A new type of net defense
Nets have a place in anti-drone and CUAS systems today, despite the focus on directed-energy (laser/microwave), hard-kill (guns), and RF jammer systems.
Effective autonomous drones are a near certainty given the power of current embedded systems combined with lightweight AI image classification tools. The challenge of full-mission-autonomy doesn’t need to be solved to make autonomous technology viable on the battlefield (though it is likely to be solved). The restricted case of autonomy in the realm of target lock and final-phase piloting are all that is needed, and that is just around the corner. Fiberoptic-controlled drones are another evolving practice with considerable development headroom that has yet to be exploited. Together these two emerging modes of drone control threaten to render RF jamming anti-drone systems ineffective. That is bad news for the people who have built their counter-drone strategies around jamming, and not just in the military. Effective CUAS is an urgent priority driving public safety planning and infrastructure defense.
Many recent CUAS proposals involve the use of rapid-fire guns on robotic turrets to shoot down hostile drones. This approach has significant drawbacks. The danger of an automated system that sends heavy-caliber projectiles into the sky in random directions is self-evident, even on the battlefield. In civilian CUAS operations, that danger becomes untenable. Only a small number of bullets are likely to hit a drone. Where (or on whom) will the other bullets fall? Even advanced air-burst munitions are still deadly high-speed projectiles, very likely to result in downrange lethality. These problems increase exponentially in the case of a CUAS gun attempting to take out multiple drones. In drone defense, collateral damage is an issue that cannot be ignored.
Some have said that simply dazzling the drone’s camera with a laser will be an effective CUAS tactic, but there are probably easy methods for overcoming this approach. And that is assuming that a tiny coherent laser spot could be effectively targeted and held on an equally tiny camera aperture that is affixed to a moving drone that is tens of meters distant.
Given these concerns, nets deserve a closer look as a frontline defense against hostile drones. Over the years, many net-based CUAS solutions have been proposed, including drone-deployed nets, shoulder-fired netguns, and stationary net cannons. However, most existing net systems lack the speed and range necessary to be effective. Ballistic nets lose momentum too quickly to reliably capture fast-moving drones.
Yet nets offer several key advantages. Unlike bullets, or lasers, a net does not require as precise aiming to be effective, making it ideal for chaotic real-world operational environments. Multirotor drones, with their exposed propellers and appendages, are especially vulnerable to entanglement. Additionally, nets are inherently safer than traditional hard-kill methods. They do not explode, they are made of pliable material, and when they lose speed, they fall to the ground relatively slowly. They are benign in comparison to the available alternatives.
In summary, nets are an ideal non-hard-kill countermeasure for drones, a crucial consideration for CUAS systems seeking widespread deployment. However, for nets to be truly effective, they must travel farther and faster than current ballistic net systems allow.
The Rocket-Towed Barrier is a simple, yet revolutionary net-based CUAS technology that overcomes the limitations of conventional net systems. Unlike ballistic nets, the RTB uses a rocket to tow a high-speed airborne net, capturing or entangling hostile drones with unprecedented speed and range. The RTB is conceptually similar to the ballistic parachute system that is in widespread use in general aviation.
In considering the RTB it is necessary to discard the traditional concept and design requirements normally associated with a rocket. The RTB tow rocket is a short-range, short-duration, relatively slow-flying thrust-powered tow vehicle. As such, the design, cost, and flight requirements of a tow rocket become greatly simplified and reduced. This is a low-subsonic system which is designed to stay aloft for only a few seconds, so the same methods and materials that made drones cheap and plentiful can be applied to tow rockets.
The same control elements that made drones so agile can be leveraged to add maneuvering capability to tow rockets such that the RTB could bend the arc of its trajectory toward the target drone(s). This, combined with speed, sustained flight time, and the reduced need for precise targeting would make the RTB a potent adversary to weaponized drones.
Contact Morris IP to learn more about the RTB. All inquiries are strictly confidential.
RTB technology is protected by multiple US patents, providing an exclusive, scalable solution to modern CUAS challenges. These patents offer a strong foundation for market exclusivity and licensing opportunities. With drone threats escalating the RTB positions itself as the practical next-generation CUAS solution.
For defense agencies, security professionals, and investors, RTB represents a timely opportunity to lead the next era of drone defense. This urn-key intellectual property is now available for sale.
