French firms launch new lab to develop remote gas sensors

14 Dec 2016

Bertin Technologies and Onera say CUBIX lab will create "new generation" of multispectral remote gas detectors.

Bertin Technologies, a CNIM Group subsidiary, and Onera, the French aerospace lab, have signed a three-year research and innovation partnership agreement to create CUBIX, a joint laboratory (spectral imager-based payload) dedicated to the development of new multispectral remote gas detector cameras.

The laboratory, financially supported by Bertin, will develop a new generation of infrared multispectral image sensors, described as being “at the forefront of innovation”. The CUBIX laboratory team will have three years to design and develop operational solutions intended to have a low false-alarm rate, and be more compact and faster than existing solutions.

Rugged and portable

So the proposed cameras will therefore be suitable for use on board vehicles and, in the longer term, on aircraft such as drones or helicopters, enabling remote risk assessment for reliable detection – even at very low concentrations. These solutions will be fitted to the next remote gas-sensing devices delivered by Bertin to the energy (oil, gas and mines), environmental, defense and security industries.

Bruno Sainjon, CEO of Onera, commented, “As well as direct applications in the oil and gas sector, the solutions developed by CUBIX, based on the expertise of Bertin and Onera’s multispectral imaging skills, which are unique in Europe, could generate new opportunities for the design of innovative systems for the defense industry.”

Stéphane Sénac, Director of Research and Technology, Systems & Instrumentation Business Unit, at Bertin Technologies, said, “Combining our expertise in the field of gas detection based on our industry-leading Second Sight solution, and Onera’s multispectral imaging instrumentation expertise, developed over more than a decade, this partnership is fully in line with our R&D strategy.

“By forming strategic partnerships with leading research centers in France and recognized internationally for applied research and industrial transfer, we believe we are well-placed to increase our capacity for innovation and to speed up the time-to-market of our jointly developed products.”