Multirotor in the context of "Drone warfare"

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⭐ Core Definition: Multirotor

A multirotor or multicopter is a rotorcraft with more than two lift-generating rotors. An advantage of multirotor aircraft is the simpler rotor mechanics required for flight control. Unlike single- and double-rotor helicopters which use complex variable pitch rotors whose pitch varies as the blade rotates for flight stability and control, multirotors often use fixed-pitch blades; control of vehicle motion is achieved by varying the relative speed of each rotor to change the thrust and torque produced by each.

Due to their ease of both construction and control, multirotor aircraft are frequently used in radio control aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) (drone) projects in which the names tricopter, quadcopter, hexacopter and octocopter are frequently used to refer to 3-, 4-, 6- and 8-rotor rotorcraft, respectively. There is also the X8 (also called octo-quad) configuration that is similar to the quadracopter design, except that it has eight rotors; the lower of which have a reversed rotation direction.

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👉 Multirotor in the context of Drone warfare

Drone warfare is a form of warfare that involves the deployment of military drones or military robots. The robots may be remote controlled by a pilot or have varying levels of autonomy during their mission. Types of robots include unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) or weaponized commercial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), unmanned surface vehicles (USV) or unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV), and unmanned ground vehicles (UGV).The applications of UAVs, UGVs, USVs, and UUVs are diverse, ranging from reconnaissance, kamikaze missions, bomb disposal, cargo transport, and medical evacuation to anti-air, anti-armor, and anti-personnel role. As of 2019, the following nations have been identified as having operational UCAVs: China, France, Greece, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Pakistan, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Turkey, the United States, the United Kingdom and Ukraine.

Drones find application in a variety of military operations, including electronic warfare, explosive ordnance disposal, training and logistics support. However, they are most frequently employed in intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions, enabling direct attacks on targets as part of a kill chain or through manned-unmanned teaming. Aerial drone attacks can be executed through the use of purpose-built UCAVs, that deploy ordnance during a drone strike, or by weaponized commercial UAVs that drop munitions or engage aerial assault. Heavy-lift drones may also be used to airlift supplies or evacuation of wounded personnel across a battlefield. Smaller drones, such as SUAVs and MAVs, are man-portable and can be deployed for low-altitude, short-range support operations. Larger drones can serve a "mothership" role by deploying smaller, sub-drones or by being equipped with electronic warfare features such as a signal repeater. Multiple drones can operate and attack simultaneously in a drone swarm and autonomous drones, such as LAWs, utilize military AI.

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Multirotor in the context of Electric vehicle

An electric vehicle (EV) is any motorized vehicle whose propulsion is provided fully or mostly by electric power, via grid electricity or from onboard rechargeable batteries. EVs encompass a wide range of transportation modes, including road (electric cars, buses, trucks and personal transporters) and rail vehicles (electric trains, trams and monorails), electric boats and submersibles, electric aircraft (both fixed-wing and multirotors) and electric spacecraft.

Early electric vehicles first came into existence in the late 19th century, when the Second Industrial Revolution brought forth electrification and mass utilization of DC and AC electric motors. Using electricity was among the preferred methods for early motor vehicle propulsion as it provided a level of quietness, comfort and ease of operation that could not be achieved by the gasoline engine cars of the time, but range anxiety due to the limited energy storage offered by contemporary battery technologies hindered any mass adoption of electric vehicles as private transportation throughout the 20th century. Internal combustion engines (both gasoline and diesel engines) were the dominant propulsion mechanisms for cars and trucks for about 100 years, but electricity-powered locomotion remained commonplace in other vehicle types, such as overhead line-powered mass transit vehicles like electric multiple units, streetcars, monorails and trolley buses, as well as various small, low-speed, short-range battery-powered personal vehicles such as mobility scooters.

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Multirotor in the context of ArduPilot

ArduPilot is an autopilot software program that can control multirotor drones, fixed-wing and VTOL aircraft, RC helicopters, ROVs, ground rovers, boats, submarines, uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), AntennaTrackers and blimps. It is published as open source software under the GNU GPL version 3.

ArduPilot was originally developed by hobbyists to control model aircraft and rovers and has evolved into a full-featured and reliable autopilot used by industry, research organisations, amateurs, and militaries. In June 2025 ArduPilot was used successfully by the Ukrainian armed forces during the Russo-Ukrainian War to make aerial drone attacks on Russian air bases.

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