, the French defence procurement agency, has entrusted a major science and technology project – dubbed Furious – to Safran Electronics & Defence.
Over a five year period, Furious will lay the groundwork for land robots in the French Armed Forces as part of its ambitious Scorpion modernisation programme.
According to Safran, the business managed to leverage its ties to the robotics and drone industries to meet the requirements of the preliminary design brief. Crucially, navigation, electro-optical systems or optronics and safety-critical on-board electronics – all fundamental to the development of robotics and drones – are areas of expertise for technology specialist.
The Furious project requires the development of three “robot demonstrators”, each of a different size and with a different mission profile tailored to different environments. These demonstrators will be deployed by an infantry platoon and tested in various configurations.
The largest of the three robots will be the eRider autonomous vehicle developed by Safran in collaboration with Valeo and PSA. Safran has been teaming up with civil sector partners since 2013, drawing on their technologies and adapting them to meet the specific requirements of military operations.
With the contract awarded, Safran is now calling on the expertise of academia and SMEs alike, in accordance with the DGA’s policy of encouraging partnerships between prime contractors, research institutes, small and medium-sized enterprises and start-up companies. Among them Effidence, Technical Studio, Sominex, Kompai and 4D Virtualiz.
Safran also plans to collaborate with France’s leading robotics labs, including the CNRS (national centre for scientific research), Pascal Institute, IRSTEA, Mines de Paris engineering school and LORIA.
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Image courtesy of Christel Sasso / CAPA Pictures / Safran
DGA drones French Armed Forces Safran Electronics & Defence
Post written by: Robert Atherton
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