Indian scientists the Army Institute of Technology said they developed a software program that improves landing precision of unmanned aerial vehicles without operator intervention.

AIT said their MATrix LABoratory software program increases landing precision of UAVs by up to 97 percent without the need for an operator with a hand-held remote control.

Software project lead scientist Mahesh Khadtare said the development would greatly circumvent difficulties in the present landing systems of UAVs.

"The landing of the UAV will be controlled by the microprocessor, which will recognize previously collected images of the landing space and accordingly guide the UAV in for landing," he said.

"There will be no additional increase in the equipment to be fitted, except the conversion of MATLAB software into an equivalent assembling program for the UAV."

AIT has been working the national defense laboratory Armament Research and Development Establishment, a division of the Defense Research and Development Organization, the country's main armaments development and procurement group.

The next step is to have the software tested on a UAV, AIT said.

Earlier this month DRDO said it had developed a UAV called Netra specifically to aid anti-terror and counter-insurgency operations.

Netra will be inducted into the armed forces by the end of the year, DRDO said, and could help security forces in situations such as the November 2008 terrorist attacks in central Mumbai that left more than 100 people dead.

The 3.5-pound Netra is a collaborative project between ideaForge, a company formed by a group from the Indian Institute of Technology and Defense Research and Development Organization's Pune labs, Research and Development Establishment Engineers in Pune.

DRDO scientist Alok Mukherjee, who demonstrated the UAV in Pune, said Netra is undergoing trials.

"The UAV is capable of operating in all conflict theaters, including urban quarters, in a situation similar to that of the 26/11 terror attacks," he said.

The cost of a Netra would be the equivalent of nearly $43,000 and comes with a resolution charge coupled device image sensor camera with a pan-tilt and zoom to facilitate wider surveillance.

But the price would vary depending on what surveillance components are fitted, Mukherjee said. The unit price would jump if a thermal-imaging camera for night operations were added, as would be in the case of India's security agencies who are interested in the UAV.

IdeaForge Vice President of Marketing for UAVs Amardeep Singh said Netra can carry out surveillance in an area of just less than 1 mile line-of-sight and operate for up to 30 minutes on a single battery charge. A fail-safe feature notifies Netra to return to base on loss of communication or a low battery.

Netra has a vertical take-off and landing capacity and a maximum operational altitude of nearly 660 feet.

Singh acknowledged that Netra can't operate in rainy conditions but research is being done to ensure it will function even during a monsoon downpour.