NIMBLE

High‑altitude,
low‑cost,
precision strikes

Combining FPV‑level effectiveness with multi‑drop economics. NIMBLE is a guided drone‑dropped munition concept designed for reliability, scale, and affordability.

View Pitch Deck (PDF)

Snapshot

Precision guided drops from 500–1000 m for surprise and survivability.

Multiple munitions per sortie (6–40) → lower cost per effect vs single‑use FPV.

Robust, simple hardware: PIC16, radio chip, small motor, tiny battery (~$100 equipment section target).

Carrier tracks LED beacons; narrowband radio commands over short distance.

The gap

Market Issue

Small drones changed the battlefield; counter‑systems are costly or ineffective. FPV: precise but expensive per hit and limited in numbers. Unguided drops: cheap but inaccurate and require risky low‑altitude flight.

Opportunity

Precision, low‑cost, multi‑impact munitions that work from high altitude. Replace many FPV sorties with one carrier + multiple guided drops. Applicable to fixed & moving targets, and area denial missions.

Solution

How it works

Fixed wings provide lift (≈L/D 1). Internal flywheel vectors lift via momentum exchange. No external control surfaces → low complexity, high reliability. Carrier vision detects LED flashes; 3D position computed → heading corrections. Final approach in constant spin when correction is no longer required.

Why it's different

Rugged design without servos/hinges and sealed from environment: tolerant to dust, humidity, frost. Simple electronics and very simple mechanics with no gears, reduce failure modes and cost. Resilience: Starlink‑enabled carrier avoids jamming; narrowband links for guidance.

Status & next milestones

Prototype

Core control concept verified: PID attitude control with DC motor + IMU. Drone‑mounted control module tested in flight. LED observability and filter pipeline proven; tail/wing designs prototyped.