Ailand Systems codifies Ukraine’s ‘first mine-detection drone’

Ukrainian company Ailand Systems has received an official NATO code for its Spiner UAV. According to the company, this is the first quadcopter to be codified for the detection of ground mines.

Spiner (previously known as ST1) is designed for humanitarian demining. The drone has passed testing by the Ministry of Defence and has already been used to detect mines and unexploded ordnance.

The drone is equipped with a dual metal-detector search coil and is capable of detecting low-metal-content mines, including the PMN-2, at depths of up to 15 centimetres, meeting the performance requirements of handheld metal detectors. Scanning is carried out using an algorithm that combines rotational and translational drone movement, allowing strips up to 1.5 metres wide to be scanned in a single pass. Each section of ground is checked several times from different angles by both coils, reducing electromagnetic interference and increasing detection sensitivity.

In addition to metal detection, Spiner is fitted with a multispectral camera that enables visual detection of objects on the ground surface. Detected objects are transmitted to the operator in real time, with data processing carried out using AI.

For autonomous operation, the drone uses a 360-degree lidar, a camera and distance sensors to provide situational awareness and automatic obstacle avoidance during low-altitude flights. Upon completing a mission, Spiner automatically returns to its launch point.

Ailand Systems is a Ukrainian developer of unmanned systems for detecting mines and other explosive hazards. The company has raised funding from the D3 fund and Nezlamni, and has been included in Techosystem’s Top 100 Rising Ukrainian Startups and Forbes Ukraine’s NEXT 250 lists.