Ericsson Launches System to Detect Drones Using Mobile Networks, With Pilots Due in 2027

The product, called the Ericsson ISAC System (short for Integrated Sensing and Communication), was announced in a company press release on November 2. Regional outlets including ITP.net and Zawya reported on it this week. Ericsson said it is aimed at defence agencies, public safety authorities and operators of critical infrastructure such as ports and power plants.

How It Works

The system picks up radio signals from cell sites that bounce off objects in the air. Ericsson describes the design as multi-static: transmission and reception are spread across several mobile sites in different locations, so the same object is observed from more than one angle at once. The company says this improves detection confidence, positioning and the continuity of tracks.

The system runs on 5G infrastructure that is already in place, including towers, backhaul and spectrum. It also needs sensing-capable 5G radios, edge computing, AI and signal processing. According to The Register, the radios must meet specific massive MIMO antenna and spectrum requirements, so operators cannot simply switch the capability on across their existing networks.

Ericsson said tracking data and AI-based classification can be passed through standardised interfaces to authorised outside systems, such as security and command-and-control platforms, and combined with data from other sensors and drone countermeasure systems. In tests, the company said, the system detected and tracked micro drones at kilometre-scale distances and gave precise 3D positions.

Trials So Far

Ericsson has tested the technology with three operators. AT&T ran a trial in Arlington, Texas, focused on protecting large venues and critical infrastructure. Finland's state-owned critical communications company Erillisverkot ran a demonstration in Helsinki in which several 5G sites detected and tracked drones. In Poland, Ericsson worked with the operator Play and the software company Asseco, pairing network sensing with Asseco's acoustic detection system to locate low-flying drones.

All three were trials or demonstrations, not commercial deployments. The launch product handles sensing only. Ericsson said the communications side of the integrated system will be added as the technology develops towards 6G.

Limits and Caveats

Ericsson presents the system as a complement to radar and dedicated counter-drone sensors, not a replacement. Its press release says performance depends on the drone's characteristics and flight profile, the geometry of the sensing sites, terrain, surroundings and system configuration. The company also said that scaling detection across larger areas is harder. The announcement does not give detection rates, false-alarm figures or detailed test conditions.

Analyst Ian Fogg told The Register that mobile networks are well placed for this work because their antennas already cover the low altitudes where drones often fly, which traditional radar can miss. He said a standards-based 6G approach and new spectrum with wider channels could improve accuracy.

Why It Matters

Cheap drones have become a growing security problem for airports, military bases and energy facilities. In the Gulf, the Iran conflict has put air defence and the protection of energy and transport infrastructure at the top of government agendas. If telecom operators can sell sensing as a service on networks they have already built, it would give them a new source of revenue from defence and public safety customers. It would also give authorities wider low-altitude coverage than dedicated sensors alone can provide at a reasonable cost.

Ericsson has not named any customers for the 2027 pilots.