We may never know whether the chicken or the egg came first, but we do know that the rise of small drones came long before radar systems capable of detecting them. And creating such radars is far more complex than it seems.
Pro Patria Electronics Ltd. and its consortium partner, Dat-Golf Ltd., took on this challenge in an EU-funded R&D project aimed at developing reliable detection for small drones—one of today’s pressing security needs. The project required genuinely innovative, high value-added solutions, new technical results, and working prototypes. It delivered all of these, offering progress for aviation safety, national security, and even commercial sectors.
Small drones have become a growing threat in recent years. They can be used to transport weapons, damage critical infrastructure, cause contamination, or collect data illegally. Detecting them is therefore essential, and requires purpose-built technology.
The Hungarian team approached the problem differently from many existing radar projects. Current drone-detection systems on the market are typically large, costly, military-grade devices that often struggle with very small drones with low radar cross-sections. Here, the goal was to develop a portable, affordable, 3D multi-beam FMCW radar that measures distance and speed, and can compete with major Western products. Its standout features include compact design, excellent detection performance under low signal-to-noise conditions, partially digital beamforming, and advanced algorithms that distinguish between drones, birds, helicopters, and ground objects automatically.
Several challenges made the development difficult. Small drones reflect very little radar energy, multi-beam technology had to be expanded into 3D with new antenna and signal-processing models, and the system needed to filter out ground reflections and false targets such as trees or bushes. Designing a stable, energy-efficient platform suitable for mounting on a vehicle added further complexity. Reducing the number of channels helped build the prototype but required sophisticated algorithmic corrections.
Despite these hurdles, the project met all expectations. It produced a functioning radar prototype that reliably detects and identifies drones and other aerial or ground targets. The algorithms work consistently, effectively filtering ground interference and enabling more accurate altitude-angle estimation.
By delivering a market-ready, truly innovative technology, Pro Patria’s project offers a credible new option in a rapidly changing security environment—one that could help protect critical infrastructure, communities, and lives.
The development was implemented from EU funding in the project VEKOP-2.1.1-15-2016-00014 under the Competitive Central Hungary Operational Programme.
Find out more about the project in the Project Finder:Details
