In the year 2023, a survey stated that the market valuation for consumer drones stood at USD 5.2 billion. This value is expected to grow three times and reach USD 15.78 billion by 2032. This speaks volumes for the widespread use of drones, which necessitates having an appropriate countermeasure.
Here comes the counter-UAS systems, which can effectively mitigate the potential drone threat.
In the interest of public safety and to secure critical infrastructure and establishments, counter-drone or counter-UAS systems have to be deployed in urban areas.
A Look at UAS Threats Faced in Urban Environments
When an unauthorized drone or UAS enters a protected area, it can not only illegally monitor the area but also disrupt the usual functions. Most of these are located in urban environments (including hospitals, airports, and government offices) and usually qualify as critical infrastructure.
Here, unauthorized UAS can pose the following threats:
● Collisions and damage to urban infrastructure.
● Surveillance and disrupting critical infrastructure.
● Unauthorized public surveillance and data collection.
● Smuggling of contraband.
Thus, keeping these key areas safe from unauthorized drone threats is of the essence, which calls for top-of-the-line counter-UAS systems.
Counter-UAS Systems: Overview, Types, and Necessity
Counter-drone or counter-UAS systems are those pieces of equipment that can be used to detect, track, and neutralize unauthorized and/or malicious unmanned aerial systems. Every counter-UAS system addresses one or more of the following three functions:
● Detection and tracking of unauthorized UAS.
● Mitigating drone threats by jamming or disrupting the drone signals.
● Neutralizing all unauthorized drones by forcing them to land or fly away.
Types of Counter-UAS Systems
Counter-drone or counter-UAS systems are classified depending on their functions:
● Drone detectionor tracking systems, such as drone radars, RF detectors, and anti-drone cameras.
● Drone Jamming or neutralization systems, like anti-drone jammers and GPS spoofers.
● Comprehensiveand integrated anti-drone systems, such as stationary, vehicle-mounted or handheld anti-drone systems.
What Makes Counter-UAS Systems Necessary in Urban Planning
In 2024 itself, 8.2 million pieces of drones were sold, a significant portion of them being consumer-grade. Further, this figure is expected to rise to 9.5 million pieces or more by 2029. Consumer-grade drones are those meant for civilians, thus converting to a large number of drones available in the hands of the general public.
While this gives people greater access to drone technologies, it also leads to UAVs and drones being available to those who wish to use them for unauthorized or illegal purposes.
Drones and UASs can not only carry out surveillance but also deliver small payloads. They also have the ability to disrupt airports and electricity networks, thus hampering critical infrastructure. Further, most civilian drones are too small to be detected by the usual systems.
Urban spaces can opt for devices like the ND-BD005 High-End Handheld Anti-Drone System, which is portable and offers passive detection along with directional control. Further, critical infrastructures also can choose stationary anti-drone systems such as the ND-BU005 Advanced Passive Anti-Drone System, which provide longer passive detection as well as jamming range.
Since unauthorized drone-related incidents can have severe consequences, investing in counter-UAS systems during urban planning is essential.
Challenges Associated with Deploying Counter-UAS Systems
While counter-UAS systems are a necessity, they also come face-to-face with the following challenges during deployment:
● Density of Infrastructure
Having a proper line of sight available is important for drone detection and tracking, especially when using an integrated anti-drone camera. Further, detection via drone radars can also face issues due to reflections off the surface of buildings. With high-rise buildings in the vicinity, both of these can be a significant challenge to accurately detect a drone.
● Avoiding Disruptions due to Counter-UAS
Drone jammers, which neutralize unauthorized drones, can also interfere with the communications network and authorized drones.
● Finding Acceptable Installation Locations
While drone detection cameras and units are installed at critical infrastructures, some of these buildings are close to residential locations. Thus, civilians may raise concerns about their privacy being breached via these cameras.
● Legal and Regulatory Requirements
From airspace governance to EMF management to public safety, a lot of factors come into play when it comes to installing counter-UAS systems. However, regulations and norms are still developing with the developments in UAS and counter-UAS systems.
Addressing Said Challenges
Though the above challenges pose some concerns, they can be easily addressed:
● Using Advanced Anti-Drone Technology
Most top-of-the-line counter-drone systems both detect and jam UASs that pose a threat. They also have fewer false positives, are accurate in their functions, and come as both stationary and handheld systems. Thus, they are highly effective in securing critical infrastructure.
High-end anti-drone systems such as the ND-BU002 contain detection, jamming, and camera units to offer a well-rounded solution. The 3D pulse doppler radar can accurately detect small flying objects such as consumer-grade drones, while the camera unit offers both visual light and thermal imaging tracking functions. This allows drone detection no matter the ambient conditions. The jamming unit comes with full band jamming capacity and a high-power broadband amplifier to counter all UAS.
● Precise Targeting of Unauthorized UAS
The full-band passive RF detectors can keep an eye out for unauthorized drones with 360-degree detection and tracking capabilities. Further, these devices will not actively emit electromagnetic signals, which is more secure, lowering the risk to other urban infrastructure.
ND-BO004 Omnidirectional Anti-Drone Jammer offers 360° coverage and protection from inbound unauthorized drones. It can effectively conduct multiple frequency interference, forcing unauthorized drones returning or landing. Additionally, the compact design of the ND-BO004 makes for quick and easy installation.
● Aligning to Best Practices
Installed counter-UAS systems should minimize impact on network signals and public infrastructure. Further, the counter-UAS systems should not interfere with public amenities or impede public liberties.
Summing Up: The Future of Counter-Drone Systems in Urban Planning
With a greater influx of drones in the market, drone threats due to unauthorized use are also on the rise. Thus, counter-UAS systems are a necessity at locations that house critical infrastructure, such as airports and power plants, as well as public spaces and events.
By installing adequate C-UAS systems, public entities can keep these areas safe from potential threats. Further, by incorporating counter-drone devices in urban planning, public entities can opt for better practices during installation and also choose the ideal system.