Borys Drozhak, a Ukrainian entrepreneur and programmer who works as a Principal Software Engineer at the international company DataRobot and runs his own robotics startup Rovertech, spoke about the production of the robotic platforms «Zmiy» — a mine-clearing machine, «Zmiy Logistichy» and «Zhuravel».
Borys Drozhak, a Ukrainian entrepreneur and programmer who works as a Principal Software Engineer at the international company DataRobot and runs his own robotics startup Rovertech, spoke about the production of the robotic platforms «Zmiy» — a mine-clearing machine, «Zmiy Logistichy» and «Zhuravel».
As Drozhak noted in an interview with DOU, Rovertech has no external funding from the beginning.
«I act as an angel investor, in total I invested about 10 million hryvnias in the project. If we were dependent on investors, we would probably move much more slowly. In the future, we plan to attract only large sums and cooperate with large companies. We have several contacts, in particular with GCS and Rheinmetall, who are interested in joint development,» he said.
Currently, Rovertech produces three products: «Zmiy», «Zmiy Logistichy» and «Zuravel».
«Zmiy» is a ground-based wheeled drone with a reel and chains with loads. It belongs to the ultralight class of deminers, which has high cross-country ability and a high chance of detonation. The drone demines various types of mines, including anti-tank mines, and solves the problems of humanitarian, combat and assault demining.
«The Snake is actively used in humanitarian demining. For example, it recently helped in Irpen — there are still places where mines remain. In addition to Ukrainian sapper groups, our clients include large international organizations such as the HALO Trust and the UN. They have expressed a desire to purchase our products outside of Ukraine», — said Borys Drozhak.
«Zmiy Logistichny» is an unmanned ground complex, a platform that very well passes various terrain areas, including heavy soil, sand and stones, is not afraid of sticking. It can pull up to 500 kg, according to the technical specifications, but, according to Drozhak, «it can handle up to 1000 kg» if a trailer is used. The drone is suitable for transporting the wounded or cargo.
In December last year, Rovertech reported that the Zmiy Logistichy platform received codification according to NATO standards and was adopted by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
The Crane is a battlefield transport and recovery robot that has armor that can withstand impacts. Like the Snakes, it is protected by iron wheels and can run over mines without serious damage.
«All platforms are remotely controlled by operators. We are currently developing additional modules for autopilots and pilot missions. These systems are quite easy to use, but still require special training,» says Borys Drozhak.
He added that the price of Rovertech robotic platforms starts at $11,000 in the minimum configuration.
Drozhak says that the production of Rovertech platforms consists of several phases: manufacturing parts, assembly, testing, logistics and documentation. If all the components are ready, one person can assemble the Snake in two days.
Parts for ground robotic complexes are manufactured at Ukrainian factories.
«The main difficulty in working with Ukrainian factories is standardization. They adhere to strict instructions, and this creates certain difficulties when trying to cooperate. For example, if at a service station the master takes into account the effectiveness of certain solutions, then the factory produces only as the process allows and as indicated in the drawing. I can’t say that we have a super positive experience in this regard, because coordination takes a lot of time», — said the head of Rovertech.
In his opinion, if Ukraine were actively developing new types of equipment, then factories would be forced to develop and supply higher-class components.
