SBIR/STTR
Opportunity
Homeland Convoy Counter Drone Operations
Department:
U.S. Air Force
Open Date:
2025-05-28
Close Date:
2025-06-18
Technology Area:
Sensors Imagers and Sounders
Summary
OBJECTIVE: Develop a system that minimizes the threat a UAS poses to military convoys in non- permissive environments that have the most restrictive rules of engagement.
DESCRIPTION: The United States Military and its US government interagency partners have requirements to move personnel and equipment on public roads that are at risk of surveillance and improvised attacks by drones. The open nature of our free society provides anonymity to our fellow citizens and potential bad actors that makes UAS defense along public roads very challenging. The legal and beneficial use of UAS complicates the problem that all UAS in vicinity of US military operations in the homeland cannot be determined to be a threat by their presence alone.
Convoys require a system that can identify UAS operations that either follow or are on a course for physical intercept of the vehicles in the convoy and have the ability to disrupt the flight of that UAS to ensure safe passage. While kinetic (Mass striking Mass) solutions are legal they must be a final measure and must be employed in a way that minimizes risk to US citizens in vicinity of the convoy. This is especially difficult when a bad actor uses the cover of an urban or suburban area to employ their system to maximize clutter to sensors and complicate the engagement process (Rules of engagement and establishment of intent) of kinetic solutions.
The system is expected to detect UAS around the convoy and establish their trajectories with respect to the convoy. Human teaming with the detection system should be intuitive and cognitively low effort, similar to an alarm system in a security operations center. This system should have the ability to interfere with the UAS operations using Electronic Warfare or other non-kinetic means and have the ability to employ kinetic effectors that are produce effects that have a low probability of collateral damage.
The system can require its own vehicle for proof of concept but must have accommodations to be an add on to an existing vehicle in the convoy. Proposals can be partial solutions to this problem but must have detailed and reasonable explanations on what would expected of the portions of the systems that are not within the scope of their proposal. The system must be Software Open Systems Architecture (SOSA) compliant so the requirement owners can add or complement successful offerors solutions with GOTS software and hardware. Proposals will not be selected if they are closed and fully proprietary architectures that do not allow other technologies development by the US government and their contractors to be added to the system.
DESCRIPTION: The United States Military and its US government interagency partners have requirements to move personnel and equipment on public roads that are at risk of surveillance and improvised attacks by drones. The open nature of our free society provides anonymity to our fellow citizens and potential bad actors that makes UAS defense along public roads very challenging. The legal and beneficial use of UAS complicates the problem that all UAS in vicinity of US military operations in the homeland cannot be determined to be a threat by their presence alone.
Convoys require a system that can identify UAS operations that either follow or are on a course for physical intercept of the vehicles in the convoy and have the ability to disrupt the flight of that UAS to ensure safe passage. While kinetic (Mass striking Mass) solutions are legal they must be a final measure and must be employed in a way that minimizes risk to US citizens in vicinity of the convoy. This is especially difficult when a bad actor uses the cover of an urban or suburban area to employ their system to maximize clutter to sensors and complicate the engagement process (Rules of engagement and establishment of intent) of kinetic solutions.
The system is expected to detect UAS around the convoy and establish their trajectories with respect to the convoy. Human teaming with the detection system should be intuitive and cognitively low effort, similar to an alarm system in a security operations center. This system should have the ability to interfere with the UAS operations using Electronic Warfare or other non-kinetic means and have the ability to employ kinetic effectors that are produce effects that have a low probability of collateral damage.
The system can require its own vehicle for proof of concept but must have accommodations to be an add on to an existing vehicle in the convoy. Proposals can be partial solutions to this problem but must have detailed and reasonable explanations on what would expected of the portions of the systems that are not within the scope of their proposal. The system must be Software Open Systems Architecture (SOSA) compliant so the requirement owners can add or complement successful offerors solutions with GOTS software and hardware. Proposals will not be selected if they are closed and fully proprietary architectures that do not allow other technologies development by the US government and their contractors to be added to the system.