Design Inspired by Nature, Driven by Science. An experimental project that starts from materials to rethink ways of innovating in highly technological sectors.
Emeth P11 is an experimental project utilizing advanced metallurgy processes and Nitinol technologies, including the first rechargeable airbag without pyrotechnic actuators.
From a unique know-how of 30 years of innovation in shape memory metal alloys.
In the drone industry, safety represents a crucial challenge. Accidents caused by technical failures, adverse weather conditions, or human errors can result in significant damage to the drone, the surrounding environment, and pose risks to people’s safety. Moreover, current safety solutions, such as parachutes, have limitations in terms of activation time and reusability. Emeth P11 was conceived to address these challenges, introducing innovations that aim to establish new safety and performance standards through the adoption of active systems based on SMA technology.
An approach that combines technology, advanced manufacturing processes, and experimental design.
Emeth P11 is a research and development project in the metallurgical field, characterized by the extensive use of Nitinol. The most iconic element of Emeth is the rechargeable SMA AirBag system, which leverages the shape memory properties of Nitinol to mount a rapid and lightweight actuator, capable of activating in 40 milliseconds and deploying a safety balloon in emergency situations, such as collisions or water landings, protecting both the drone and the surrounding environment.
In addition to the airbag system, the camera stabilizer is also based on SMA alloys. Already adopted in the smartphone sector, it becomes an essential element in the new formats of ultra-thin video cameras for drones. This compact and lightweight system ensures smooth, professional-quality footage while reducing the overall size and weight of the camera.
Material Innovation and Integrated Design: The Structural Revolution of Emeth P11
Emeth P11 represents a synthesis of advanced technologies and experimental design, where materials become the focal point of the product’s language. The drone’s skeleton is made from a lightweight aluminum-magnesium alloy through a Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) sintering process. It was developed using an algorithm that employs a network of fibers and nodes representing loads, constraints, and degrees of freedom, to generate paths that evolve into a web of three-dimensional connections. This skeleton offers mechanical strength comparable to or greater than that of carbon fiber, but with greater design flexibility at the same weight. Furthermore, this design technique and additive manufacturing allow for the integration of multiple functionalities into a monomaterial, jointless structure, such as TPMS layers for thermal dissipation.
The upper shell, inspired by aeronautics, is transparent to showcase the flexible electrical circuit, printed and bonded onto the dome, capable of managing 80% of the drone’s electrical connections. It is the first drone to make extensive use of high-voltage printed circuits.
These innovations position Emeth P11 at the forefront of the drone sector, offering concrete solutions to safety and performance challenges, and establishing new standards and a vision for the future of unmanned aviation, both in the field of filming drones and in the evolving field of transport.
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