Various rules and regulations mean that interfering with a drone could be a legal nightmare. For example, detecting a small hovering quadcopter drone at any reasonable distance requires a relatively powerful radar. Yet such transmitters are strictly controlled in America under Federal Communication Commission (FCC) regulations, making such equipment difficult and expensive to acquire.
The contenders think they can get around that by detecting the radio communications between a drone and its operator. Although drones can fly independently, some form of radio is used by an operator to relay commands, such as to go up or down, left or right, and to provide a video link from the drone’s camera.
Mesmer, a system developed by Department 13, a technology company based near Baltimore, can detect these signals and even use them to identify the type of drone. Mesmer then employs its own signals to take command of the drone itself, ordering it to divert, land or return to base.
D13 Price at posting:
14.0¢ Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Held
