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What to Look for in a Drone Detection System

The 6 Most Important Questions to Ask Before You Buy

So, you want to purchase a drone detection system that will keep your airspace secure?

There’s plenty of options on the market – but not all drone detection solutions are created equal. And if you choose one that doesn’t have all the capabilities you need, you waste time, money, and expose yourself to unnecessary security risks.

Drones can cause damage, disruption, and cost. Just look at what happened to Gatwick Airport in 2018. A drone scare that occurred shortly before Christmas meant their runway had to be closed for 33 hours at a critical travel time, costing the airport over £50m.

To prevent incidents like this, your drone detection radar system must cover all the bases. In this eBook, you’ll discover the most important things you need to consider before making your choice. Check your system meets all these criteria to ensure it’s a safe purchase.

 

Green and black drone hovering in front of some trees

 

1. Can the system tell drones and birds apart?

When an unauthorised drone enters your airspace, time is critical. You need to establish the nature of the threat as fast as possible so you can focus on what action to take.

Most drone detection systems or counter UAS radar track small objects. But if your system can’t tell whether that object is a drone or a bird, you either waste time or let a threat slip through.

Does it feature micro-doppler radar?

A good way of determining which targets are drones and which are birds is by using micro-doppler radar. Good drone detection systems use micro-doppler radar to detect the presence of rotor blades and accurately assess the situation, separating birds from drones.

Why is this important?

If your detection system can’t distinguish drones from birds, it could trigger false alarms. You won’t know whether you’re dealing with an armed drone or a harmless house sparrow. You’ll waste valuable time and resources responding to a non-existent threat.

How micro-doppler radars know that a drone is a drone
  • Birds stay in the air by flapping their wings. ~80% of drones use rotary blades.
  • Micro-doppler radar systems check for the spinning motion of rotor blades – if it picks up these movements, it can classify the object as a drone.

2. Does it give a complete picture of the threat?

Drones can approach from anywhere. When they do, you need clear, consistent feedback and alerts that show you what’s happening across your whole airspace.

What’s the detection range?

Look for a detection range of up to three kilometres as standard.

Why is this important?

A system with long range tracking will give you early warnings of approaching targets. The sooner you know about the threat, the more time you have to respond.

Does it offer unlimited 360° coverage?

Your system should secure the whole area by combining multiple radars into one sensor network.

Why is this important?

If you’ve got one drone being tracked by several different radars, you’ll have multiple alarms going off at once. This will cause confusion, which is the last thing you need when a threat is in your airspace.

You need one clear, unambiguous picture of the threat to respond effectively, which is why being able to see everything through a single sensor network is crucial.

Detection...
Drone detection systems aren’t the same as drone countermeasures. Detection means finding, identifying, and monitoring drones. Countermeasures involve physically stopping or capturing them.
or destruction?
Be wary of any system that claims it can destroy, neutralise, or take control of the drone as well as detect it. Most countries forbid or limit the use of countermeasure technologies, so check your appropriate regulations before committing.

3. Is it simple to use and understand?

A high-end drone detection radar system runs on complex technology. But that doesn’t mean it has to be complex to operate.

How easy is it to set up the radar?

You should be able to get drone detection radars up and running quickly and without hassle. Think minutes, rather than hours or days.

Why is this important?
An easy set-up saves you time and effort. No-one wants to spend ages with a complex implementation process. Once installed, the best radar systems will have you detecting and tracking drones straight away.

Is the interface intuitive?

Make sure the radar display is straightforward and easy to understand. You want clear, configurable visualisations that help you interpret the interface, such as colour coding, to differentiate flight paths of drones and birds.

Why is this important?
Your counter UAS radar system is only as useful as the insights it gives to you. So, you need to be able to understand the data it provides at a glance.

Are detection and classification integrated?

See if the solution can both detect and classify objects with a single sensor.

Why is this important?
Some drone detection systems require a combination of multiple sensors to detect and then classify a target. But if your system can detect, differentiate, and classify targets with one sensor, it will save you precious time and help make decisions quickly.

4. Does the radar system work with other technologies?

Sadly, there isn’t one single piece of technology you can buy to protect you from drones. The solution will differ from case to case. Radar is an essential component at the heart of the system. But to be completely optimal, it will always need a combination of technologies working together.

Will the radar integrate with external systems?

The radar should live stream all tracks and alarms to any external security and command systems – including ones you’re already using.

Is it camera-ready?

Check how easily you can add a high-resolution pan-tilt-zoom camera system of your choice.

 

Why is this important?

Camera integration ensures visual confirmation of the target. Once the radar detects it, the camera zooms in on its direction, allowing you to capture an image, get more detail, and see if you need to take further action.

5. Does it have a high accuracy rate?

Drones can fly 100mph and some are small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. Detecting them isn’t enough – once identified, you need to track them accurately, whatever the weather.

Does it still work in conditions with low visibility?

Even in harsh weather, such as heavy fog or storms, your radar system should and must stay fully functional. It should also be able to track drones in busy urban environments with lots of moving objects.

Can it track multiple targets?

Your counter UAS radar system needs to have the ability to track several targets at the same time.

Does it track targets in real-time?

Tracking should be highly accurate, so you can see the exact position of the drone and its flight path in real time.

Why is this important?

Not all drone detection systems have real-time tracking capabilities. Most radio frequency detectors will tell you there is a drone somewhere in the vicinity, but only a handful of top-end systems will locate where it is as well. If you can’t accurately and independently pinpoint multiple targets at once, in any conditions, you’ll be ill-equipped to deal with modern drone threats, like swarming.

Having real-time information about where drones are and have been is also important if you want to feed this data into other integrated sensors, such as cameras and jamming devices.

Can you customise alarm zones?

You should have the option to define virtual zones where drones will trigger alarms when detected and classified, based around your own specific needs and unique environment.

Why is this important?

Customisation options are particularly useful for complex environments where you only want to trigger alarms in certain areas. It’s also helpful if you use your own drones. By creating safe zones where activity is expected, you won’t set off alarms by mistake.

What’s swarming?

Drone swarming is when a group of drones are used at once to accomplish the same goal. Drones in the swarm can communicate with each other and change behaviour in response to real-time information, making them highly dangerous.

That’s why having multiple target tracking capabilities in real-time is so crucial. If you’ve got a swarm of 50 drones entering your airspace, you need to locate and track all of them quickly and accurately, or they could cause continuous disruption.

6. Will the provider help maintain the system?

Of course, you want your system to be robust and reliable. But if something does go wrong, you should expect the right levels of customer support.

Are support services flexible?

Whether you want hands-on support or a completely closed system, the support you receive should be based around your business requirements.

Can staff perform remote or on-site diagnostics?

Technical staff should have the ability to diagnose issues and resolve them remotely – or make repairs on-site.

Get a drone detection system that ticks every box

Counter drone and UAS technology is advancing rapidly and becoming increasingly popular. Analysts predict that the consumer drone market will almost triple to reach a valuation of $11.56 billion by 2030, so having effective detection and tracking is key.

Speed and accuracy are important considerations for choosing a drone detection system. But it also needs to be easy to use, integrate with other technologies, provide complete coverage, and come with flexible support.

Only when your system ticks all of these boxes will you have a solution that’s effective and futureproof.

To learn more about the best solutions for preventing drone disruption, read our guide to countering drones.

If you need help with finding the right drone detection system to protect your airspace, please get in touch.

 

IRIS drone detection radar installed on a hillside overlooking an alpine town

 

The Robin Radar team outside their offices

About Robin Radar

Our mission is to provide actionable information that increases safety and security for both humans and birds. We do that by combining purpose-built radars with unique software algorithms.

Our bird radars are installed at numerous civil and military airports around Europe, including Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Berlin, and Copenhagen. There, we track birds to prevent them from striking aircraft.

We also protect birds themselves and help to reduce the environmental impact of wind turbines, with our bird radars at wind farms.

Our counter-drone radars have regularly been used to protect infrastructure, events, and VIPs from rogue drones, since 2016.

Listed in the top three most innovative Dutch companies, we continue to research, develop, manufacture, and above all, innovate.

Don’t Leave Your Business Vulnerable

Find out how our radars can make your operations safer with actionable data. Get in touch today.

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