In Ukraine, they are working on equipping interceptor drones with infrared homing heads, which will allow the drones to independently find, track, and hit targets without constant manual guidance from the operator.
In Ukraine, they are working on equipping interceptor drones with infrared homing heads, which will allow the drones to independently find, track, and hit targets without constant manual guidance from the operator.
As reported by «Military», work is underway in Ukraine to integrate infrared homing heads into interceptor drones. This was stated by the head of the UAV department at Brave1, Denys Logvinenko. According to him, the goal of these solutions is not just to improve a separate node, but to simplify the entire interception process as much as possible so that the drone can operate more autonomously and efficiently.
This is a technology that has long been used in missile weapons. An infrared homing head allows you to capture the thermal signature of an object and track it without constant human intervention. In the case of interceptor drones, this could mean a transition to a new model of operation, where the operator does not have to manually hold the target until the moment of destruction.
The key advantage of this approach is the ability to work more precisely on enemy UAVs, in particular on small and difficult-to-intercept targets. At the same time, the main challenge remains the reliability of the entire system. It is necessary not only to install the sensor, but also to ensure stable operation of the complex in real combat, when the result is affected by speed, maneuvers, weather conditions and obstacles.
Such heads are considered more compact and cheaper than active guidance systems used in expensive medium-range missiles. Modern IR solutions are already capable of working not only on a «hot spot» like an engine, but also to form a thermal image of the entire object. This increases the chances of intercepting drones with low thermal visibility.
Infrared homing heads are widely used in the world on various types of missiles. Modern matrix systems of the IIR type are much better at recognizing the target and are less susceptible to deception by thermal traps than older solutions. In addition, some weapons already use combined guidance, where the infrared channel is supplemented by a visible spectrum camera. It is these principles, adapted for drones, that can give Ukraine a new tool for automated interception of air threats.
Previously, dev.ua wrote about how the defense forces adopted the Ukrainian-made Shvidun unmanned aerial vehicle complex. It has a flight range of over 70 km, which allows it to protect any Ukrainian city from Russian drones.
