Frogs 282

Frogs 282
Frogs Indonesia
Yogyakarta City, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia
www.frogs.id

Frogs Indonesia is a drone manufacturer and drone service provider making agricultural sprayer drones, surveillance drones and cargo drones. The company also provides drone agricultural sprayer service, aerial mapping and drone pilot training. In September 2017, the company started designing a two passenger electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for Urban Air Mobility (UAM). The idea for creating passenger drones came from Kiwi Aliwarga, the founder and executive chairman of Myanmar-based conglomerate UMG. 

Frogs Indonesia's goal is to make clean eVTOL aircraft for Indonesia, to reduce traffic jams, travel faster in urban areas, have a pollution free urban aircraft and have safe urban flight through autonomous piloting. 

The name of the eVTOL air taxi is Frogs 282. Frogs stands for flexibility, relentless, objective, growth and solution. The model number 282 means two passengers, eight motors and second generation prototype. Frogs Indonesia, the first commercial manufacturing and service drone startup company in South East Asia, and was established by UMG. 

In 2018 the company made a full scale eVTOL prototype but it did not meet the aerospace engineering specifications. Therefore, a second full scale prototype was made and completed in February 2020. The first flight of the second prototype was flown successfully but did not meet the minimum height they were hoping for on that first flight. However, they are continuing to work on their second prototype to meet the standards needed for urban air mobility. 

Some key areas for the company:

• Smart Operation. The dashboard is designed with two smart tablets that allow real-time interaction and monitoring. The multimedia system integrates various smart technologies including travel information, navigation control and more. 
• Ergonomic Seating. The seat design was inspired by Formula One sports cars to provide comfortable support for passengers during flight.
• Luggage Compartment. The luggage compartment is large enough to accommodate an eighteen inch wide suitcase which would be the typical size of luggage for short-distance travel needs. Luggage can be tied down with a harness during flight. 
• Compact Power System. The coaxial dual propeller design greatly reduces the space of the structural components making the aircraft lighter and provides more propulsion for flight.
• Battery Technology. The batteries provide a flight time of up to 30 minutes, with a total of 500 charges for the life of the battery. 
• New Materials. Composite materials will be used for the airframe, booms and passenger compartment because they of the light weight and strength of composites.
• Aerodynamics. The fuselage has been designed for the air flow over the aircraft to increase the efficiency of the aircraft. 
• 5G Network. A 5G network will allow real-time navigation data to be sent and received to ensure the safety of the flight, provide a high level of security for the aircraft and allows the passengers to enjoy high resolution videos during flight. 

As stated before, the company is predicting the revenue from their drone manufacturing and drone services will provide them with enough funds to complete the eVTOL air taxi project from the design to prototype phase, to manufacturing and selling the urban air passenger aircraft. 

The company is currently funding their eVTOL aircraft (from designing, to building prototypes and eventually to manufacturing and selling their urban passenger aircraft), from the company's main business of manufacturing and selling of utility drones and also, from providing drone services such as agricultural spraying, aerial mapping and drone pilot training to its customers.

The company has had preliminary discussions with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (Indonesia) for certification and registration of their eVTOL aircraft and hope the government will approve of eVTOL air taxis and personal aircraft in the 2023-2024 time frame. 

Specifications: 

• Aircraft type: eVTOL 
• Piloting: Autonomous 
• Capacity: 2 passengers 
• Maximum speed: 100 km/h
• Maximum flight time: Max Flight Time: 15 x 2 minutes flight time
• Flight time: 30 minutes 
• Cruise altitude: 100 meters 
• Propellers: 8 propellers 
• Electric Motors: 8 electric motors 
• Power source: Batteries, with a lifetime of 500 charges 
• Payload: 200 kg
• Fuselage: Carbon fiber
• Windows: Panoramic windows with forward, left and right visibility, with a solid roof above for spectacular views for passengers.
• Landing gear: Fixed skid type landing gear
• Safety Features: Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP), provides safety through redundancy for its passengers and/or cargo. DEP means having multiple propellers and motors on the aircraft so if one or more motors or propellers fail, the other working motors and propellers can safely land the aircraft. 

Resources:

• Frogs Indonesia website     
• Frogs Indonesia Facebook  
• Frogs Indonesia YouTube Channel   
• Frogs Indonesia Instagram   
• UMG IdeaLab website  
• Article: Indonesia startup unveils working prototype of flying taxi, The Jakarta Post, Feb. 4, 2020 
• Article: Indonesia’s flying taxi prototype takes test flight in Yogyakarta, The Jakarta Post, Mar. 9, 2020
• Video: Frogs Indonesia Test Flight Passenger Drone, Elijah's Delivery Drones Story, Mar. 19, 2020
• Article: FROGS: Overcoming challenges to launch Indonesia's first drone-taxi for daily commutes, Compass List, April 15, 2020
• Article: FROGS wants to become the first startup in SEA to fly passenger drones, E27, Oct. 5, 2020