Roscosmos Enterprises Begin Production of Agricultural Machinery Autopilot, Develop Technologies to Clean Up Oil Spills

Editor’s Note: The Roscosmos State Corporation is not just focused on space; its various subsidiaries produce a wide range of civilian products. Here we look at Roscosmos’ activities in automating agriculture and cleaning up oil spills.

Roscosmos press releases rendered into English by Google Translate

NPO Automation (part of the Roscosmos State Corporation) was one of the first in the country to develop and start serial production of an autopilot for agricultural and specialized equipment. Such systems allow to increase harvesting by 20-30%.

The uniqueness of the development of NPO Automation engineers lies in the fact that in addition to direct control of all machine parameters, the system allows you to perform the function of an autopilot with minimal design modifications. According to Anton Kapustin, Deputy Director for the Development of Civil Products of NPO Automation, this summer 30 precision farming systems were serially installed on self-propelled sprayers of a domestic manufacturer and successfully tested in the fields of our country.

“In recent years, agriculture has been actively developed, farmers buy a large amount of equipment and show interest in the precision farming system, because they see the benefits of its implementation. Such systems allow saving on fuel and chemicals, reduce repair time and increase the maintenance cycle, which, as a result, increases harvesting by 20-30%,” Kapustin added.

The autopilot kit, which NPO Avtomatiki supplies to agricultural machinery manufacturers, consists of a terminal device, a controller, a thruster, and a set of cables. The system allows the technique to accurately move along a given trajectory. Artificial intelligence ensures the safe movement of vehicles at optimal speeds and minimizes or completely eliminates the human factor in terms of keeping the course. The company is ready to produce up to 3,000 such sets per year.

In addition, the NPOA product line includes short-range and long-range radars that will allow agricultural machinery to build a full-fledged spatial image.

“We have developed a domestic radar with high sensitivity. He is able to timely warn of a possible collision with any object. At the same time, he recognizes both inanimate objects and a moving person or animal that accidentally gets in the way of a vehicle. The radar measures the speed of approach and removal of objects, ensures the operation of automatic emergency braking. Now several samples are being tested on one of the types of large specialized equipment from a Russian manufacturer, ”adds Kapustin.

You can install such a device on trucks, buses, construction equipment, combines, tractors.

Roscosmos Company Presented Technologies for Rapid Response to Oil Spills

Terra Tech JSC, an enterprise of the State Corporation Roscosmos (part of the Russian Space Systems holding company), presented technologies for remote sensing of the Earth (ERS) for companies in the oil and gas industry, which make it possible to quickly respond to threats associated with oil spills and minimize the environmental consequences of such man-made accidents.

The presentation of digital services was held at the session “Actual issues of geodesy and geoinformation systems” at the “Tatarstan Oil and Gas Chemical Forum – 2022”, which is taking place in Kazan.

Modern geoinformation solutions developed by Terra Tech provide users with digital analytical products for information support of geological exploration, environmental monitoring, control of production and transportation infrastructure, inventory of oil and gas infrastructure, adjacent territories, assessment of risks and consequences of emergencies. Regular monitoring of economic activity is an opportunity for oil and gas companies to minimize the consequences of accidental spills and, accordingly, avoid penalties.

Maxim Boltachev, First Deputy General Director of Terra Tech JSC: “Companies in the oil and gas sector are one of the main customers of services and solutions based on remote sensing. Satellite imagery gives our colleagues instantaneous coverage of large areas. And Terra Tech AI algorithms quickly identify potential environmental issues, including oil spills. The analysis of space images helps to take the necessary measures in a timely manner to reduce the negative consequences for nature.”

The Tatarstan Oil and Gas Chemical Forum is one of the largest industry discussion platforms organized by the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Republic of Tatarstan. The event is aimed at expanding business cooperation between enterprises at the regional and international levels, promoting technological innovations and modern equipment, as well as exchanging experience and ideas, obtaining up-to-date information on the development and prospects of the industry.