NEW YORK – Unmanned vehicle communications specialist Persistent Systems LLC in New York needed an unmanned control system for the company's MPU5 Android-based MANET radio and Rugged Display and Controller (RDC). They found their solution from Tomahawk Robotics Inc. in Melbourne, Fla.
Tomahawk Robotics will make the company's Kinesis Android-based common control system for unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) and unmanned aircraft systems available for Persistent's MPU5.
This agreement results from Tomahawk's joining of the Wave Relay Ecosystem, an industry alliance of unmanned systems and sensor companies that use Persistent's Wave Relay mobile ad hoc network (MANET) as their preferred network.
The MPU5 runs the Android operating system, enabling applications like Kinesis to load onto the radio, while the RDC provides the touch screen, joysticks, and game pad buttons in a package the size of a commercial smart phone.
"Basically, this provides a universal controller for unmanned systems that reside on the MPU5 and is accessed with the RDC, both of which the dismounted warfighter would already be carrying," says Brian McDonald, field operations director at Persistent Systems. "You eliminate the weight and cost of extra hardware, and you bring Tomahawk's all-encompassing Kinesis capability to everyone on the tactical team."
The MPU5 and RDC can operate seamlessly with the Tomahawk Robotics Mimic spatial controller for the fine manipulation of the arm of a bomb-disposal robot.
For more information contact Tomahawk Robotics online at www.tomahawkrobotics.com, or Persistent Systems at www.persistentsystems.com.
