Engineering shift: how students from Crimea started manufacturing parts for UAVs
Two students from Crimea turned a small apartment into a real engineering laboratory. In their modest workshop, they were able to develop two domestic modules for unmanned aerial vehicles almost on their knees. After that, the guys decided to create their own company for the production of parts for UAVs. How young Russian developers are becoming part of the process of establishing the country's technological sovereignty is described in the Izvestia article.
The beginning of the path
Andrey, a software engineer, and Alexander, an electronics engineer, met at Sevastopol State University. They entered the same Institute of Radio Electronics and Intelligent Technical Systems, where they studied radio engineering together. Both have had an interest in this field since childhood.
"We're classmates,— Alexander told Izvestia. — We studied together in the same course. But our communication used to be very shallow. We just exchanged greetings and questions about our study assignments. Our close communication began much later, around the third year.
After finishing his second year, Andrey decided to find a part-time job for the summer. He saw an announcement about the assembly of unmanned aerial vehicles and responded, although, by his own admission, at that time he only knew about drones that they could fly.
— Two weeks later, after studying the documentation, I already understood how to set up autopilots. That's when I started assembling the electrical part of the drones," a software engineer told Izvestia. — That's how I gained experience by putting university knowledge into practice.
At the same time, Alexander was doing an internship at the engineering center, planning to continue working with integrated circuits there in the future. But drones, which were increasingly appearing in the news, began to arouse more and more interest in him. He was thinking: "It would be great to develop them as well."
— And it was an amazing but happy coincidence. I was just lucky that Andrey was just looking for a programmer to create a guidance system for UAVs and invited me to help. That's how we started working together," Alexander shared.
Engineers, while continuing to work in their main specialty, found time to volunteer. They assembled UAV airbags for the front, devices that are attached to UAVs for spot-dropping warheads. Although the design itself was invented by another person, Alexander made significant improvements to the circuitry, increasing its efficiency. This was their first step towards creating their own development.
After that, they were faced with the fact that the purchase of the necessary parts for the UAV from abroad was long and not always reliable. And on the line of contact, drones are needed here and now. In order to provide our fighters with the necessary devices as quickly as possible, the guys decided to set up their own production.
"At first, we discussed everything in correspondence," recalls Andrey. — If someone had an idea or we saw something that we could reproduce on domestic components, we immediately wrote to each other. They often gathered at my house and created literally on a whim. We started by creating printed circuit boards.
Later, the guys learned about the Aeroton competition, dedicated to the development of digital and engineering solutions, and decided to take part in it, choosing the topic of creating speed regulators. Then Alexander focused on circuit design, tracing, and PCB design, while Andrey focused on creating a microcontroller that controls the entire system. It didn't work out to take the prize, but that's how they were able to make themselves known in developer circles.
Growth difficulties and ambitions
Alexander is 22 years old, and Andrey is 24. They graduated from Sevastopol State University a month ago. And despite their age, the guys have already founded their own company, Cascade. Currently, the team has only a metalworking workshop and a design center in Crimea. In the future, engineers plan to create their own machines to automate the process and increase production volumes.
On their way, young scientists have already faced numerous difficulties. They themselves divide them into two categories: internal and external. They include the so-called impostor syndrome among the first ones. According to the guys themselves, due to lack of experience and knowledge, they sometimes make offensive mistakes that have to be corrected promptly. There is also a lack of a mentor — an experienced developer who could suggest the right solution. Because of this, the question periodically arises, "Do we really need to do this?"
The main external problem is the lack of financing and technical capacities. Many companies of the National defense Industry, which are now producing UAVs and their components, had previously been engaged in the production of their product. They just changed its focus at some point. But they already had the equipment and facilities. Andrey and Alexander started their journey from scratch. All they had was a soldering iron, a small kitchen, and lots of ideas.
— We have a lot of plans, but for now we are working together: me and Andrey, — says Alexander. — Now the main goal is to lay a solid foundation, and in the future to develop drones and systems. We may even be able to create our own photolithograph (equipment for obtaining a certain pattern on the surface of the material. — Izvestia) and integrated circuits. But this is already a distant plan, it's more my dream.
Engineers are currently modeling and testing low-cost components. They have already created several boards that have been successfully tested. As well as two on-board power modules for drones and an air pressure receiver (LDPE), which are planned to be put into production soon. The latter measures the airspeed based on the air flow pressure.
— The on-board power module is necessary to ensure sufficient UAV power when performing complex tasks. It is currently being tested by drone developers," said Andrey.
Some of the components in the devices are still Chinese-made. For example, in the LDPE module, the sensor itself was imported from abroad. But the next step for young developers will be to create their own micro sensor.
Technological sovereignty and prospects
According to experts, replacing even Chinese components with Russian ones is not just a necessity, but a progressive and sought—after step on the part of the guys. It is relevant not only for the military-industrial complex, but also for the entire field of electronics.
— Ideally, everything for unmanned aerial vehicles would be produced in Russia. This would greatly simplify our lives and reduce our dependence on any external factors," military expert Dmitry Kornev told Izvestia. — We do not know how the political situation in China or in another region of the world may change, which will lead to unexpected restrictions. Therefore, of course, you need to reduce your dependence on any external circumstances as much as possible.
Andrey and Alexander have plans in the near future to develop their own programmable logic controller (PLC). Unlike conventional computers, PLCs can withstand vibrations, extreme temperatures, and electromagnetic interference, making them indispensable in industry.
The team recently signed a cooperation agreement with the Center for Unmanned Systems and Technologies. This is an important step towards the realization of their ambitious plans.
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