Forward Robotics – U7AG

Canadian company Forward Robotics presents the U7AG as an autonomous aerial application system, designed for large Canadian farms. Whiles drones have been associated with small tanks and slow application rates, its advanced thrust vectoring vertical take off and landing (VTOL) technology solved this by enabling fixed-wing spraying at 120 km per hour (74 mph) with a 7 metre (23 ft) boom.

The drone is capable of fully automated, ultra fast VTOL refills of 60 seconds. The result is an overall, refill-included single-aircraft rate of a maximum of 150 acres per hour, delivering performances comparable to self-propelled sprayers. Forward Robotics says this provides the benefits of aerial application at a significantly lower cost.

The company says its fixed wing design allows it to achieve significantly less chemical drift than other drones. With rapid automatic refills and a 12 gallon (45.42 litre) spray tank, higher water volumes and higher gallons per acre application (4 gpa) can be used without compromising productivity or coverage, minimizing drift from movement and evaporation associated with fine droplets.

Specifications