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2024-03-22
#Power of Businesses l 2018-07-16
Now it’s time to take a look at a Korean business leading the global economy with new ideas. Today, as we did last week, we’ll introduce one of Korean speakers who gave a lecture at the exhibition, “RoboUniverse & K Drone.” Let’s meet with Lee Yong-woo, CEO of Giantdrone, a drone-making startup that is expanding the scope of hydrogen fuel cell drones.
I explained the boundless potential of the hydrogen fuel cell drone and its longer flight time, in particular. Our drone flew for more than an hour here in Korea and up to four hours overseas. Giantdrone was set up in April 2015. Our main task is to research and develop industrial drones, with the focus on collision avoidance and long duration of flight. Battery-operated drones have limitations because they can’t remain in the air for a long time. We have a goal of releasing industrial drones with strong durability and a longer flight time before the second half of next year. The envisioned drones will be capable of making an aerial survey and rescuing people at sea at night, while flying as long as four hours.
Mr. Lee gave a lecture on the “possibility of the hydrogen fuel cell drone” at the “RoboUniverse & K Drone” exhibition on June 29. His firm, Giantdrone, is called the blue chip company in the local drone industry. When he was younger, he enjoyed playing with radio-controlled drones as a hobby. He was also fascinated with aerial photographs taken by drones. He set up his own company to increase awareness about drones. In the early stages, his company developed drones for aerial photography. But it soon began to challenge the hydrogen fuel cell drone.
If batteries in drones lose their power, the drones are forced to descend and have to recharge. But the hydrogen fuel cell drone has a fuel cell and a hydrogen storage tank. Hydrogen stored in the tank is continuously supplied to the fuel cell to generate electricity. The drone can fly until hydrogen is used up. So, more hydrogen means a longer flight. That’s the strongpoint of this type of drone.
Lee showed interest in hydrogen fuel cell drones because of how long they could spend in the air. Battery-powered drones can only fly for 20 to 30 minutes due to limited battery capacity. For that reason, most drones are unable to perform missions like deliveries or surveys. In contrast, hydrogen fuel cells can keep a drone airborne for one to 4 hours, due to hydrogen’s high energy density. Thanks to the long flight time, these drones can be used for surveillance, patrol, survey, delivery and some agricultural purposes. The company put a great deal of effort into developing a new fuel cell drone that would remedy the shortcomings of existing drones.
We experienced many trials and errors. Many of our drones crashed, and some drones couldn’t fly at all because of incorrect design. We received technical support for the “flight control” part from the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute. From February this year, public institutions began to receive bids on drones from small-and mid-sized firms in Korea. To participate in the bidding, a company is required to submit a certificate proving that it produced its drone independently. To obtain the certificate, the company should meet various requirements, including having its own production equipment and designers. The certificate itself shows that the company has advanced drone technology. There are only a handful of drone makers, including Giantdrone, which have acquired this production certificate. We have received an increasing number of orders lately.
South Korea is spurring the commercialization of hydrogen-fueled cars, and various industries have already used hydrogen energy. But very few companies have incorporated hydrogen into drones. Giantdrone became the first Korean company to develop the flight control system for drones with its own technology.
It also succeeded in developing the hybrid controller that controls the existing batteries and hydrogen fuel cells, while designing and producing software and hardware programs on its own. In 2016, its drone successfully flew for over an hour, demonstrating the possibility of hydrogen fuel cell drones. It was an unprecedented feat in Korea. Public institutions are likely to use the company’s drones when carrying out their missions.
First, our drones will be used to monitor forest fires. When a fire breaks out, the drones are supposed to go down to take close-up pictures of the fire. For that purpose, the flight time of one hour is not enough and two hours will be necessary. Our drones will also be useful when making a survey of something in a wide area. In general, battery-powered drones can fly about 1 kilometer on a single flight. But our system can increase that efficiency nearly ten times.
As the name of the company indicates, Giantdrone produces large drones measuring one to 2 meters in size. In cooperation with the local government in the mountainous Gangwon Province, the company plans to use its hydrogen fuel cell drones to monitor forest fires. It will also develop solutions for night flying and flying in low-visibility areas so the drones can be sent to accident or disaster scenes immediately and locate and rescue people even at sea or at night. At the “RoboUniverse & K Drone” exhibition the company showcased an industrial drone equipped with a 100-million pixel camera capable of recognizing a license plate number at an altitude of 150 meters and a high-speed drone that flies at a maximum speed of 140 kilometers per hour—more than twice as fast as other drones. The company plans to commercialize the hydrogen fuel cell drones next year.
Some people are concerned that hydrogen might be dangerous. But renowned automakers like Hyundai Motor, Honda Motor and Toyota Motor have verified the safety of hydrogen-fueled vehicles. We’ll also ensure the safety of the hydrogen fuel cell drone by fulfilling the tasks given by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. I think we can release the proven data in the market in the second half of this year. We’ll verify whether the drone can actually fly for two hours and whether it is still safe when it crashes. We have a goal of commercializing the drone in June next year. Even if we finished developing the drone, we’ll continue to test it this year and next year to examine any possible risks.
This year, Giantdrone was selected as a “K-Global 300” company by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning. The project explores and supports promising firms specializing in information and communication technology. It’s the first time that a drone manufacturer has joined this list. Hydrogen fuel cell drones to be supplied by this company will be used in various areas, including delivery, media, lifesaving, photography and architecture, to lead the growth of Korea’s drone industry.
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