𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗛𝗛𝗟𝗔 𝗦𝗸𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗩𝗟𝗢𝗦 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗸𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲

Skycharge and HHLA Sky teams after successful integration.

𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗧𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀

The journey toward full autonomy doesn’t stop in the air. In 2025, Skycharge partnered with HHLA Sky to bring seamless ground automation to their AllSky platform, starting with the compact yet complex X4 quadcopter. What began as a single-drone upgrade became a scalable blueprint for an entire fleet.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲: 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

HHLA Sky’s X4 drone introduced a rare set of engineering constraints, each critical for port and perimeter surveillance use cases:

• 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘀: The battery is mounted underneath with less than 45mm of ground clearance, leaving no space for traditional bottom-mounted hardware.

• 𝗡𝗼 𝗔𝗿𝗺 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲: The drone’s compact frame prevents contact integration on the arms.

• 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆: No tolerance for added drag or external components that could compromise performance or certifications.

• 𝗪𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: The drone must operate reliably through rain, high humidity, and rapid temperature fluctuations — common in port environments.

Together, these conditions demanded a solution that was compact, rugged, and retrofit-ready.

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𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆-𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗗𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗸𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

Skycharge and HHLA Sky co-developed a custom battery module that houses all required systems for docking and recharging — effectively turning the battery into a smart infrastructure interface.

1. 𝗦𝗸𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗞 𝗣𝗟𝗖 + 𝗕𝗠𝗦 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆
   Embedded Skycharge SINK PLC and battery management system (BMS) directly into the battery enclosure.
   CNC-machined aluminum housing for thermal management and rugged field performance.

2. 𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲
   Spring-loaded, weather-sealed contacts designed to work within the drone’s tight ground clearance.
   Fully compliant with Skycharge’s patented contact-docking protocol, enabling safe, hands-free charging.

3. 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻
   Drone requires no mechanical modification. Operators can swap the stock battery with the Skycharge-integrated module to instantly enable autonomous charging.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲: 𝗔 𝗣𝗹𝘂𝗴-𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗙𝗹𝘆 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝗩𝗟𝗢𝗦 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀

With Skycharge integrated into the X4, HHLA Sky achieved:

• 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗗𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 + 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴: Handles up to ±4mm landing variance and 200mm positioning error.

• 𝗭𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁: Drone performance and certification profile remain unchanged.

• 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀-𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: This integration now guides deployments for the X11 hexacopter, X25 coaxial, and VTOL platforms.

• 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗹𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗨𝗽𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲: Skycharge-enabled batteries act as drop-in replacements, enabling contact charging across multiple airframes.

This retrofit exemplifies how Skycharge delivers infrastructure-scale autonomy — without locking clients into proprietary drones or redesigns.

𝗡𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽𝘀: 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲

Building on the success of the X4 integration, HHLA Sky and Skycharge are now:

• Finalizing integration across X11 and X25 platforms.

• Scaling operations via AllSky control centers and Skycharge docking bases.

Preparing for VTOL-based commercial and defense missions requiring 24/7 availability and extreme reliability.

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𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀
𝗦𝗸𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗚𝗺𝗯𝗛
Europe’s leader in contact-based drone charging systems. Skycharge delivers modular, weatherproof, cross-platform infrastructure deployed in energy, logistics, and defense operations across the EU and US.

𝗛𝗛𝗟𝗔 𝗦𝗸𝘆 𝗚𝗺𝗯𝗛
The autonomous drone division of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA). HHLA Sky powers certified BVLOS missions with a unified command-and-control platform for critical industrial and port applications.