Best Russian technological projects of 2020

The National Technological Initiative Platform summed up the results of the “Technological Breakthrough 2020” competition at the end of December — 11 best projects that meet the world level or even outstrip it were named. The results were obtained in a number of markets and areas: in the field of artificial intelligence, the Internet of things, quantum technologies, smart power grids, new materials and energy sources, and unmanned vehicles.

Autonomous navigation

A regulatory framework for the commercial use of autonomous vessels and a corresponding set of technical means were formalized for the first time in the world. So, the sea transport will result in becoming the first mode of transport in Russia where drones are allowed for widespread commercial operation, and Russia will be the first country to create a full-fledged national-level regulatory framework for autonomous vessels.

The tests of a complex of technical systems for automatic and remote control of vessels in real conditions began on four vessels at once at the end of October: Mikhail Ulyanov (PJSC Sovcomflot), Pola Anfisa (Pola Rise), a bundle of the Rabochaya dirt barge and the Redut dredger (Rosmorport). It was on December 5 that the Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree on an experiment on the operation of autonomous (unmanned) vessels starting from December 10, 2020 to the end of 2025.

Effects:

1. The equipment developers will be the first in the world to deliver their solutions, including abroad, forming a leading position in a new market with virtually no competitors in the short term;
2. Russian shipping companies equip their vessels with the equipment for autonomous navigation, gaining economic advantages over their competitors;
3. Russia takes the position of the technological leader in the IMO (International Maritime Organization), defining a long-term strategy for the development of the global maritime transport industry.

Controlling a swarm of drones

The “Peaceful Sky: Record Drone Show” was held in St. Petersburg on September, 3. It was dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. The world record for controlling the maximum number of drones in the sky was updated as a result. There were totally 2,198 Geoscan company drones in the air. The previous world record was set in 2018 by Intel, which sent 2,066 drones into the air.

Effects:

1. Discovering a new market segment in the mass entertainment industry;
2. Export revenue growth due to the drone shows implementation in different countries of the world;
3. Improving the image of Russian technological companies abroad;
4. Using small drones designed for drone shows in the educational process. Tens of thousands of schoolchildren take educational programs every year to learn how to program drone control systems.

Mathematical model for predicting the spread of COVID-19

The first predictive model published in Russia that describes all the “peaks” and “waves” with a high degree of accuracy due to the interval approach, and in all regions where the situation develops completely differently.

The model was developed by order of the Ministry of Health. It was modified and went beyond only the epidemiological one as a result of cooperation with the Smorodintsev Research Institute of Influenza of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation. No other country has proposed such a variable model to describe the long-term prediction yet.

Effects:

1. Scientific and technical effect: novelty. Mathematical modeling of the spread of COVID-19 is the first stage in solving the problems of predictive mathematical modeling of multidisciplinary processes in complex socio-economic systems;
2. Scientific and technical effect: usefulness. The new methodology and software tools for mathematical modeling and predicting are aimed at increasing the socio-economic system stability to epidemiological shocks;
3. Economic effect. The project confirmed the effectiveness of using the system engineering and digital modeling to reduce the development and implementation of new high-tech software systems, diminish labor intensity and increase efficiency in building predictive estimates of the COVID-19 spread rate in the regions;
4. Socio-economic effect. The project is aimed at assessing the necessary resources of the health system in case of negative scenarios of the pandemic development as a basis for making management decisions in certain sectors of the Russian economy in the regions.

Digital PGA (power grid area)

The world’s first comprehensive project in the electric power industry, based on a change in the industry business model, which includes using new technologies, making changes in the organizational model of the network company and the regulatory framework, as well as training of new specialists.

A new ideology for building a distribution network has been developed within the project. A unique platform for testing alternative scenarios for the development and management of critical infrastructure was created and the basis for advancing the development of power grids with fundamentally different properties (reliability, quality, electrical energy availability) with no increase in tariff for consumers was formed on the territory of one of the republics.

Effects:

The application of the Digital PGA project will allow changing the critically worn-out assets of the power grid and obtaining fundamentally different effects on the reliability, quality and availability of power supply. Digital network counterparts and new technologies integrated into the power grid make it much cheaper to solve the issue of improving reliability, and the funds that can be saved are spent on upgrading critically worn-out assets without increasing the tariff burden on the consumers.

Pre-production electric car — “Kama-1” compact crossover

Development of the first pre-production electric car in Russia — “Kama-1” economy class smart crossover — based on the domestic digital platform for the development and use of digital twins — CML-BENCH ™

The first prototype of the “Kama-1” electric car was presented in Moscow on December, 10.

Effects:

1. The created modular platform for developing the CML-EV ™ model range of electric vehicles will enable the creation of seven types of vehicles — from a compact city car to urban electric buses;
2. The effectiveness of the use of advanced manufacturing technologies (and above all — digital design and modeling, digital twins, platform solutions) to significantly reduce the time and cost of developing new high-tech products from scratch has been confirmed;
3. Building and growing the ecosystem of new types of electric transport.

Smart road

Russia is the first in the world to launch a national ecosystem project to collect and process big automotive data using artificial intelligence technologies. Similar projects have been developed at the private companies` level, but never at the national one.

The pilot test of the smart road was launched in Samara, Kursk and Volgograd as part of the Autodata national telematics service platform in 2020. The site was selected and approved for pilot testing next year in St. Petersburg.

Effects:

1. Being implemented, Autodata will increase the transport safety — it will reduce the accident rate by 10–20 %.

2. The technology based on the Autodata platform will create a national array of big data in the automotive sector, on the basis of which new services will be developed for city residents and car owners.

Hydrogen power generation unit (hydrogen transport platform)

Russia’s first unmanned light-duty truck equipped with a hybrid power system fed from electric batteries and hydrogen fuel cells, which supports interaction with connected smart road infrastructure (V2X), took a test trip on the intellectual segment of the Central ring in November, demonstrating the unmanned platforms being ready to operate at main traffic.

Effects:

1. The platform demonstration presented the capabilities of Russian developers, encouraging vehicle manufacturers to start implementing similar projects (KamAZ, GAZ, Avtotor, NAMI);
2. More ambitious and complex projects — the hydrogen highway and the hydrogen city — were put forward as a result of the project;
3. In order to develop the refueling infrastructure, the “New and Mobile Energy Sources” NTI Competence Center is completing a project to create a Russian hydrogen refueling station.

Conversational Artificial Intelligence

One of the world’s strongest academic teams in the development of conversational artificial intelligence technologies has been created in Russia — the MIPT team (DeepPavlov open source library), which is confirmed by the team consistently (for the second year in a row) entering into the final of the for Alexa Prize Socialbot Grand Challenge 4 international competition of universities, dedicated specifically to the development of conversational AI technologies.

Amazon published the results of the selection for the final of the Alexa Prize Socialbot Grand Challenge 4 on November 3. Its finalists include a team of postgraduates and students from the MIPT DREAM Laboratory of Neural Systems and Deep Learning, and employees of the DeepPavlov project (the NTI NeuroNet market).

Effects:

1. Creating an open platform to develop socially oriented conversational bots for Russian and foreign companies. Such bots can communicate with people in a coherent and exciting way for a long time, maintaining a conversation on many popular topics;
2. The open platform development and promotion will reduce the costs of Russian developers to create advanced dialog systems that are globally competitive.

5G infrastructure

A fifth-generation pilot network using equipment and software developed in Russia was launched on the territory of Skolkovo in October 2020.

The aim of the project is to test developments that support open architecture (OpenRAN 5G) and new innovative 5G applications

Effects:

1. Using domestic solutions to develop 5G networks in Russia;
2. Development and use of domestic 5G equipment will reduce potential sanctions or currency risks, as well as decrease the dependence of domestic operators on foreign manufacturing companies;
3. Thanks to the development of domestic 5G solutions with the support of open standards, a competitive market of small and medium-sized manufacturing companies with export potential will appear in Russia.

6G-supporting devices

The “Wireless Communication Technologies and the Internet of Things” NTI Competence Center presented a device that will allow developing components for sixth-generation (6G) communication systems in Russia in September.

Effects:

1. Crucial step for further and complete localization of the 6G infrastructure and terminal equipment production in Russia;
2. Increasing the importance of Russian research in the global 6G standardization process.

CoBrain-Analytics platform

The only open platform in Russia to develop a full cycle of medical applications using artificial intelligence technology. The platform currently contains more than 50 different algorithms for remote diagnosis of various diseases. The platform users have access to a single infrastructure for scientific research and creation of commercial products in the field of healthcare. The system is based entirely on Russian data and biomedical research.

Effects:

1. Single infrastructure for scientific research and the creation of commercial products in the field of healthcare — for the medical field companies;
2. Access to personal recommendations and alternative opinions using medical AI — for patients and doctors.