The Role and Limitations of Counter-Drone Systems in Smart Cities

Abstract

In recent years, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have experienced significant growth in use across both military and civilian sectors due to their low production costs and wide range of applications. With the increase in UAV usage in the civilian sector, concerns arise regarding the safety of citizens in urban environments, where malicious use or unintentional handling errors of UAVs can lead to serious incidents. In response to this threat, counter-drone systems are being developed to protect against potentially dangerous UAVs. Like UAVs themselves, counter-drone systems were primarily developed for military operations, but recently there has been a need for their deployment in the civilian sector, particularly in urban areas. This paper provides a review of the literature, technologies and legal frameworks related to counter-drone systems, analyzes the specificities of their use in smart cities, identifies potential challenges in their implementation in urban environments, and proposes solutions to address these challenges.