The Horizon initiative in the Chuvash machine-building cluster is aimed at uniting multiple kinds of road construction equipment under a single, coordinated system. This includes unmanned vehicles and aerial drones that rely on computer vision and geospatial analysis to plan and monitor work on large construction sites.
As described by a representative of the Engineering Cluster, Horizon involves unmanned technologies that operate construction machinery to perform tasks such as preparing foundations for skyscrapers or trenching for long pipelines without direct human control. The project envisions a future where autonomous bulldozers, excavators, and dump trucks can collaborate to lay the groundwork for major developments while reducing the exposure of workers to hazardous environments.
The Horizon platform is designed to handle several tasks simultaneously. It will track landscape changes and changing site conditions through drones, computer-vision-powered inspection, and laser radar on the machinery itself. The gathered data will feed a digital twin of the job site, improving route optimization for equipment and streamlining work orders. In addition, Horizon aims to enable remote and centralized control of various machines on site, significantly lowering the risk of traumatic injuries from single-person operation.
Proponents note that gathering and integrating leading Russian technologies can accelerate the project, as many core capabilities are already in place within Russian firms and are comparable to international offerings. This collaboration across key players is viewed as a way to keep the project on a realistic timeline without compromising on capability or safety.
Horizon will be positioned to compete with international initiatives, such as a multi-country enterprise that began efforts in 2022 and plans a commercial rollout by 2025. The domestic development timeline targets completion of core technological milestones by the end of the current year, with ongoing refinement and testing slated for 2024 and beyond.
Earlier, other tech leaders have worked on related defensive and security tools, such as portable drone detectors, illustrating a broader ecosystem of unmanned solutions that can inform Horizon as it evolves.