Heron: a Canadian marine drone

Canadian company Clearpath Robotics presented their latest invention: the Heron marine multicopter, which is the logical extension of Kingfisher, the company’s previous marine drone.

Heron is shaped like a catamaran, with a length of 1.35 meters and a weight of 28 kg. The device is powered by an electric power unit and a pair of hydrojet engines. Because the engines are bidirectional, the drone can easily move back and forward, it can turn around and perform other complex manoeuvres.

The device is practically unsinkable and completely autonomous, making it the ideal instrument for surveying water bodies where it doesn’t make sense to send human researchers. The robot can carry a weight up to 10 kg, so it can be safely loaded with various equipment.

Because the machine was created with specific tasks in mind, its developers did not make it very quick: the multicopter can only reach a speed of 3.3 knots (approximately 6 km/h). The price of Heron hasn’t been made public yet; we also don’t know how long it can hold its charge.