A multicopter armed with the Smash Dragon system. (Smart Shooter)
Israeli company Smart Shooter unveiled on 10 January its Smash Dragon system, which enables small multicopter unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to be armed with infantry weapons, saying it has completed live-fire tests and is in an advanced stage of development.
The Smash Dragon consists of a mount that it attached to the underside of the multicopter to carry the weapon, which can be various types of assault rifle, sniper rifle, or 40 mm grenade launcher. A version of the company's Smash fire-control system is fitted to the top of the weapon like a standard sight, the difference being that its view is transmitted back to the UAV's operator.
The Smash family incorporates target-acquisition and -tracking algorithms, as well as augmented-reality displays that tell operators where to aim to hit the designated target.
“Extremely lightweight and therefore allowing long mission endurance, Smash Dragon integrates a unique stabilisation concept with the Smash technology that enables the system to accurately hit static and moving targets while flying,” the company said in a press release.
“Once the user identifies the target – independently or using the detection system guidance – and locks on it, Smash tracks its movements and synchronises the shot release to assure fast and precise hits on target,” a company source told Janes .
The source declined to say how much the Smash Dragon weighs and indicated that future customers would be offered a range of options from the existing Smash range depending on their requirements and the payload the multicopter can carry. Options currently include cameras with a ×4 zoom and night-vision capabilities, as well as a laser range finder.
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