Mine hunting drones can now detect mines from the air
Being able to detect explosives and mines from the air is a game changer that will help save lives and this is just the first in a long line of new developments.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2017) 'Mine hunting drones can now detect mines from the air', 311 Institute, 6 July. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/mine-hunting-drones-can-now-detect-mines-from-the-air/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
A little while ago I wrote an article about an MQ-9 Reaper drone that used a neutrino based "bomb sniffer" explosives that were miles away from it, and now, a scant half a year later here I am writing about a smaller drone that’s managed to pick up the same skills, but with a twist, it hunts mines from the air.
This week researchers at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) announced that they are using drones to detect buried and submerged mines.
The Mine Warfare Rapid Assessment Capability (MIW RAC) system consists of a one pound quadcopter that in its case carries an ultra-sensitive magnetometer that detects mines and provides real-time search data to a handheld Android tablet.
MIW RAC is designed to help explosive ordnance disposal teams quickly find mines and metal obstacles in coastal surf zones and shallow water zones while at the same time providing sea borne units with an aerial capability that helps them find underwater mines.
While the quadcopter and tablet are available commercially, the heart of the new system is its proprietary magnetometer sensor suite, which uses complex Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms to differentiate between various types of objects.
MIW RAC came out of ONR’s “TechSolutions program” that rapidly develops prototype technologies to address problems voiced by sailors and marines, and back in 2015 the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) asked for a portable system that could “detect hazards in surf zones that was easy for war fighters to use and fit diverse platforms.”
With TechSolutions guidance, the NECC partnered with NSWC and two commercial companies, BDS and Physical Sciences, to develop MIW RAC.
“We took our inspiration from a stationary scanning system developed by BDS,” said NSWC scientist Rosemarie Oelrich, “it was sensitive enough to not only detect weapons, but identify the hidden location of the object on a person and the angle in which it was oriented, a knife in a front pocket or gun turned sideways, for example. And we flipped that concept on its head. Instead of a stationary system detecting moving objects, we created a moving system to detect relatively stationary objects.”
“This technology will help sailors and marines who are approaching a beachfront to rapidly clear, or at least determine the location of, mines or other hazards that are in their way,” said Office of Naval Research Command Master Chief Matt Matteson, “it could potentially save a lot of lives.”
TechSolutions will deliver prototype MIW RACs to NECC’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group later this year for further testing and evaluation but it’s also not too hard a leap to see how this technology could one day soon find its way into airport scanners, or urban security and surveillance drones like some of the new persistent surveillance drones that can watch an entire city in real time, such as WAMI or the Elbit Hermes 900, that are coming onto the market.
What this means for your organisation
Cheap hardware, valuable sensor.
The quadcopter and tablet in this system are available commercially. The value sits in the proprietary magnetometer sensor suite and the software that tells objects apart. Organisations should look at where their own advantage lies in a drone project: the airframe or the sensing.
Dangerous work moves off people.
The system helps explosive ordnance disposal teams find mines and metal obstacles in surf zones and shallow water. It gives sea borne units an aerial view of underwater threats. Any team that sends people into hazardous ground should ask which of those tasks a small drone could do first.
The same sensing will spread.
The source points to airport scanners and urban security and surveillance drones as likely next homes. Drones are at technology readiness level 9 and sit in the Prepare group, with wide use expected by 2028. Sensors that react on their own are at the same readiness level, with wide use expected by 2029.
Three questions for your next leadership meeting
- Which of our hazardous inspection tasks could a small drone with a sensor do instead?
- Do we own the sensor and software, or only rent the airframe?
- How would we test a prototype like this before we rely on it?
The trends and technologies behind this story
From the 311 Starburst, the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit’s map of the technologies and trends shaping the next 50 years.
Analysis by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit, from Matthew Griffin’s article and 311 data. First published on Fanatical Futurist.
FAQ
Why does this matter?
Being able to detect explosives and mines from the air is a game changer that will help save lives and this is just the first in a long line of new developments.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, President and Futurist, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
Read full bio
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 17-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder, President and Futurist of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
What future do you need to see?
Choose one to get started on robotics and the future of your organisation.
Sources and further reading
- Naval Surface Warfare Center navsea.navy.mil
- Techsolutions onr.navy.mil
- Navy Expeditionary Combat Command en.wikipedia.org
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 6 July 2017. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2017). Mine hunting drones can now detect mines from the air. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/mine-hunting-drones-can-now-detect-mines-from-the-air/
You are welcome to quote this article with credit and a link to the original.