[Edaily Reporter Kim Hyun-ah] The Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) announced on the 20th that they have developed an innovative technology that can effectively detect and track illegal drones. This newly developed technology is based on an EO (Electro-Optical) and IR (Infrared) integrated radar system, and it is expected to play a significant role in preventing crimes such as unauthorized flying, terrorism, invasion of privacy, and enhancing national security.
ETRI has successfully transferred this technology to Samjeong Solutions and is preparing for practical application. Notably, during the 2024 Eulji Training Period, real-life applications of this technology were confirmed in illegal drone response training conducted at the ETRI headquarters.
In the training, drones penetrating towards the facility were remotely detected and tracked, and then within the visible range, the drones were identified and neutralized through jamming procedures, which were successfully executed.
What kind of technology is this?
The EO/IR integrated radar system developed by ETRI automatically directs the EO/IR cameras towards the target detected by the radar to detect and track drones. The radar subsystem, jointly developed by ETRI and Hanwha Systems (272210), is designed to detect small drones within a 5km range using Ku band instead of the widely used X band in military applications.
The EO/IR subsystem, developed by ETRI, uses technology where the radar information is collected to acquire target images through EO/IR cameras for drone detection, tracking, and recognition. This system can detect and track targets up to a maximum distance of 3km and can determine whether the target within a 2km range is a drone.
This technology was transferred to Samjeong Solutions in 2022 and was developed as part of the ‘Short-term Security R&D Technology Practicalization Project,’ led by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Police Agency to promote science security public research outcomes.
Samjeong Solutions has developed an integrated high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle response solution based on this technology, and in July, their vehicle-integrated solution system was registered as an innovative product on the Public Procurement Service’s e-marketplace.
Choi Ji-hoon, Director of the Autonomous Flight Research Lab at ETRI, emphasized that this technology, as an advanced technology enabling rapid and accurate response to threats posed by illegal drones, will play a crucial role in strengthening national security and the safety of the people. He also stressed that ETRI will continue to do its best in developing innovative technologies for public safety.
In the future, this technology is expected to be utilized in various fields such as monitoring illegal drones at key personnel and event venues, public facilities, sports stadiums, surveillance of drone infiltration along national borders and coastlines, and monitoring of unauthorized flight drones that deviate from reported routes during drone traffic control.
This research was conducted as part of the ‘Public Safety Science and Technology Research and Development Project’ held by the National Police Agency and the Agency for Defense Development from 2017 to 2021, focusing on the development and validation of EO/IR integrated radar for detecting illegal flights of unmanned aerial vehicles.