In 2024, drones have become an integral part of the military. Whether it is frontal combat, assassination, sabotage, reconnaissance, or surveillance, drones are playing an important role.
Because military drones serve different purposes than civilian and commercial drones, they require very different features and manufacturing processes. We have outlined some of the important considerations and factors for drone manufacturing in this article for our valued readers:
Drone Safety
Some of the characteristics of military drones dictate their importance in terms of safety.
Environmental Adaptability
While a drone is an airframe that performs missions outdoors for long periods, military drones have even more stringent requirements and must be able to operate in harsh weather conditions. Designing weather-resistant components and enclosures is essential to protect sensitive electronic components from the elements and other environmental hazards.
In addition, drone designs must ensure that the airframe can withstand prolonged flight, repetitive use, and the rigors of military operations (including potential crashes and rough handling).
Communication and data security
Unlike civilian applications, communications security and data link protection are critical for military drones.
In this regard, military drones may encounter various risks:
- Information theft due to hacking
- Malicious tampering with acquired information
- False commands due to false requests
- GPS position spoofing leads to course deviation
Examples of common protective measures include, but are not limited to:
- Encrypt the drone’s command, control, and data links
- Deployment of Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS)
- Implementing strict authentication systems
- Enhancing data integrity and traceability through quantum cryptography and blockchain technology
Self-Defense Capability
Other nations and organizations are likely to attack military drones, so having a strong self-defense capability is crucial.
For instance, in the Black Sea drone incident of 14 March 2023, despite the US MQ-9 Reaper reconnaissance aircraft’s crash due to two Su-27, several self-defense measures taken by the drone and its operator in the event of an attack proved highly effective:
- Correctly repelled and avoided multiple attacks from the fighter aircraft
- Immediately shut down the system to safeguard the software and information from any potential compromise
- Ensured that the drone’s electronic systems were not interfered with by other electronic devices
- Plummeted into the profound depths of the Black Sea, rendering it impervious to recovery from adversarial forces
Parts for Drones
Drones are complex devices with numerous parts and systems, so it’s important to value each component.
Weights and materials
Material selection for military drone parts is essentially a ‘dance of two eggs’—finding a balance between strength (structural integrity and overall performance) and weight (payload capacity and speed) to ensure that the drone can carry the necessary equipment without compromising performance.
Manufacturers often prefer lightweight materials like carbon fiber composites and aircraft-grade aluminum to maximize flight efficiency and range.
Compliance
It’s also a sword of Damocles hanging over military drone manufacturers. Manufacturers need to comply with national and international laws and regulations, including export controls, airspace management, regulations on the use of weapons systems, and environmental regulations.
The regulations primarily impact two groups: Firstly, exporters of drone parts and components (e.g., China), whose exports will be affected, and secondly, middlemen (drone-related trade often involves controlled exporters selling parts and components to a third country, which then sells them on to an importing country).
Ease of operation
The operator interface design for military drones is also extremely critical.
- If the interface layout is not reasonable (scattered functions, complex terminology, not simple to operate), it will increase the pilot’s workload and lead to errors.
- At present, there is no uniform standard for the operation interface of different types of drones, and it varies greatly. It is also simple to make mistakes if the operator needs to switch interfaces and systems frequently or learn many different operating interfaces.
- Despite having a wealth of features, some drones need an intuitive operating interface, which can cause operators to overlook certain functions and make incorrect decisions.
Therefore, military drone manufacturers should provide intuitive and easy-to-use operator interfaces so that operators can effectively control their drones.
Payload Capacity
Military drone designers and practitioners must be clear on several issues:
- What is the maximum and safe payload for each military drone model?
- What does the droneneed to carry(such as sensors, cameras, and weapons systems)?
- What military missions, such as reconnaissance, surveillance, and strike missions, require a specific type of drone to perform? Is therefore a certain portion of the payload necessary?
Supply Chain Management
Manufacturers want to ensure the stability and safety of the drone supply chain (especially for critical components and materials).
Nowadays, the biggest problem for many military drone manufacturers is the mismatch between the policies set by their governments and the integrity of their supply chains.
For example, the Indian government issued an executive order in August 2023 banning the import of drone parts with India from countries with territorial borders (more specifically, China).
However, it is difficult for local Indian manufacturers to produce these parts and find suppliers from other countries within a short period, resulting in a significant increase in short-term production costs.
In-Person Drone Training
Military drones, in contrast to commercial and civilian drones, function and control in a distinct manner, providing a thorough training and simulation system to enhance operator proficiency and capacity to handle intricate scenarios.
Hence, it is imperative to offer extensive training and simulation systems to enhance operators’ proficiency and capacity to handle intricate scenarios successfully.
How does our Co-operative Do the Training?
According to feedback from XMAKE’s partner, Performance Drone Works(PDW), one of America’s finest military drone manufacturers, their approach to drone training and simulation is something like this:
- Make sure the trainers are professional. Their trainers are experienced operators, former military special forces, or UAS pilots (with practical deployment experience).
- Control the course’s size.PDW uses a trainer-to-college no more than 1:6 approach, and they believe that too large a course size will result in trainers losing sight of what is important to them and will not ensure that each student receives personalized attention.
- Familiarize trainees with real scenarios. They maintain that conducting live training and live flights both during the day and at night is crucial to equip trainees with a comprehensive understanding of the operation and its environment.
- Designing systematic training programs. Their courses include pre and post-flight procedures for drones, standard operating procedures for practical habit formation, troubleshooting, maintenance, and how to communicate with relevant practitioners.
- Set up a rigorous assessment mechanism for trainees. They arrange for a flight check at the end of the training cycle, a written final examination, and a certificate award.
Consider Partnering with XMAKE
XMAKE is the world’s leading digital manufacturing platform, capable of producing and machining several drone key components. PDW, one of the best military drone manufacturers in the US, and EHang, a leader in unmanned intelligent transport research and development in China, are our long-term partners.
If you are concerned about the durability, tight tolerances, machining technology requirements, and other aspects of drone parts, you should contact XMAKE. We can help you solve these problems.
