Dronstore

NEEDS

To help position the Spanish industry as a benchmark in the field of indoor drones.

DronStore names this ambitious project that develops a navigation system responsible for localization, control, and path planning, allowing the drone to fly autonomously without the need for a pilot, in which the Stimulo team takes on the challenge of designing and developing the indoor autonomous navigation prototype.

The drone is characterized by its ability for regular monitoring and detection of incidents in the storage structures of large logistics warehouses, as well as the load contained in these, through the use of advanced vision and artificial intelligence techniques.

procesS

Design solutions to create a new typology of drones.

The Stimulo team expressed curiosity about the main differences between outdoor drones, the most popular, and indoor drones. The surprise was that aerodynamics continued to be a key factor for their operation and functionality, not for high speeds, but for optimizing autonomy. Iteratively, working together with the different project partners, the characteristics that would define the drone were narrowed down, in terms of structure, materials, internal components, aesthetics, and costs, until a briefing was defined on how the prototype that has finally been developed had to be.

The conceptualization focused on designing organic and sinuous shapes, formed by large curved surfaces generated in Rhinoceros, that gave continuity to the different parts of the device, creating very few sharp edges and seeking those shapes that allowed us to improve the drone’s performance thanks to its aerodynamics. This enabled us to significantly increase its autonomy. Even so, the number of structural restrictions ended up conditioning the proposed design language to enhance its aerodynamics.

The development phase begins with the construction of the first mockup (solid volumetric prototype at scale) that was shared with the rest of the consortium. This allowed for feedback from each of the team representatives and defined the updates that were incorporated into the new design iterations. At the design level, the resistance of the materials of the main casings was one of the critical points. To avoid safety and durability issues, several static simulations were first carried out and then dynamic ones, which allowed optimizing the casings to the airflow generated by the propellers, thereby maximizing the drone’s autonomy.

The design maturation was carried out using the Solidworks program, focusing on 3 aspects:

– The relocation of internal components.

– Weight optimization through parametric textures.

– And the study of the mounting and assembly system.

In the final presentation of the project, it was important to build a proof of concept (PoC) that would allow the design team members to identify any unforeseen risks in the production or execution of the product. A proof of concept may seem similar to a prototype, but its objectives are very different. Although often confused, it is not a prototype because it does not contain all the design requirements, but it allows testing the basic functionalities during development, and more importantly, it allows users or validators to interact with it. This helped ensure that the requirements established from the beginning were met before its industrialization and market launch.

The delivery of the prototype by the Stimulo team is complemented by the creation of high-quality visuals of the drone, as well as a video that allows for a 360° view of the device.

LEARNINGS

Promote the development, transfer, dissemination, and diffusion of environmentally sound technologies.

Dronomy, SIL, Alter Technology, INES OPTICS, and Stimulo Design have collaborated with Secpho, the deep technology (Deep Tech) cluster, to develop indoor autonomous drones with vision and artificial intelligence for incident monitoring in logistics warehouses.

The project has been funded by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism and the European Union-Next Generation EU, within the support program for Innovative Business Groups, aimed at digitizing the industry.

Testimonial

“Stimulo’s contribution to the DronStore project has been fundamental, focusing on the design and prototyping of an indoor autonomous navigation drone. Their innovative approach and working methodology allowed for the development of an advanced prototype, marking a milestone in the monitoring of logistics warehouses. The collaboration with Stimulo has been key to overcoming technical challenges and designing a product that promises to transform logistics management.”

Adrian Carrio, PhD | CEO & Founder