Heliguy And Venari To Unveil New Drone Command Unit

This teaser image offers a sneak peek of a first-of-its-kind drone command vehicle - with live monitoring capabilities, remote satellite connectivity, and drone-in-a-box integration - which will be unveiled at the Emergency Services Show this month.

The custom-modified Ford Transit Trail has been specially designed and developed in continued partnership between heliguy™ and leading emergency vehicle manufacturer Venari.

It follows the release of the UK’s most advanced Drone Support Vehicle last year - pictured below.

The new Drone Command Unit (DCU) has been built to facilitate real-time UAS operations and enable operators to obtain mission-critical situational awareness.

The full details and specifications will be revealed at the show, but the vehicle features a dual-command station with multi-screen array with live-streaming, payload monitoring and two-way audio communications powered by DroneControl FirstResponder, cloud-based weather forecasting, and airspace monitoring. 

A DJI Dock drone in a box is accommodated to the rear of the vehicle, complete with custom-made levelling trolley, network connectivity, and power generation. The rear compartment also features a 43” UHD TV visible from the rear doors, enabling commanders to view the drone feed without interfering with the operation. 

The DCU integrates quad antennas, including a high-performance Starlink Roam for remote data and satellite connectivity, a Peplink cellular antenna, and ADS-B for detecting nearby aircraft.

Other features include a welfare centre, onboard video recording capabilities, dedicated lighting for night operations, D-RTK 2 base station support, and drone storage units.

The new vehicle will be unveiled on Tuesday, September 19 - the first day of the Emergency Services Show, at the NEC, Birmingham, on a joint stand between heliguy™, Venari, and DroneControl.

Jack Sharp, DCU Project Manager at heliguy™, said: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with Venari to develop the Drone Command Unit and we look forward to unveiling it at the Emergency Services Show.

“It has been inspired by the Drone Support Vehicle, which sparked plenty of interest after its launch last year.

“However, the Drone Command Unit takes things a step further by providing a fully-integrated command and control hub for multi-faceted enterprise drone operations.

“It has been designed as a modular, adaptable and connected vehicle which meets the needs of current and future drone operations, including real-time communications, airspace monitoring, data transmission and processing, and drone-in-a-box operations."

The Emergency Services Show brings together all disciplines from the emergency services sector to discover innovative technology and operational solutions, share experiences, learn about the latest developments and unite in a collaborative approach to public safety.

It takes place on Tuesday, September 19 (9am-5.30pm), and Wednesday, September 20 (9am-4pm), 2023. Come and visit the stand to see the new vehicle and discuss how heliguy™ can help you start and scale your public safety drone operations.