RVCE students design UAV

The students, who call themselves ‘Team Pushpak’ have designed a state-of-the-art Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), which will compete with designs from 70 other teams from across the world.

The Team Pushpak, which comprises Sriraj Reddy, Vikas Wadhvani, Shiv Mady and Viraj Shetty, is the first Indian team to participate in an international event of this stature. Speaking to Deccan Herald, team leader Vikas Wadhwani said, “The competition has stringent design specifications and the payload to be carried must not exceed 20 kg. Our design is unconventional and can carry a pay load of six kg.” He added that the Brazilian teams were traditionally the best and it was a matter of pride for the team to compete against the best.

The team, which began its work on the vehicle in March, had to face several challenges. Vikas said one the biggest challenges before them was securing a sponsorship. “Despite not having a mechanical engineering background, we have created a unique design,” he said.

“We have been working very hard to get the design ready in time. For the last few weeks, the four of us have been able to sleep for only two hours a day,” Vikas said. Team Pushpak arrived at the final design after conducting several tests on different airframes. SAE Brazil competition is said to be the toughest among aero design competitions in the world.