A EUROPEAN DEFENCE FUND PROJECT
PLEIADES (Project No 101224047) is a European defence research project financed by the European Defence Fund (EDF), an EU initiative that supports collaborative research and development of defence technologies across Member States.
As part of this initiative, PLEIADES brings together partners from across the EU to advance autonomous underwater technologies that contribute to Europe’s defence autonomy, resilience and security.
Disclaimer: Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
MEET THE CONSORTIUM
AERIX SYSTEMS (Omnidirectional drone systems)
Founded in 2020 and based in Gironde, France, develops agnostic aerial drones featuring a unique omnidirectional propulsion system. This advanced technology, coupled with custom control software, enables UAVs to achieve hyper-maneuverability, exceptional speed, superior wind resistance, and precise angular and decimetric accuracy.
Aerix’s drones offer unmatched stability and multi-environment deployment capabilities. Specializing in propulsion and control systems, Aerix’s technology can be adapted for both airborne and submarine applications. With its team, the company positions itself as a key player in the growing drone defence industry.
Aerix will enhance the energy and propulsion of the HAUV using its omnidirectional technology and adapt its unique control systems for this application. Aerix is the only company in the world to have developed these control bricks intrinsic to propulsion. With expertise in sensor fusion, anti-collision, and navigation algorithms, Aerix will also contribute to autonomous decision-making and guidance for terminal flight phases, vital for anti-drone and mini-cruise missile defense systems.
BALance Technology Consulting (Project management)
BALance, has a long-term record of managing EU funded project in different programmes, mainly, but not limited to Horizon Europe and the predecessor programmes. BAL is currently coordinating the EDF project PASITHEA.
With the experienced team of project managers with maritime, economic and IT education, an efficient risk and quality management and a sound support of the coordinator will be guaranteed. In addition, BAL will also support the exploitation and lead the life cycle cost evaluation. Both activities have been carried out by BAL for more than a decade in different research projects.
B&T Composites S.A. (Advanced composite structures)
Based in Florina, Greece, specializes in manufacturing composite superstructures using carbon and advanced fibers, integrating metallic parts for hybrid solutions. The company offers a full range of services, from design and engineering to manufacturing and testing, ensuring quality and efficiency across sectors.
B&T has innovated by embedding optical fiber sensors (FBGs) into structures, allowing real-time monitoring of structural health, hydrogen permeation, temperature, and strain. Their solutions cater to marine, wind energy, industrial, infrastructure, and energy sectors, producing components like torque shafts and high-pressure tanks.
B&T also participates in European and national research projects and engages in defence exhibitions such as DEFEA and Eurosatory, holding recognition in the Hellenic Defence Industry and receiving an N-Cage code from Greece’s General Directorate for Defence Investments and Armements.
LANEGO (International SME acceleration & strategy)
A French consulting company that provides personalized and tailored support to innovative startups, scale-ups, and SMEs, helping them successfully accelerate their international development while minimizing risks. They achieve this by leveraging an international network of experts across various business sectors and countries.
LANEGO consultants assist in entering new and emerging markets, particularly in the fields of tech, defence, renewable energies, and the environment. With extensive knowledge of the global defence industry, LANEGO will support the successful development of the PLEIADES program by managing the dissemination and communication activities, the innovation and IPR policy, and the project result exploitation to identify market opportunities. Having worked with disruptive technologies like AUV swarms, LANEGO will bring its significant experience in this area to the consortium.
MARESCO LTD (Marine research & technical support)
MARESCO Ltd, the coordinator of PLEIADES, is a Greek SME, founded in 1984, specialized in providing products and services related to the aquatic environment. MARESCO Ltd has an extensive history in providing technical and scientific support for marine research projects and field surveys and is also involved in sales of products and laboratory equipment for aquatic environment research and mapping.
MARESCO Ltd will contribute to the project with its capacity as an experienced provider/developer of underwater vehicles (ROVs/AUVs) and sensors. The gained knowledge from the involvement in commercial and military projects, concerning development of underwater vehicles/equipment, as well as underwater engineering, will contribute to the definition of the underwater equipment/sensors to be used and the integration/validation of the subsystems. Through its participation in numerous underwater engineering research projects related to vehicles and relevant equipment, it has acquired and consolidated experience on FEM and CFD analyses, along with demonstrated results on experimental and numerical studies on material investigations.
All the above allow MARESCO Ltd to prove complete research solutions on mathematical modelling for Finite Element Analyses. Additionally, the military knowledge and background of the involved key personnel (retired superior Officers of the Hellenic Navy with long service and experience in National and NATO Naval Operations as Stuff Officers and Commanding Officers in naval ships/submarines and Directorates/Commands) will provide an asset to the consortium for the military operations analysis.
Optiphore B.V. (3D digital engineering solutions)
Optiphore B.V. is a digital engineering services company based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 2016 by Charilaos and Eleftherios Zografos and since then it has been systematically active beyond the Netherlands, in Sweden, Germany, Belgium and Greece.
Among its other activities, the company has successfully completed the publicly funded innovation project “3D GEOMETRY RECONSTRUCTION OF A SHIP’S HULL FROM 2D DRAWINGS” (3D-GREC), as part of the “Research – Create – Innovate” program.
Optiphore is active in the following fields:
A) Computer Aided Design (CAD), spanning from conceptual all the way to detailed design and system spatial integration,
B) Computer Aided Engineering (CAE), including structural optimization (ex. Topology, topography, free size, etc.) and structural simulations for validation of products,
C) Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) focusing on management of the design data throughout the lifecycle of a product and
D) Software Development of solutions for the CAD / CAE sectors.
Optiphore will contribute to the PLEIADES project in the CAD design and structural analysis of certain components of subsystems. The company will participate in the definition of the system architecture and lead the effort to integrate the various subcomponents of the proposed System of Systems.
Optiphore also contributes its expertise to the development of the lifecycle cost calculation framework and supports dissemination activities, bringing extensive know-how and industrial experience to the project.
SignalGeneriX Ltd (Digital signal processing & communications)
SignalGeneriX Ltd is a privately owned innovative Cypriot Research and Development SME operating in the field of Digital Signal Processing and Communications.
The company is based in Limassol but operates as expert provider of innovative digital technologies realised both in hardware and software for a wide network of clients and collaborators throughout Europe. The company’s diversified portfolio of innovative commercial products and intellectual property is being creatively utilised to develop beyond the- state-of-the-art solutions for a wide range of industries including Security and Defence.
SignalGeneriX will utilise its 20 years of experience in National and EU Research and Development projects and in particular its expertise in EDIDP/EDF with 12 completed/running projects, for the successful implementation of the project. Together with the research organisations, it is ensured that the required knowledge and skills are available to run the project efficiently and to develop the envisaged solution.
University of Cyprus (Leading research institution in Cyprus)
The University of Cyprus, founded in 1989, is a rapidly growing institution with 7,000 students, 113 laboratories, and 830 staff. It is a major employer for young graduates and researchers, employing around 750 scientists through external research funding. UCY has participated in 348 research projects funded by Horizon 2020, Erasmus+, and other EU and national programmes, securing over €30 million in funding over the past four years.
The KIOS Research and Innovation Center of Excellence at UCY, with more than 180 researchers, focuses on intelligent monitoring, control, and security of critical infrastructures. KIOS has led several EU and national projects, including URANUS and PathoCERT.
Within the project, the center develops multi-sensor algorithms for positioning hybrid air-aquatic drones in GPS-denied environments, utilizing RADAR and SONAR technologies. It also designs systems for predictive control, trajectory planning, and dynamic coordination to support multi-drone surveillance and target interception.