Engineering:Fangzhou UAV
Fangzhou UAVs are Chinese UAVs developed by Suzhou Fangzhou (meaning Ark) Aerial-Model Co., Ltd. (Fangzhou, 苏州方舟航模有限公司). Originally a successful model aircraft manufacturer, Tiancai has expanded its business into UAV arena based on the experience gained in developing model aircraft. Currently, all UAV developed by Fangzhou are unmanned blimps in categories listed below.
Basic version unmanned blimps
Basic version unmanned blimps are originally developed mainly for aerial advertising applications. As with other unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou, these unmanned blimps are also classified by their respective length. These unmanned blimps are mainly developed for aerial advertisement for people on the ground to see, and thus having lower operating altitude than other versions later developed. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[1]
- Construction: PET with polyester coating
- Remote control range (km): 1.5
- Normal operating altitude (m): 800
- Endurance (hr): 2.5 – 4
- Engine (hp): 7.6 – 14
- Payload (kg): 10 – 30
- Remote control: Futaba 10
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 6
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) | Unit price Unit price (¥): |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12-m class[1] | 12 | 50 | 38,000 |
| 13-m class[1] | 13 | 70 | 48,000 |
| 15-m class[1] | 15 | 90 | 65,000 |
Aerial survey unmanned blimps
Aerial survey unmanned blimps are the first derivatives of the basic version unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou. In comparison to the basic version, aerial survey version has higher operating altitude to better meet the aerial survey requirement. As with other unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou, these unmanned blimps are also classified by their respective length. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[2]
- Construction: Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) with polyester coating
- Remote control range (km): 1.5
- Normal operating altitude (km): 1.5
- Endurance (hr): 2 – 4
- Engine (hp): 6 – 100
- Payload (kg): 5 – 180
- Remote control: Futaba 9
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 6
- Unit price Unit price (¥): 85,000 – 800,000
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) |
|---|---|---|
| 9-m class[2] | 9 | 40 |
| 13-m class[2] | 13 | 80 |
| 15-m class[2] | 15 | 110 |
| 17-m class[2] | 17 | 180 |
| 20-m class[2] | 20 | 300 |
| 25-m class[2] | 25 | 550 |
Ducted fan powered unmanned blimps
Ducted fan unmanned blimps are, as the name implies, are unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou utilizing ducted fan propulsion system. As with other unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou, these unmanned blimps are also classified by their respective length. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[3]
- Construction: Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) with polyester coating
- Remote control range (km): 1.5
- Normal operating altitude (m): 800
- Endurance (hr): 2 – 4
- Engine (hp): 6 – 100
- Payload (kg): 5 – 180
- Remote control: Futaba 10
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 6
- Unit price Unit price (¥): 60,000 – 730,000
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) |
|---|---|---|
| 9-m class[3] | 9 | 40 |
| 12-m class[3] | 12 | 50 |
| 13-m class[3] | 13 | 80 |
| 15-m class[3] | 15 | 110 |
| 17-m class[3] | 17 | 180 |
| 20-m class[3] | 20 | 300 |
| 25-m class[3] | 25 | 550 |
Electrically powered unmanned blimps
As of 2014, a total of four models of electrically powered unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou have been identified, and they are named after their respective length. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[4]
- Construction: Polyester
- Remote control range (km): 1.5
- Normal operating altitude (m): 600
- Endurance (hr): 0 .5 – 1.5
- Engine (hp): 0.3 – 1.7
- Payload (kg): 0.1 – 4
- Remote control: Futaba 6
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 3
- Unit price Unit price (¥): 7,000 – 25,000
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) |
|---|---|---|
| 2-m class[4] | 2 | 3 |
| 4-m class[4] | 4 | 6 |
| 6-m class[4] | 6 | 12 |
| 8-m class[4] | 8 | 20 |
Industrial unmanned blimps
Industrial unmanned blimps are UAV developed by Fangzhou for applications in various engineering project missions, such as laying overhead power line. As with other unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou, these unmanned blimps are also classified by their respective length. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[5]
- Construction: Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) with polyester coating
- Remote control range (km): 1.5
- Normal operating altitude (km): 1.5
- Endurance (hr): 2 – 4
- Engine (hp): 6 – 100
- Payload (kg): 5 – 180
- Remote control: Futaba 10
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 6
- Unit price Unit price (¥): 60,000 – 730,000
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) |
|---|---|---|
| 9-m class[5] | 9 | 40 |
| 12-m class[5] | 12 | 50 |
| 13-m class[5] | 13 | 80 |
| 15-m class[5] | 15 | 110 |
| 17-m class[5] | 17 | 180 |
| 20-m class[5] | 20 | 300 |
| 25-m class[5] | 25 | 550 |
Research unmanned blimps
Research unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou are designed to fulfill missions of various scientific research experiments. As with other unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou, these unmanned blimps are also classified by their respective length. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[6]
- Construction: Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) with polyester coating
- Remote control range (km): 1.5
- Normal operating altitude (km): 1.5
- Endurance (hr): 2 – 4
- Engine (hp): 6 – 100
- Payload (kg): 5 – 180
- Remote control: Futaba 10
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 6
- Unit price Unit price (¥): 60,000 – 730,000
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) |
|---|---|---|
| 9-m class[6] | 9 | 40 |
| 12-m class[6] | 12 | 50 |
| 13-m class[6] | 13 | 80 |
| 15-m class[6] | 15 | 110 |
| 17-m class[6] | 17 | 180 |
| 20-m class[6] | 20 | 300 |
| 25-m class[6] | 25 | 550 |
Surveillance unmanned blimps
Surveillance unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou are intended for military, paramilitary and law enforcement missions, such as reconnaissance and surveillance. In addition, these unmanned blimps are also capable of mineral exploration missions. As with other unmanned blimps developed by Fangzhou, these unmanned blimps are also classified by their respective length. Aside from the different specifications in the table below, all unmanned blimps share the following common specification:[7]
- Construction: Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) with polyester coating
- Remote control range (km): 70
- Normal operating altitude (km): 2
- Endurance (hr): 3 – 4
- Engine (hp): 18 – 100
- Payload (kg): 100
- Remote control: Futaba 9
- Max wind scale allowed for operation: 6
- Unit price Unit price (¥): 450,000 – 1,200,000
| Model | Length (m) | Volume (cu m) |
|---|---|---|
| 15-m class[7] | 15 | 110 |
| 17-m class[7] | 17 | 180 |
| 20-m class[7] | 20 | 300 |
| 25-m class[7] | 25 | 500 |
See also
List of unmanned aerial vehicles of the People's Republic of China
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Basic version unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207032304/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=5. Retrieved 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 "Aerial survey unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207030530/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=80. Retrieved 2014.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 "Ducted fan powered unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207031242/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=4. Retrieved 2014.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "Electrically powered unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207031834/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=3. Retrieved 2014.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 "Industrial unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207031839/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=13. Retrieved 2014.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 "Research unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207032309/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=15. Retrieved 2014.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 "Surveillance unmanned blimps". Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20131207031020/http://xdfly.com/display.asp?id=24. Retrieved 2014.
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