Spectrum Monitoring

The use of spectrum monitoring is rapidly becoming a key enabler for military success. The ability to detect and identify adversary transmissions provides commanders with a better understanding of the situation they face – helping them to make more informed decisions.

Being able to locate the source of emissions provides even more advantage as the information can be used to target effects more precisely – so the Plextek team developed a prototype system capable of autonomously detecting, identifying and geolocating a range of emission types using miniature software defined radio hardware.

The technology has been integrated into autonomous systems and demonstrated to function successfully in real time.

Changes to the RF pattern of life in an environment can be indicative of a threat emerging – especially when new transmission types appear. However, monitoring the spectrum in a highly cluttered environment, such as a city, is challenging due to the vast array of signals that exist and the wide range of frequencies that need to be covered.

In response, the Plextek team developed an advanced machine learning algorithm that could rapidly detect and parameterise signals in highly cluttered environments – even detecting and identifying signals which overlap in time and frequency. This provides the ability to accurately monitor emissions and identify anomalies which merit further investigation.

From smuggling contraband into prisons to causing a danger at airports, unauthorised drones are a growing problem – but detecting them can be a challenge. One way of detecting them is via their control signals – and knowledge of these signals can then be used to direct an appropriate jamming response.

The Plextek team developed of proof-of-concept device that could detect drone control transmissions and then target jamming effects against those specific transmissions. The benefit of such targeted jamming is that it reduces unintended interference to other radio systems in the area.