DroneGun jams robotic fliers from 2km distance
Drones are the latest in-thing or fashion and are in the news almost every other day. We already know that military uses drones to bomb terrorist hideouts while companies like Amazon and Dominos are already testing drone delivery services somewhere in the U.S. From being used to play Pokeman, to snoop on cheating spouse, to hijack internet-connected devices, drones have seen an increase in demand. As a result, the sale of drones is up and the chance of them being used as a part of criminal act is higher.
To stop such activities, DroneShield, an Australian and U.S. firm is introducing DroneGun, which is the firm’s six-kilogram gun that can apparently disable drone signals (including GPS and GLONASS positioning) at a range of 2km (1.2 miles). It forces the vehicle to land or return to its starting point. Besides disabling threats from a safe distance, anti-drone teams can also possibly locate their pilots.
The highly-dramatic video (see below) from the firm shows a man armed with the gun and its accompanying backpack shooting down a drone that’s flying a short distance away.
The gun weighs around 13 pounds and is portable enough to be carried by one person. It is also easy for security staff to use, as it does not require any technical training.
The concept behind making the gun is to help protect people from drones carrying explosives or weapons, and land them safely instead of allowing them to be flown into targets. “It allows for a controlled management of drone payload, such as explosives, with no damage to common drone models or the surrounding environment,” the maker says on its website, “due to the drones generally responding via a vertical controlled landing on the spot, or returning back to the starting point (assisting to track the operator).”
According to its product brochure, DroneShield’s gun is said to use signal jamming across the 2.4 and 5.8 GHz frequencies. It also has technology capable of blocking GPS and the Russian equivalent, GLONASS.
However, the DroneGun is not legal to use in the U.S., as it has yet to be authorized by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and cannot be sold in the country until this is approved.
Source: Engadget
