Translated from Ukrainian to English - [Link].
com
UAV monitoring complex of the Russian
Federation Independent production and operation
DISTRIBUTION RESTRICTIONS: There are no
distribution restrictions.
Author Sergey Beskrestnov (Flash)
Kyiv, 2024
At present, the UAVs of the enemy are being controlled by the staff units of the
Russian Armed Forces and the Russian Armed Forces. Control is carried out by
pelenag systems, of which there are relatively few and which are installed as far
as possible from the front line in order to minimize the risks of their fire damage.
Also, in many areas of the front, information about enemy UAVs is transmitted
with a delay or is not accurate.
This complex will help you monitor the enemy's UAVs and, most importantly,
will form the basic knowledge for your future development in the direction of
REP with UAVs.
Purpose of the complex:
- control the flights of the main UAVs of the Russian Federation in order to minimize the
risks from their use by the enemy.
Frequency:
- this device (hereinafter referred to as the receiver, monitoring point, receiving
device, receiving point) is easy to manufacture and was personally tested by me
during the year at various areas of the fronts
Application:
- recording of UAV types, distances to them, movement. Fixation of departures and
movement of attack UAVs of the "Lancet" format. Monitoring of flights of
reconnaissance UAVs in the Ukrainian rear (such activity is almost always a
"harbinger" of an attack on rear objects). Analysis of UAV activity (which is always a
factor in the activity of the Russian military)
Realization:
- monitoring point on the local computer at the reception point
- remote monitoring point (receiver in one place, operator in another)
Optional application:
- control of the activity of EW devices, control of FPV drones
Implementation option
Before purchasing components and assembling, you need to choose the
execution option
Option 1(simple, I recommend beginners to start with it)
You buy an SDR receiver, connect it to your computer at the place of service. Install
the SDR# program on your computer. Connect the LNA signal amplifier to the
receiver. From the amplifier, "pull" the cable 5-15 meters to the roof, where you put
the antenna.
Option 2
You need to "see" the signals from the "receiver" while being in another place. To do
this, you do everything in the same way as in option 1, but install a remote control
program (for example, TimViewer) on your computer. You mount everything in a
remote location, and you will control the "receiver" from your computer.
Of course, to bring the receiver "to zero", you need a computer of the smallest
possible size, while it needs to have enough power for the SDR# program under
Windows. A stable communication channel (Stralink, LTE modem) is also required.
The computer should not "fall asleep", but should always be ready for connection.
Who is interested, I managed to successfully assemble a remote receiver based on a
mini computer of this type.
If you assemble a remote receiving point into a housing, remember the need
for ventilation in this housing. In the heat, the computer enclosed in the case
and the SDR receiver will heat up a lot.
Components and components
The main system is the SDR receiver.
We will use SDR HackRF, which can be bought in Ukraine (more expensive) or
on Ali (cheaper for $80)
[Link]
Software
The free SDR# program can be downloaded from the AirSpy website or found
elsewhere at [Link]
Low-noise amplifier
For better sensitivity of the receiver, I recommend using a low-noise
amplifier with a gain of 20dB ($12).
[Link] Do not buy 40-50dB,
excessive amplification will negatively affect the operation of the entire system.
Corps
Of course, it will be aesthetically pleasing to collect all the elements in the case (not on the table),
which can be bought on the Internet for 400-500 hryvnias. For example, on the Rosetta
Trivia
To connect the amplifier to the receiver, you need a cable (SMA male-SMA male),
not everyone knows how to solder it themselves. You can buy here for a couple of
dollars[Link]
A dollar adapter to go from SMA to "thick cable" with an N-type connectorhttps://
[Link]/item/[Link]
Remember that the amplifier must be connected to power via a TypeC-USB
cable
Cable
Frequencies above 800 MHz are greatly attenuated in the cable, so the cable from
the receiver to the antenna should be as short and as good as possible.
I recommend using RG8 or LMR 400 cable no longer than 10-20 meters. If you need a
longer cable, you will have to move the amplifier to the antenna and feed it through
the cable using BIAS TEE technology. You can buy the cable on OLX or, for example,
here [Link]
Selection of installation location
Since you will observe the UAV in the "sky", there is no need to raise the antenna very
high. On the contrary, if the antenna is placed high (for example, on an elevator), it
will only be worse. You will accept all obstacles from the district, and any EW for
dozens of kilometers will interfere with you.
When choosing an installation location, the main thing is:
1. Choose a place where the horizon is open towards the enemy. And not closed,
for example, by a concrete building.
2. If you want to see the UAV at a distance of 40-50 kilometers, you need to
choose the highest place on the height map (for example, in Kropiv)
When installing the antenna, remember that it is small and will not attract the
attention of the enemy from the air. This type of antenna is used everywhere for
"amplifiers" of mobile communication. The antenna can be painted with green or black
spray paint.
Remember that the antenna of the receiver and the receiver itself must be installed
as far as possible from mobile communication antennas (especially the 900 MHz
range). Also, the receiver cannot be brought close to electronic devices and antennas
of WIFI transmission systems. Do not place the receiver next to mobile phone
amplifiers.
During the operation of the receiver, for example, on the roof of a private house, a
fighter who is currently using the phone in the yard under the antenna will create
obstacles for you.
WARNING! The antenna of the SDR receiver does not emit anything and
cannot be directed.
Antenna
You can choose a directional or circular antenna for the reception point. I usually
choose the option with a directional antenna, which I point in the direction of the
enemy.
A cheap log-periodic antenna from Chinese mobile amplifiers is ideal for air
monitoring tasks.
You can buy such an antenna on "ali" or on olx. This antenna has less gain than the
"wave channel" antenna, but it works in a wide range of 700-3000 MHz and its
directional pattern is not so narrow. For UAV monitoring, the antenna should be
placed vertically.
13 dollars[Link]
It is also possible to use another type of directional sector type antenna with the
same wide band, more open pattern along the horizon, but with less gain.
9 dollars[Link]
In some situations (for example, if you are right on the front line) it makes no sense to
use a directional antenna. You may need a circular pattern antenna. This antenna
receives the signal from all directions, but has low gain. A circular antenna with high
gain also exists, but will cost much more.
[Link] 10 dollars
If you are going to not only receive UAV signals, but also try to determine the
direction of flight by rotating the antenna along the horizon, then you need a wave
channel antenna. For example, here's one for $15. [Link]
[Link]
Program SDR#
The program has many possibilities, and more than a dozen pages can be devoted to
it. I will write literally the most important things for you.
1. Select the HackRF device on the left in the Source field
2. Click the gear icon at the top left. There will be settings for the gain of the
SDR receiver.
- if you use an external amplifier, uncheck the Amp box
- Select Sample rate 20 MSPS so that the bandwidth is a maximum of 20 MHz.
- It is better to set the VGA gain slightly higher than the minimum
- LNA gain can be set from average to maximum. This is the amplification of
the signal in the input stage of the receiver.
3. On the top right, the Zoom control adjusts the reception band. First, keep it in the
down position to watch the maximum 20MHz band.
4. Use the Range slider to adjust the visibility of the noise level at the bottom of the
screen
5. Use the Contrast control to adjust the visibility of signals on a contrasting background
As a result, you should observe clear signals on the lower background.
6. You can adjust the speed of the blue screen here: the left part of the screen, FFT
display item, Speed adjustment. To begin with, put it as far to the right as possible
so that the blue screen moves quickly.
Signals and types of UAVs
Any UAV can emit telemetry (control) signals and video transmission signals. The
video signal is always wide and has a width of 4-10 MHz.
All Russian reconnaissance and attack UAVs transmit telemetry in the following
ranges.
860-870 MHz
902-928 MHz
960-1020 MHz
Video signals from the UAV are transmitted in the following areas
2.2-2.6 GHz
1.3 GHz
90% of UAVs of the Russian Federation in all directions are Orlan, Superkam, Zala,
Lancet
The first thing you need to know is that base stations of mobile communication work in
Ukraine on the frequencies 930-960 MHz. Their signals are powerful and can be seen
everywhere. And of course, all beginners confuse them with UAVs. By the way, the same
range is used for mobile communication in the Russian Federation, so neither ours nor
Russian UAVs (including FPV) "fly" at frequencies of 928-960 MHz.
This is what mobile signals look like. Broad signal is LTE.
Zala, Lancet
Both UAVs are produced at the same factory and have the same radio
modules, so it is impossible to distinguish them by signal.
The signal from Zala, Lancet is unique and easy to recognize. Two vertical stripes of
dots on a blue spectrum background (waterfall). The dots are very close,
150-200kHz between them. In the spectrogram at the top of the screen, it looks like
two bursts side by side.
The signal is observed at frequencies of 868 MHz, 870 MHz, 915 MHz. Very rarely in
my practice there were cases of observing the signal of other frequencies in the area
of 902-920 MHz.
My observations:
Lancet is more often at 868 MHz
Lancet does not fly for more than 40 minutes (if more, then it is definitely Zala)
If you see a stable signal level, it means Zala is "circling" at one position. The
lancet flies in a straight line towards you or to the side, and the signal from it
usually rises or falls linearly.
Super cam
The signal looks like 10 vertical bars of dashes with a total width of 5 MHz. Each
bar is 150 kHz wide. The signal can be observed in the range of 856-1020 MHz.
Sea eagle
Old versions "fly" in the range of 902-928 MHz, new ones can be found in the range of
960-1020 MHz. Orlan transmits a PPRF signal with a width of 2 or 4 MHz. The signal of
PPRC ORLAN looks like a chaotic set of horizontal lines.
If the EW works on the frequencies of the UAV, it will look like this on the spectrogram
Video signals
Any reconnaissance UAV can broadcast a picture in real time for
reconnaissance or to adjust fire.
Any video signal has a characteristic appearance. This is a wide shelf on the
spectrogram and a white band on the waterfall. The line width can be from 3 to 10
MHz.
If the video signal from FPV is analog and open, then winged UAVs encrypt the
video transmission channel.
UAV designers can change video transmission modules and frequencies will also
change, but for the "base" I will give information on video channels
Zala 2.2-2.6 GHz
Supercam 1.3GHz
Aileron 1.2GHz
Orlan 2.2-2.5GHz
FPV
Almost all FPV drone pilots turn off the telemetry, so the drone flies without emitting
anything but video. But for general understanding, the signal looks like this. PPRF
which is stretched much wider than winged UAVs in the 30-40 MHz band and can be
found in the 700-1020 MHz area
This is what the FPV signal looks like at 720-760 MHz (probably the Hermes module)
4. Direction finding of signal sources
Direction finding of a source of interference or a signal can be carried out by the
classical method of triangulation. To do this, you need to adjust the SDR to the desired
range and, rotating the directional antenna in a circle, choose the direction with the
strongest signal. Mark the bearing (azimuth) on the map or in Kropiv.
Repeat the same process at another point, driving a few kilometers away. The
intersection of two bearings will give you the location of the object. It is also better to
take not two, but three bearings to increase accuracy.
For accurate bearing, you need an antenna with a narrow directional pattern. A
wave channel (Yagi) antenna is well suited for this. Of course, the direction
finding accuracy will be low (compared to Plastun or TCI direction finders), but it
is quite sufficient to determine the approximate area of the signal source.
Direction finding should be carried out at a distance of several meters from large
metal or reinforced concrete objects.
5. Determining the distance to the target
You can determine the distance to the signal source by the signal level. This will only be an
approximate understanding of the distance.
The signal level will be affected by the type of antenna, the presence of a cable between the
antenna and the device, the gain of the low-noise amplifier, the reception location and the
power of the transmitter. Therefore, in fact, you will be able to understand the distance after
some time based on your experience, but only approximately.
- When the signal is barely visible at the waterfall, the level is very weak and the source is far
away.
- When the signal became clear, the distance to the object decreased.
- When the signal on the waterfall is yellow or red, the level is very strong. At the same
time, the peaks of the bursts scale to the entire screen. This means that the source is
literally within a kilometer from you.
These ratios of signal levels and distances are different for different purposes. One thing
for the Maviks, another for the Orlans. Therefore, only personal experience will help you
here.
