Incubated at IIT Patna, Megh Robotics designs and manufactures indigenous counter-drone techniques for police departments and different authorities safety forces

With a zeal to grow to be a producer and job supplier, Sobhan Chakraborty, a techpreneur, registered an organization referred to as Scraptechies Options Pvt Ltd in 2018 after graduating. After quite a few hits and misses, Chakraborty lastly pivoted to designing counter-drone techniques for the defence and safety business in 2021. Inside two years, his efforts bore fruit, and Chakraborty’s Megh Robotics recorded an general turnover of ₹19 million in its second yr, together with product gross sales, providers, analysis tasks, and prototype improvement.

The startup affords a variety of superior counter-drone options and unmanned aerial automobiles (UAVs), together with handheld neutralisers, steady operational omnidirectional neutralisers, compact UAVs, and internet drones for capturing unauthorised drones.

Megh Robotics’ 4-channel handheld neutraliser offsets unauthorised UAVs with a precision 45-degree angular frequency wave and disrupts the drone’s distant controller, digital camera feed, and GPS indicators. This gadget can function inside a one-kilometre vary and has a battery life that lasts 75 minutes; it weighs 3.5kg.

For complete protection, the startup has launched an 8-channel omni-directional neutraliser, which may deal with globally identified business UAV operational bands, working 24/7 as a static system, moveable resolution, or vehicle-mounted unit. The gadget has an influence output of 180W.

Chakraborty explains that the counter-drone system generates an influence output of 20W per channel, necessitating a multilayer PCB that may lower native warmth with out growing the burden of the entire machine. Essentially the most used multilayer PCBs have plural layers akin to 4, 8, or 16, however Megh Robotics has chosen to make use of a 3-layer PCB board, which is fairly unusual however extremely cost-effective. The tri-layer PCB decreases the element welding factors, lowering the failure fee, and introduces a heat grounding place to decrease native warmth. It reduces the spacing of elements, minimises the sign transmission path, and enhances wiring density, in the end lowering the circuit’s sign distortion with the shielding layer’s assist.

The startup has outsourced the manufacturing of the high-end PCBs of the omnidirectional neutraliser to a Bengaluru-based startup. On the identical time, it manufactures the PCBs for the 4-channel handheld neutraliser by way of fast prototyping at IIT Patna Incubation Centre, which has a PCB manufacturing lab and a clear room fabrication facility. The antennas are being sourced from a New Delhi-based startup.

With a restricted vary and time, the startup presently serves a goal phase comprising state authorities departments, such because the police and authorities safety forces, with the pricing vary ranging from ₹800,000. “We’re making a mid-segment in India by providing an efficient pricing with out compromising product high quality,” says Chakraborty.

Figuring out a niche out there as a result of restricted information surrounding the area of interest area of counter-drone techniques, Chakraborty says that the majority current producers find yourself importing the whole product or key elements with out testing their reliability. When their units fail to indicate promised outcomes throughout trials or after deployment, the businesses method Megh, for assembling, repairing, and sustaining their current options. “Initially, the businesses who had been our rivals and provided counter-drone techniques to the federal government departments have now grow to be collaborators,” explains Chakraborty.

The startup has additionally labored on different merchandise inside the counter-drones class to develop its product portfolio. Megh has developed a customisable internet drone that captures focused drones with a string internet to keep away from collateral injury as soon as the unauthorised drones are neutralised. This drone can fly for 40 minutes and has an built-in digital camera. Other than that, the corporate has launched AI-based twin cameras outfitted with a thermal imaging sensor with 30x optical zoom and a shell launcher system for superior safety functions.

“We are actually specializing in the know-how a part of the design to enhance the fly-time and vary and supply the very best know-how options to our nation at a cheap value so that each division can entry our merchandise for securing the airspace. We intend to proceed additional on a channel partnership or case-to-case foundation throughout India,” he concludes.