According to a report by Xinhuanet, the XY-1, China’s inaugural long-endurance vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) fixed-wing drone, has successfully undergone verification tests. This cutting-edge drone is the result of a collaborative effort between the Inner Mongolia Grass Industry Technology Innovation Center and Northwest A&F University. It has been rigorously tested in various scenarios, including ecological restoration efforts in the “Three-North” regions of Inner Mongolia, agricultural disaster assessment, and smart grazing monitoring.

The XY-1 drone features a vertical take-off and landing fixed-wing design, which allows for flexible take-off and landing without the need for a specialized runway. It boasts a remarkable wind resistance capability of up to Level 6 and can operate continuously for 1 to 6 hours, covering an extensive area of up to 5,000 acres in a single flight.

At the forefront of intelligent technology, the XY-1 drone has overcome the challenges associated with edge computing deployment. It incorporates a lightweight AI model that enables real-time inference at an impressive rate of 32 frames per second. This capability facilitates “on-the-fly computation and onboard decision-making,” a significant advancement in drone technology.

Furthermore, the drone seamlessly integrates visible light and multispectral data, introducing a color-spatial dual-domain attention mechanism. This innovative approach has resulted in a substantial reduction of over 40% in the false detection rate of target recognition, particularly in complex backgrounds.

In practical applications across multiple regions, the XY-1 drone has consistently demonstrated its superior performance. For instance, in the afforestation area of the “Three-North” project in Xinhong Village, Horinger County, Hohhot City, the drone completed a full-coverage monitoring mission of 6,000 acres in just 2 hours. This efficiency represents a staggering 20-fold increase compared to traditional manual methods.

At the Baiyinxile Pasture in Xilingol League, the XY-1 drone achieved comprehensive monitoring of a thousand sheep within a 1-square-kilometer area in a mere 30 minutes, showcasing its versatility and effectiveness in livestock management.

Looking ahead, it is anticipated that by 2030, the XY-1 drone system will be fully deployed in key ecological regions and major grain-producing areas of Inner Mongolia. This technological innovation is poised to empower the high-quality development of agriculture, forestry, grassland, and animal husbandry industries, ushering in a new era of efficiency and sustainability.