Anti-UAV Warfare: Development Status of Foreign Anti-UAV Systems

With the rapid opening of the drone market, it is no longer difficult for people to have a "gray machine" that wants to fly and fly. However, drones are "overflying" and "black fly" accidents frequently occur, causing injuries. Destruction may even be exploited by terrorists, causing major security risks. In addition to the introduction of regulatory policies, the necessary anti-UAV means are not required to be launched, so drones and anti-UAVs will stage a game of technical competition and mutual search for loopholes.

According to statistics, between 2017 and 2022, the anti-UAV market will grow at a rate of about 23.89% per year. By 2022, the total market will reach 1.14 billion US dollars. Among them, the demand for anti-UAV systems in the Asia-Pacific region will account for 30% of the global market, and anti-UAV products will maintain rapid growth for a long time.

Anti-UAV system refers to a device that uses technical means to monitor, interfere, deceive, control, and destroy UAVs. At present, the technical means of anti-UAV mainly include laser cannon, signal interference, signal deception, acoustic interference, hacking technology, radio control and anti-UAV drones.

The anti-UAV system developed by these technical means can be roughly divided into three categories: one is the monitoring and control class, and the drone is controlled by the transmission code of the intercepting drone, and the drone is guided, and the drone is prevented from crashing. . The second is to directly destroy the class, mainly using missiles, laser weapons, microwave weapons, fighting drones and conventional firepower to directly destroy the drone. The third is the interference blocking class. By transmitting directional high-power interference radio frequency to the drone, the communication between the drone and the remote control platform is cut off, and the drone is forced to land or return by itself.

The United States began to develop an anti-UAV strategy in 2012. It plans to design an effective air defense system that can quickly respond to the threat of enemy drones without injuring the friendly aircraft missiles. This strategy of the United States aims to use its technological advantages to quickly seize the commanding heights of the anti-UAV field.

Boeing has developed a number of anti-UAV laser weapons, more typically anti-UAV laser guns. The laser cannon's transmitter and gimbal can precisely aim the laser cannon to any part of the drone, and within a few seconds of discovering the drone, it can shoot down the low-altitude low-speed drone. In August 2016, Boeing released an anti-UAV laser weapon system (LWS). By launching a 10 kW laser beam, the system can immediately destroy drones 35 km away. The LWS can be split into four parts and can be transported by two people. It can be assembled and deployed in the field within 15 minutes. Unlike traditional conventional kinetic or chemical weapons, laser weapons destroy or destroy targets by applying energy to the target (photons or particles moving at or near the speed of light). Tests have shown that the ability of drones to evade attacks in the face of laser weapons is greatly reduced. The advantages of high precision, low cost, and discovery and destruction make such anti-UAV systems more popular.

In October 2015, Battelle, the largest non-profit development organization in the United States, launched an anti-UAV device, the Drone Defender. The device is specially shaped like a rifle with a white rod antenna on the front end. It is the first non-destructive anti-UAV device that can accurately and quickly stop the suspicious drone from approaching. As long as the user aims at the target drone and simultaneously pulls the trigger, the target will be "shot down". The device has an effective range of 400 meters and is only effective for drones that rely on GPS navigation or real-time remote control (such as four-axis and six-axis aircraft).

Is the UAV Logo Mobile App (MAUI) a Northrop? Software developed by Grumman that runs on Android phones. The system uses a mobile phone's own microphone to detect low-speed small drones weighing less than 9 kilograms, flying below 360 meters, and flying at speeds up to 185 kilometers per hour. At the same time, with off-the-shelf commercial mobile devices, the MAUI system software is able to detect drones outside the line of sight range in high-noise environments. In addition, the RF interceptor system developed by Nogg is "based on the known electronic warfare technology for drone access restrictions" (DRAKE), which can provide selective, non-kinetic electronic attacks for the US military to respond to low and slow small drones. The DRAKE project has demonstrated feasibility in implementing anti-UAVs and protecting friendly communications.

Black Sage Technologies has successfully used artificial intelligence technology in anti-UAV systems. UAVX is a UAV detection, identification and tracking system developed by the company. The system uses an artificial neural network to automatically classify the target drones and reduce the false alarm rate. The UAVX consists of a small surveillance radar with a detection range of 500 meters, a 36x zoom white light camera, a 15-100mm continuous zoom infrared camera and a mobile computer for running neural network intelligence algorithms. The system's workflow is detection, intelligence, classification, and warning. First, the small surveillance radar can detect medium-sized drones within 500 meters, record hundreds of radar-reflected data samples, and the system compares the data samples with thousands of common drones in the database; After the drone, the remote video tracker (consisting of infrared and daytime cameras) points to the drone and tracks it accurately; at this point, the system sends an alert via email or to an existing video/accident management system or Security system integration.

The United States has developed various types of anti-UAV systems based on its technological advantages, making its anti-UAV capabilities always at the international leading level, and has also prompted other countries to accelerate the development of anti-UAV systems.

In order to improve the level of construction and development of the Russian drone field and narrow the gap with the world's military powers, the Russian President ordered the Russian military to formulate a detailed national plan for the development of drones. According to the website of the Russian Ministry of Defense, before 2020, Russia’s military budget in the field of drones was as high as 13 billion U.S. dollars, mainly used to establish a scientific research system for UAV combat systems and to strengthen the research and development of military UAVs and anti-UAV technologies.

The UHF microwave gun is a microwave weapon developed by the Russian state-owned defense company. The effective destruction of the drone is 10 kilometers and can be launched 360 degrees. The system consists of a monitoring system, a mirror antenna, a high power relativistic generator, and a transmission system. The microwave cannon destroys the drone's radio-electronics by destroying the drone's radio electronics, destroying the drone's precision guidance system, and even interfering with low-altitude aircraft's electronic equipment and attacking ground vehicles.

The PY12M7 mobile anti-UAV reconnaissance command vehicle is an anti-UAV system developed by the Russian "Radio Factory" company. The system is installed on the BRT-80 wheeled armored vehicle. It consists of communication, automatic control, power supply, life support and other sub-systems. It can track 120 air targets at the same time. The bicycle reconnaissance distance is 25 kilometers, and the maximum joint reconnaissance distance is 200 thousand. Meter, the maximum reconnaissance height is 50 kilometers. It is mainly used to command air defense units (radars, anti-aircraft artillery units, air defense missile units) below the regiment level and aviation fighters, and to implement regional coordinated deployment and medium-to-close anti-UAV operations.

The shoulder-mounted anti-UAV device SkyWall100 is a Russian-specific equipment for anti-UAV. The equipment is driven by compressed gas to capture illegally invading drones by launching a mesh trap. The operator shoulders the SkyWall 100 to aim at the target drone and launch a capture missile to capture the drone. The missile has a built-in parachute and a magnetic device. After capturing the drone, the drone can immediately lose the ability to move, and the parachute is used to make the drone safely land, ensuring the smooth progress of the subsequent anti-reconnaissance operations.

In order to maintain its status as a traditional military power, Russia will surely grasp the development of the anti-UAV system in order to seek anti-UAV capabilities commensurate with its status as a military power, and further maintain and consolidate its military deterrence capabilities.

In the unmanned system strategy announced by the British government in 2016, anti-UAV technology was taken as an important part, and an anti-UAV information center code-named COI4 was set up to study the improper use of drones by the government. The resulting terrorist activities, attacks, protests, and the transportation of dangerous contraband.

In June 2015, the UK developed a new “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Defense System (AUDS)”, which consists of an optical jammer, a 4-band suppression/shielding system and a rapid deployment module that can defend against within 8 km. The drones are mainly small fixed-wing and rotary-wing drones. The principle is to first accurately locate the drone with radar and optical instruments, and then transmit the directional high-power interference radio frequency, cut off the communication between the drone and the remote control device, and force the drone to land.

Although this is still a big gap from the complete control of drones, it has taken a big step forward. At the same time, the UK is also studying the temptation capabilities of the AUDS system in order to allow system operators to control the target drone.

In September 2016, the British UAV Defense Company announced the new anti-UAV equipment "Drone Defender". The equipment can be fixed or used on the move. The system uses the "Tinuopi" E1000MP (Dynopis) portable jammer to interfere with the illegal drone, and uses the "UAV tracker" developed by the anti-UAV company to detect and identify it, and interfere with the "Tinuopi" E1000MP or Hit with a Net Gun X1 shotgun. The Tino skin E1000MP portable jammer has a total output of more than 100 watts and has five channels, using GPS interrupts and directed electronic countermeasures to induce the drone to leave the protected area or land automatically.

The UAV Observation and Capture project, established by British Power, is responsible for the development of anti-UAV systems. The project is based on holographic radar technology and uses an opto-electronic camera to detect and identify small drones up to 27 kilograms within 7 km. The holographic radar independently developed by the company is a static phased array radar capable of continuously monitoring the airspace and detecting and tracking illegal drones. In the test, the holographic radar successfully detected a quadcopter at 6.4 kilometers.

At present, most of the UK's anti-UAV systems are used in such areas as terrorist attacks, security and social security. With the continuous improvement of the functions of anti-UAV systems and the increasing military demand, more anti-UAV systems will be used in various fields such as military.

Israel's defense industry and technology have been relatively developed, and its anti-UAV system has also been at the leading level.

On June 8, 2016, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) introduced an anti-UAV system called DroneGuard. The system integrates photoelectric sensors, adaptive 3D radar and dedicated electronic attack jamming systems to detect, identify and interfere with small unmanned aerial vehicles. The system uses a variety of 3D radars to detect short, medium and long distance drones. At the same time, with the help of special reconnaissance and tracking algorithms, photoelectric sensors can also be used to identify targets. In addition, the "UAV Guard" interference system can be used alone to interfere with the flight of the drone. Since the launch of the system, its application in military and security fields has continued to expand.

"DroneDome" is a UAV detection, tracking and suppression system developed by Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. The system uses an "end-to-end" system design to provide effective defense against the air and to prevent terrorists from attacking, reconnaissance and other terrorist activities in the air. The UAV photoelectric sensor, the RPS-42 tactical airborne surveillance radar, and a C-Guard broadband signal jammer are installed to warn the target drone after comprehensively analyzing all collected data. In current anti-UAV systems, the commonly used technical method is to transmit radio frequency signals to interfere with the drone and prevent communication with the ground remote control device. The "UAV" is not the same, it can interfere with the GNSS signal, so that the drone can not make its own position, so that it can not return to the take-off location after losing control.

Israel's Apollo Shield has developed a new anti-UAV system, ApolloShield, to detect, identify and combat drones. The system is one of the latest anti-UAV systems and consists of two subsystems, the Apollo CyberBox and the Apollo Command Center. The Apollo cyber box detects drones with sound, light and wireless sensors and forces illegal drones to land; the Apollo Command Center can be installed on a handheld computer for the operator to "Apollo cyberbox" The various functions are controlled. The system can also be integrated with other UAV detection devices, using a signal blocker to interfere with the UAV, and using the network to physically capture the UAV.

With its strong defense industry technology, Israel will continue to introduce more advanced anti-UAV systems to ensure its defense and social security.

In recent years, Germany has been increasingly affected by drones, forcing the German government to actively develop anti-UAV systems to ensure its public order and social security.

After 4 years of research and development, Anoni has launched a new UAV detection system. The system can measure the direction of the electromagnetic signal emitted by the drone in real time and detect the illegally invaded drone. When the illegal drone enters the detection area, the system will immediately issue an alarm and warn the operator. The system's frequency range is 9KHz to 20GHz, and the detection range depends on the transmit power of the drone/manipulator, which is equivalent to the effective distance between the drone and the controller. The system works at night, in dense fog and in inclement weather, capturing drone signals hidden between buildings, factories and trees, allowing 7&TImes; 24 hours of seamless monitoring and recording.

The drone tracking system (DroneTracker) developed by Dedrone GmbH of Germany is mainly composed of photoelectric/infrared sensors, sound waves and ultrasonic equipment and cameras. The system itself and the data processing system can be managed by a computer or smartphone. The system can be connected to the external wall or special station of the building through its own equipment to effectively monitor the airspace. When a illegal drone enters a safe airspace, the drone's location is displayed on the digital map in real time, the video evidence is automatically saved, and the alert is triggered immediately, and the security guard can take immediate action. In August 2016, the "Unmanned Air Tracker" version 2.0 was officially launched. The new version upgrades the wireless network sensor and can detect the drone through the wireless network signal, regardless of whether the wireless network signal comes from controlling the drone's intelligence. Mobile phones, or on-board cameras that transmit video signals to ground personnel, even the physical address (MAC) of the transmitting device can be read by new sensors.

In March 2016, Deere Defense released the HPEM (High Power Electromagnetic) anti-UAV system. Unlike other anti-UAV systems that use wireless signals or GPS spoofing, the system uses electromagnetic pulses to cause the small drone to lose control and force the mission to stop, while also automatically triggering fail-safe functionality. In the case of public activities and military missions being threatened by small drones, relying solely on interfering radio signals and GPS interference/spoofing-based anti-UAV systems cannot provide reliable airspace protection. HPEM uses electromagnetic pulses directly The electronic control unit of the small drone acts to cause the task to be suspended. That is to say, under the influence of the electromagnetic pulse of the system, whether using autonomous control or radio control, the small drone will become inoperable due to the trigger failure protection function. The HPEM anti-UAV system can intercept the entire small UAV group and is currently used in the security of large events.

Under the traction of social security and the need to prevent terrorist attacks, the German government will vigorously strengthen the development of anti-UAV systems. At the same time, relying on its strong industrial base, Germany's anti-UAV system will certainly be at the advanced level in the world.

The French government is also paying more and more attention to the issue of drones, specializing in a program called “Analysis and Assessment of Global Anti-Unmanned System Technologies and Methods”, whose main purpose is to help the French government, the police and the armed forces to illegally The machine detects, identifies, classifies and suppresses.

France Thales has launched a multi-functional anti-UAV system. The system consists of a sound image detector, radar, radio frequency and video locator, directional instrument, laser scanning device, etc., which can perform laser, GPS, electromagnetic pulse interference on the drone, and can also use a high-alarm or sniper rifle to the drone. For destruction, the target drone can also be intercepted by a drone carrying interference equipment. At present, technical tests have been successfully carried out for four-axis rotary wing drones and other small drones.

France Marau Technology UAV Company proposed to use drones to intercept drones. Capture illegally invading drones by hanging an interceptor net under the MP200 six-rotor drone. This method requires the ground drone controller to have skilled drone operation skills. Therefore, the company has set up a training school to improve the operation level of the drone controller. In a demonstration trial in February 2016, the MP200 six-rotor drone successfully intercepted a quadrotor drone.

In recent years, the number of terrorist incidents in France has been frequent, and the problem of illegal drones has become more and more prominent. In order to ensure the safety of domestic society and large-scale public activities, especially in France, which has more nuclear power facilities, the French government will definitely increase its opposition. The drone problem was invested and various types of anti-UAV systems were developed to meet the needs of all sectors of society.

"Falcon Shield" is a set of UAV defense systems developed by SelexES of the Italian Finmeccanica Group. The system, combined with radar, camera and microphone, detects, identifies, tracks and shoots down small drones. The Falcon Shield combines advanced scene recognition radar with SelexES's passive optoelectronic technology and electronic monitoring sensors for threat detection, identification and tracking. When a threat is detected, the Falcon Shield system can remotely take over and safely dock the drone, while the system can also track the RF signal source to locate the drone controller. The Falcon Shield system also provides remote coverage of densely populated urban areas and will be installed in areas such as football fields and nuclear power plants that may cause serious consequences.

At present, the Italian anti-UAV system is relatively small. With the rapid development of the entire anti-UAV industry, Italy will actively develop its anti-UAV equipment and develop more anti-UAV systems.

In order to detect unmanned drones that illegally broke into important buildings, a new unmanned detector was developed by Alsok. The device is equipped with a microphone that can listen to sounds in any direction within 150 meters of the surrounding area, and can recognize the sound of the drone. Each drone has its own unique “audio fingerprint”, which is the rotation of the propeller. When the microphone detects a suspicious drone over the building, it compares the detected audio with the drone audio database. Not only can you determine where the drone is coming from, but you can also detect the type of drone. Especially for drones that are invisible to radar, this approach is simple and effective.

Japan's technological level has always been at the forefront of the world. With the rapid warming of the anti-UAV market, Japan will intensify its research and development efforts on anti-UAV products in order to occupy a place in the anti-UAV market.

The Korea Advanced Science and Technology Research Institute (KAIST) hopes to develop anti-UAV equipment by using the gyroscope and the resonance phenomenon of sound waves in the drone. In the test, the researchers found that when the external sound wave reaches a certain frequency, the gyroscope on the drone can resonate and disturb the smooth flight of the drone. At this time, the unmanned opportunity of the normal flight suddenly falls from the sky. At the same time, the researchers also found that when the sound is strong enough (for example, 140 decibels), the sound waves can be used to shoot down drones 40 meters away. The current difficulty of this technology is aiming and tracking, and it needs to be used in conjunction with tracking radar. In the short term, such weapons are not yet the main means of anti-UAV.

At present, South Korea is still in its infancy in anti-UAV. With the traction of the anti-UAV market and the increase in social demand, South Korea will accelerate the development of anti-UAV systems.

With the rapid development of drone technology and products, the problem of anti-UAV is becoming more and more prominent, and the demand is getting stronger and stronger. All countries in the world have stepped up the development and launch of anti-UAV strategy, which has effectively promoted anti-UAV technology. With the rapid development of equipment, the development of anti-UAV systems is characterized by diversification, specialization, intelligence and low cost. Unlike traditional methods of using missiles and artillery to resist drones, anti-UAV systems are fast, flexible, and cost-effective, and these advantages have become an important reason why countries are competing to develop anti-UAV systems. At the same time, in the fields of military, anti-terrorism, security and civilian use, anti-UAV systems are playing an increasingly important role, which in turn will promote the rapid development of anti-UAV systems.