As a kid, one of my favorite toys were Transformers – you know the robots that turned into cars, trucks, dinosaurs and other awesome stuff. Okay – full disclosure – I actually went with the smaller, cheaper Go-Bots, but they were still awesome.
Anyway, these childhood memories came rushing back this week when InnoCorp unveiled their plans for the SubMurres. Described as “a revolutionary, unrivaled unmanned underwater vehicle/unmanned aerial vehicle drone that can transition from water to air to land without any complicated movements”, the SubMurres offers potential applications ranging from military to pipeline inspection.
Named for the murre, a seabird that can circumnavigate in the air and water, and patterned after the Russian Typhoon Class C submarine, the SubMurres will have all the features of a submarine, including dual propulsion blades and fully-articulated rotors.
From the water or land the Submurre’s flight system can be engaged with four rotors for vertical take-off and landing. Outfitted with cameras, the unmanned drone can be used to capture a wide array of images from the air, on land and underwater.
The most unique capability will be a patented integration platform that will allow the hybrid drone to self-deploy between land, air and water. This is unlike multi-surface drones being developed by larger aerospace firms that require another vehicle to pick-up and redeploy it when transitioning.
The SubMurres will use a diesel engine to either power the vehicle or run the generator in recharging a battery pack. Uses could include obvious military applications, as well as inspecting oil rigs, pipelines, bridges, wind turbines and power lines.
According to President, CEO and extremely passionate inventor Jae Lee, the SubMurres is currently in the testing and validation stage, with goals to have a finished prototype ready in 3-6 months.
To help cover some of the development costs, the company has established a GoFundMePage. The link to which is listed below.
As they put the finishing touches on the SubMurres, InnoCorp is also developing a faster tri-copter version that will be able to carry and deliver payloads on land and underwater.
