Although drone flying has largely been considered a modern recreational hobby, drone technology has proven to be highly advantageous for solving important societal challenges and tasks. Transporting medical equipment, environmental monitoring and rescue operations are just a few examples of meaningful uses that can bring immense value to society. As an example, within environmental monitoring, drone technology can be used for counting birds or monitoring eelgrass, providing us with the opportunity to gather significantly more knowledge.
However, it’s not as simple as just deploying drones for critical functions tomorrow. It requires that drones are both able and allowed to fly in the same airspace as regular, human-controlled air traffic without risking collisions with, for instance, a passenger plane or a helicopter. Until now, this hasn’t been possible, as it requires parts of the airspace to be configured in a way that allows drones and manned aviation to fly safely side by side in a so-called “U-space.” The use of U-space requires a new type of drone traffic management system, for which secure and reliable 5G communication is essential – and this has been a focus of the GENIUS project.
The GENIUS project is a collaboration between universities, private players and, notably, authorities, which until spring 2024 has been experimenting with establishing a U-space and attempting to realize the dream of using drones for critical societal purposes. U-space relies on a secure and nationwide 5G network to ensure that drones stay on the right course. This is where TDC NET, in collaboration with Ericsson, has contributed to the project by providing our reliable 5G network.
The project is led by drone professor Ulrik Lundquist at SDU and, in collaboration with DTU, Meck Consult, HHLA Sky, Science Ventures, Naviair, AirPlate, the Danish Climate Data Agency, Innovation Fund Denmark, Ericsson, the Environmental Protection Agency and TDC NET, they have successfully demonstrated a simulated U-space using 5G communication.
Innovative results within 5G
During the project, which began in 2021, technologies and concepts were developed which enabled drone flights in a functioning U-space on multiple occasions! The project has thus tested that the current 5G capacity in TDC NET’s network, powered by Ericsson’s technologies, is sufficient to support drone flights.
The research project has achieved many ambitious and fundamental goals within drone technology and has brought Denmark a step closer to realizing the dream of using drones for, for example, infrastructure monitoring and the transport of spare parts to wind farms. Especially 5G technology has opened entirely new possibilities: besides the establishment of a U-space, 5G also makes it easier to precisely locate drones and create an overview of human gatherings via mobile phones, making it possible to steer drones away from densely populated areas, thereby reducing the risk of accidents. At TDC NET, we are pleased that our 5G network can be used for various essential benefits for Denmark, in addition to keeping Danes connected!
But why not just start tomorrow? Through the project, it was shown that drones can fly in a U-space using the 5G network! However, just because they are able to, it doesn’t mean they are permitted to do so. There is still work ahead to establish the necessary safety when drones, planes and helicopters share the same airspace. Currently, we are awaiting the new Danish drone strategy, expected to be published in the fall, which will set the direction for further work. In any case, the GENIUS project has demonstrated that 5G is part of the solution.