When drones appear without permission in sensitive airspace such as airports, government facilities, and large-scale event venues, they not only pose a threat to aviation safety and invade public privacy, but can also be used for malicious sabotage or even terrorist attacks. In such scenarios, the timely control and effective countermeasures of these drones have become an imperative for maintaining airspace order and public safety.
Therefore, anti-drone technology has emerged to effectively neutralize unauthorized drones through various means such as drone detection, drone identification, drone jamming, interception, and even takeover of control. These technologies include not only “soft-kill” methods like radio spectrum jamming and navigation signal spoofing, but also encompass “hard-kill” measures such as laser interception and capture nets, forming a multi-layered, integrated drone defense system.
With the proliferation of drone applications and the increase in potential risks, developing reliable and precise countermeasure capabilities has become an important part of national security and social management. This requires both continuous technological innovation and the coordinated improvement of regulations and control strategies.
Countering drones requires first detecting the drone and accurately locating its position, then neutralizing it through signal jamming. There are many methods for detecting drones, generally using anti-drone technologies such as radar detection, radio frequency detection, and electro-optical tracking. Radio frequency detection works by scanning frequency bands to detect the presence of drones. Therefore, even if there are obstacles, the drone emits signals in the corresponding frequency bands, it can be detected. However, radio frequency detection is ineffective against drones in pre-programmed/autonomous flight. What is pre-programmed/autonomous flight? It typically refers to pre-programmed navigation using a set route. In this case, radar detection is needed. An electro-optical system is essentially a tracking system; after the drone is detected by radio frequency detector or radar, it enables precise tracking and lock-on, delivering critical visual verification for jamming or strike decisions, and performs reliable detection, identification, and tracking around the clock.
After the drone is detected and precisely located, effective countermeasures are required. A common method of countering drones is signal jamming or blocking. Anti-drone jamming devices primarily transmits directional acoustic waves or radio frequency signals towards the target drone, interfering with its onboard hardware or cutting off the communication links between the drone and its remote controller, thereby forcing the drone to land, return to its origin or be driven away.
Drones require multiple external signals to operate, much like a person depends on eyes, feet, muscles to walk. Jamming a drone mainly involves interfering with the external signals it needs, such as GPS and the remote controller’s signal. Deprived of them, the drone becomes “blind”. Most drones will hover, land in place or return to its origin, when they lose GPS and remote-control signals. This drone jamming method can sever the connection between the drone and its operator from a long distance, thereby ensuring the security of specific low-altitude airspace.