Teledyne FLIR helps to keep airspace surrounding Swedish critical infrastructure free of drones

As drones are becoming commercially available to a wider audience, effective drone detection and monitoring have become increasingly important, especially for critical infrastructures and sites, such as power plants, utility centres, and airports.

However, effective and accurate drone detection is challenging. In contrast to land-based monitoring and detection, aerial detection has a much wider, dome-shaped area to cover, with no real reference points. In addition, current drones are fast and small, and they can demonstrate erratic flying behaviour. Visual detection systems have an additional challenge, in that they need to detect objects in variable sky and weather conditions.

Drone detection for critical infrastructures

Teledyne FLIR recently provided a robust drone detection system for a Swedish critical infrastructure customer. The project completed in early 2022 was also made possible by Teledyne FLIR’s longtime distributor and integration partner CCTV-Systems AB, a company that has been in the video surveillance systems business since 1982.

Just like Teledyne FLIR, CCTV-Systems AB has vast experience in providing threat detection systems for industrial and security sectors all over the world.

Slew-to-cue feature

The system detects the drones from a long distance and automatically points the FLIR PTZ camera to the exact position

Teledyne FLIR offered an integrated drone detection system based on radar and a combination of thermal and visible sensors.

The system uses a so-called slew-to-cue feature, where a radar will continuously scan the sky, detect the drones from a long distance and automatically point the FLIR PTZ camera to the exact position of the detected drone, whereupon the camera will continue to track the moving object using its pan/tilt mechanism.

An integrated drone detection system

“Today, Teledyne FLIR is the only company that can provide a total, integrated solution for this application,” says Johan Eklund, Managing Director at CCTV-Systems AB.

“The company’s radar, dual thermal and visible PTZ system, and software platform are all seamlessly integrated to provide a high-performance surveillance system. And what’s more, all of the system’s components have been thoroughly tested and proven in the field.”

Technical expertise

“We are very fortunate to have such a dedicated and skillful partner in CCTV Systems AB,” says William Turner, Northern European Sales Manager at Teledyne FLIR.

“To satisfy the complex requirements of a demanding client, this project cut new ground and called for high levels of technical expertise and customer commitment from Johan and his team.”

FLIR Ranger R8SS-3D radar

R8SS-3D provides hemispherical detection and can monitor the coverage area four times per second

The system includes the FLIR Ranger R8SS-3D radar, which can detect objects within a three-kilometer range and track up to 500 drone targets simultaneously, while effectively filtering bird detections. The

R8SS-3D provides complete hemispherical detection and can monitor the coverage area four times per second, run 24/7, and detect all ground and aerial threats in virtually any climate, day and night.

Software surveillance system

Radar detections are continuously tracked with the FLIR Ranger HDC MR, a high-definition mid-range surveillance system that uses thermal imaging technology to detect threats, even in conditions where visibility is poor, at night, or in degraded weather conditions, such as fog, rain, and clouds.

Everything the system picks up is monitored through FLIR’s Cameleon software platform. This software enables operators to control the surveillance system and share all detector information with other agencies.

Maximum detection accuracy

Teledyne FLIR also ensures that the system can operate with maximum uptime with 24/7 situational awareness

From the project onset, the end-users minimum requirement was to obtain 100% accurate classification at 500 metres. Teledyne FLIR was able to far exceed this requirement due to thorough tuning and calibration and to the system’s superior optics and high-performance radar capability.

Teledyne FLIR also ensures that the system can operate with maximum uptime, not considered a luxury for a critical infrastructure where 24/7 situational awareness is always needed.

Minimal maintenance

The system makes use of an uncooled thermal sensor, which requires minimal maintenance leading to practically zero downtime. On the other hand, a cooled camera would require periodic replacement of the cooling elements.

“This system is an ideal configuration for any critical infrastructure site that wants to keep its airspace free from threats and that needs 24/7 decision-making support,” says Eklund. “The system we installed in Sweden could also be used as a reliable, mid-range drone detection system for airports, refineries, nuclear plants, utilities, and more.”