Embention has contributed safety-critical flight-control, motor-control and navigation technology to the iMEDCAP project, which demonstrated an integrated autonomous tactical medical evacuation system during NATO’s Vigorous Warrior 2026 exercise in Estonia.
Completed on 12 June 2026, the demonstration presented a chain of autonomous search, rescue, ground transport, in-transit treatment and aerial evacuation for injured or contaminated military personnel.
Embention supplied components from its Veronte Ecosystem for the project’s autonomous rescue drones, including redundant flight controllers, motor controllers and Visual Based Navigation systems. The technology supports the autonomous operation and reliability of the aerial platforms used within the evacuation chain.
The project addresses the growing difficulty of protecting medical personnel and providing advanced care within the “Golden Hour” in high-lethality battlefield environments.
The multi-stage process begins with a thermal-imaging reconnaissance drone autonomously locating the casualty. A second drone then uses millimeter-accurate radar technology to detect respiration and confirm that the casualty is alive.
Following confirmation, a THeMIS Unmanned Ground Vehicle equipped with the iMEDCAP Autonomy Kit autonomously navigates to the casualty. The kit incorporates dual LiDAR sensors, an inertial measurement unit, satellite navigation antennas and advanced navigation algorithms.
Using live reconnaissance data, the ground vehicle can dynamically replan its route in real time and continue navigating when GNSS signals are blocked or jammed.
For the transport phase, the casualty is placed inside a Patient Transport Box containing monitoring and diagnostic equipment, including a 3D body scanner, CBRN sensors, a diagnostic camera, a blood detector and an eye-movement sensor.
The box also incorporates an autonomous robotic arm system capable of administering autoinjectors, relieving tension pneumothorax and remotely applying a smart tourniquet. Diagnostic data is transmitted in real time to a remote physician, who must authorize any invasive intervention. Vital signs are also automatically relayed to command-and-control elements and medical treatment facilities.
At the Casualty Collection Point, the Patient Transport Box is transferred to the Grille UAV for aerial evacuation to the nearest medical facility. The electrically powered aircraft has a maximum payload capacity of 175 kilograms and a range of 50 kilometers. According to the consortium, it can be deployed by two personnel in approximately 15 minutes.
Led by the Technical University of Munich, iMEDCAP — Development of intelligent military capabilities for monitoring, medical care and evacuation for contagious, injured and contaminated personnel — is a European Defence Fund project funded in 2023 under Grant Agreement No. 101121421.
The consortium comprises 24 partners from nine nations, bringing together expertise in drone technology, robotics, sensor systems, data processing, software development, transport engineering and military medicine.
