BCN Drone Center
Web: https://www.barcelonadronecenter.com/
Address: Moià, Barcelona
Contact: info@bcndronecenter.com
Who we are
BCN Drone Center is a civilian UAS test center. Founded in 2014, it has received more than 3,000 users from over 90 different nationalities, making it an international benchmark for R&D projects, experimental testing and system evaluation.
The center has a 5,000-acre segregated airspace and a 4,500-foot AMSL ceiling, allowing experimental flights at higher altitudes and BVLOS (beyond line-of-sight) operations to be conducted safely, thus facilitating the obtaining of operational authorizations for experimental systems.
In addition, the center has all the necessary infrastructure to carry out any R&D project and test program, including hangar, control station, workshop, electronics laboratory, office space… The facilities are complemented by the outdoor laboratory, consisting of 14 ha of land owned by the center where there are installed sensor calibration targets, with enough space to install any element necessary for the execution of the test flights.
BCN Drone Center is managed by CATUAV, a pioneer company in Europe in the civilian drone sector (founded in 2000), providing its extensive experience in the sector to advise all users of the center.
Main lines of research
The BCN Drone Center is positioned as a R&D center for the development of UAS and outdoor robotic technologies, highlighting the following lines of research
- UAV Platform Development
The center has the experience of having developed more than 30 different platforms, including multirotors, helicopters, fixed-wing and VTOL systems. These include both electric and combustion systems, including platforms with more than 24h of autonomy. The platforms are designed, developed and tested in-house by a team with more than 20 years of experience in the civil UAS sector.
- Development of New UAS Applications
Development of procedures and operational concepts, technology selection and pilot testing necessary for the subsequent commercial deployment of new applications. Experience in the deployment of most UAS applications: Earth observation, emergency, rescue, swarming, transport, UAM…
- Systems Development and Integration for UAS
The center has the experience of having developed multiple subsystems for UAS, including 5 different control stations, a proprietary autopilot, a TCAS system for UAS and long range links among others. With a large fleet of UAS, any third-party system can be tested and evaluated in different flight conditions.
- UAS Software Development
Custom software development for UAS, including embedded software for flight management (flight planning, control station, telemetry management, navigation and attitude control…) as well as application-specific data processing software (image processing, detection/classification using computer vision and artificial intelligence, fleet management…).
- UAS Payload Development and Integration
The center has the experience of having developed several of its own sensors as well as having tested most of the sensors for UAS on the market: RGB, thermal, mulli-spectral and hyperspectral sensors, lidar, environmental sensors… Thanks to the outdoor laboratory, it is possible to quantitatively evaluate the performance of the different sensors in real operating conditions.
Main R&D&I projects
The BCN Drone Center participates in private and public, national and international projects in the usual collaborative schemes, with two aspects: aerospace engineering and as a development and test validation center.
National Project financed by CDTI in the first PTA call. Duration: 2021-2023
Objective: Advanced Technologies for Flight Critical UAS Systems
European project funded by EUSPA (formerly GSA) in the third call “EGNOS Adoption in Aviation”. Duration: 2019-2021
CATUAV participation: User requirements, ConOps design, Mission Operations Manual development, integration of the project payload, intensive data acquisition and validation flights, and development and execution of one of the project’s operational scenarios (SC4 – Urban Mapping).
IOPES: Indoor-Outdoor Positioning for Emergency Personnel
European project co-financed by the European Commission under the DG-ECHO program, in the call UCPM-2019-PP-AG. Duration: 2020-2021
CATUAV Participation: Provides expertise in terms of rapid mapping techniques using RPAS (objective 3) and to provide RPAS as an extended and guaranteed communications system (objective 4).
RAWFIE: Road-, Air-, and Water- based Future Internet Experimentation
European project funded by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 program. Duration: 2016-2018
CATUAV Participation: Integrate the BCN Drone Center control systems into the project’s test bed infrastructure, develop a new version of the center’s permanent Control Station and provide permanent monitoring of the development of the different experimentation campaigns developed.
mapKITE
European project funded by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 program. Duration: 2015-2017
CATUAV participation: Evolutionary development of the TCAS operating as an airspace surveillance radar and providing the BCN Drone Center facilities for test campaigns.
SAFEDEM
European project funded by the European Space Agency (ESA). Duration: 2011-2014
CATUAV participation: Validation of the combined capability of satellite imagery and drone imagery in the detection and deactivation of anti-personnel mines under the command of the B&HMAC (Bosnia-Herzegovina Mine Action Center).
ITUMA
National Project funded by ACCIO. Duration: 2008-2010
CATUAV participation: Development and testing of all technologies needed to bring earth environmental observation applications to the market level.
Awards and recognitions
The entity has been recognized for its work and its disruptive capacity by the most prestigious international institutions and organizations.
European Satellite Navigation Agency (2011)
Special award for the best EGNOS-based application
Drone User Group Network (DUGN), Nexa Capital Partners (2014)
Drone Social Innovation Award for low-cost drone applications
with the greatest impact and social benefit
Semifinalists in the “Drones for Good” awardin Dubai (2015).
Award from the Colegio de Ingenieros Industriales de Cataluya (2015) in recognition of the long career and experience in the development of services based on unmanned aircraft.
Innovacat and Medi Ambient Awards of the Government of Catalonia (2012)
For the development of thermographic analysis for energy efficiency studies.
Services offered
The long experience of the BCN Drone Center staff together with the associated test center facilities allow us to offer the following services: