Mercury introduces UAV solution for remote-sensing applications

Mercury Computer Systems Inc. in Chelmsford, Mass., announced the integrated VistaNav-SSR (Smart Surveillance & Reconnaissance) unmanned aircraft system (UAS) with ground station, integrated VistaNav synthetic vision system, small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), and various electronic sensor systems. Designed to improve operational mission capabilities for airborne intelligence applications at an affordable cost, the VistaNav-SSR is the first Mercury end-to-end product offering to be pre-integrated with an airframe architecture. The VistaNav-SSR is based on the Vector-LRE airframe from IntelliTech Microsystems Inc., in Bowie, Md. The Vector-LRE is a small UAV capable of either remote-control operation or autonomous flight, and of performing a wide range of day and night scientific and surveillance missions including oil and gas pipeline monitoring, forest fire detection and monitoring, oil and gas magnetic surveying, and precision agriculture. As a tactical-class UAV, the Vector-LRE provides a payload-to-weight ratio that allows the integration of several payload, navigation, collision-avoidance, and communication subsystems onboard. The VistaNav-SSR includes Mercury ACIP (airborne component integration processor) technology, which enables the integration of optimized airborne electronics and associated functions into a small, unmanned airframe. For more information contact Mercury online at www.mc.com.