Jun 04, 2021Auterion, a company that offers an open software platform for enterprise drone fleets, has announced a partnership with drive and motor specialist maxon, which makes precision systems that enable the Ingenuity autonomous helicopter and the Perseverance rover to explore Mars. The strategic partnership, according to Auterion, will allow enterprise customers to benefit from an open ecosystem of avionics and motor integration in the drone industry. The new products join Auterion's Skynode module and maxon's BLDC motors, including the EC 87 flat unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) motor.
The implementation uses open-source standardization, which Auterion says is critical for the drone industry's next phase of enterprise scaling and smooth workflow management. Across every commercial, government and non-profit use case, the company explains, open ecosystem integrations support component upgrades and mixed portfolios of small-, medium- and heavy-lift drones, carrying a variety of specialized payloads or cargo.
Auterion provides enterprise and government users with software-defined drones, payloads and third-party applications within a platform based on open-source standards. The platform, according to the company, is designed to help operators improve drone workflows with regard to mapping, inspection, cargo, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). The company has offices in California, Switzerland and Germany, and its customer base includes GE Aviation, Quantum Systems, Freefly Systems, Avy and the U.S. government.
Kevin Sartori
Maxon, meanwhile, develops and manufactures DC motors, gearheads, encoders, controllers and mechatronic systems. The company's drives are used with NASA's Mars rovers, as well as in surgical power tools and humanoid robots, and for precision industrial applications, and it operates business units focused on aerospace, industrial automation, medical and mobility solutions. Maxon invests a sizable share of its annual revenue in research and development.
Together, Auterion and maxon hope to provide customers with greater energy efficiency, flexibility, safety and performance, Auterion explains, by pursuing an optimal systems interplay between maxon's high-precision motors, electronic speed controllers and matching propellers, connected to Auterion's platform. The goal is to facilitate drone operation, development and fleet management, the company indicates. The partners will explore long-term opportunities around propulsion systems and autopilot communication, as well as data sharing and real-time monitoring.
Eugen Elmiger
UAV manufacturers and operators are turning to open-source options, according to Kevin Sartori, Auterion's cofounder. "The partnership between Auterion and maxon provides access to the very best drone technology that also addresses impending federal legislation in the United States," he explained in a prepared statement. "We're seeing utility companies and others that specifically require drone service providers to offer systems compliant with regulatory executive action. Ultimately, our open-source, software-defined ecosystem, built with outstanding partners like maxon, is what will instill greater trust in drone components and autonomous technologies."
"With our motors in NASA's Ingenuity helicopter, we flew on Mars," added Eugen Elmiger, maxon's CEO, in the prepared statement. "Now, we are focusing on drones on Earth, which will play an important role in the automated future. I am very pleased that we are entering into a cooperation with Auterion, sharing our knowledge and experience so that we can better serve customers in the dynamic drone market. Their expertise in drone software, coupled with our 60 years of experience as a global motor and drive specialist, will generate promising solutions for the future."
Auterion's experience in developing drone software stacks includes building Pixhawk, an autopilot system designed and created in collaboration with Holybro and PX4, which Auterion describes as "the most used open-source flight control system for autonomous aircraft in the world." The company's Skynode module for the Pixhawk standard supports all types of airframes, payloads controlled via a software developer' kit, LTE cloud connectivity, and onboard computation and apps.
