Intelligent Energy To Reveal New UAV Hydrogen Fuel Cell
Intelligent Energy's new fuel cell power module can more than quadruple the endurance of popular battery-powered drones.

Intelligent Energy will reveal a new 2.4kW UAV fuel cell next week at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) conference in Chicago. The company’s 800W fuel cell powered by liquid hydrogen was recently used in achieving a new world’s record by South Korea’s MetaVista, which flew a multi-rotor UAV continuously for 12 hours, 7 minutes, and 5 seconds. The previous record was 2 hours, 6 minutes, and 7 seconds.


Intelligent Energy’s chief sales officer Lee Juby said, “The use of liquid hydrogen in this flight showcases the significant flight times that can be achieved.” The company has launched four fuel cell power module products in the last 18 months designed to power commercial UAVs. Juby said the company plans to offer the new 2.4kW fuel cell to select customers beginning in October and to make it widely available beginning in 2020.


He said its ability to extend UAV endurance is dramatic. By way of example, Juby said the company’s new 2.4kW fuel cell could allow a DJI M600 UAV to fly uninterrupted for more than two hours compared to its current limit of 25 minutes under its standard battery pack. Intelligent Energy also added that two 2.4kW modules can be linked in parallel to provide up to 4.8kW of power without the need for additional hardware.


Each module provides continuous power and is hybridized with a small battery to manage peak loads. The company said the modules can be added to a number of off-the-shelf UAV airframes, but customized airframes can maximize flight times.