The use of commercial drones for delivery and services is expected to overcome a major hurdle in the U.S. as early as this week, with new requirements that most devices transmit a radio beacon with a digital card to help ensure safety and prevent misuse .
Everyone, except the smallest drones, will have to transmit a radio signal identifying them and their location in new Federal Aviation Administration regulations, according to a summary of the action reviewed by Bloomberg News.
The new regulations, which come into force 30 months after the rule becomes final, are an important necessary foundation before drone deliveries and other business can take place. They mark the most significant regulatory expansion in drone capabilities since the devices hit civilian markets about a decade ago.
The rules will be “an essential building block for safely allowing more complex drone operations,” the agency said in the summary.
The actions break a regulatory hurdle that hindered the growth of pilotless aircraft technology in the United States. Requiring an ID transmission addresses the concerns of federal security and homeland security agencies that increasingly capable flying machines would be used for crimes and terrorism.
Several years ago, the FAA was set to expand drone flights over crowds in some cases and allow them routinely at night, but other agencies would not allow the rules to go on until it addressed growing concerns about device misuse. . Separate rules for operating over crowds are also expected soon.
The FAA did not comment on its plans for the new regulation. The White House Budget and Management Office completed its review of the regulation on Wednesday, according to its on the Internet network.
It will still be years before swarms of drones operated by companies like Prime Air from Amazon.com Inc., Alphabet Inc. branch Wing and United Parcel Service Inc. buzz about neighborhoods that deliver packages. But the new rules provide an important platform for the industry to move towards these goals.
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A robust drone tracking system is needed to ensure that the public accepts these new deals, UPS Flight Forward said in comments on the proposal earlier this year. “If illegal and unsafe operators cannot be identified and stopped, confidence in the system will be eroded and voluntary compliance will be undermined,” wrote the company.
The new regulation will require drones weighing more than 0.55 pounds (0.25 kg) to transmit their identity on a low-powered radio frequency, such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. That way, the police or other authorities can monitor nearby drones.
Civilian drones offered for sale in the United States must be equipped with this technology from 18 months after the rules are finalized, according to the summary. Operators cannot take off without a functioning beacon.
The regulations also allow existing drones to be adapted with such a system.
The rule does not require devices to transmit a signal that can be transmitted by mobile phone systems to a national tracking network, a measure that was originally included in a proposal. revealed last year.
Wing, Amazon and others looking to create delivery companies have asked the FAA to allow a national Internet-based network to track devices.
Hobbyists flying on the devices can seek exemptions that allow them to operate without an identification beacon, as long as they fly in restricted areas approved by the FAA. Flight clubs, like the Academy of Model Aeronautics and educational institutions can apply for these exemptions.
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The FAA, in response to requests from recreational users and industry groups, is adding privacy restrictions that will make it impossible for the public to identify the operator of a drone using the identification flag.
The FAA will keep this information confidential, he said in the summary, providing it to national security and police agencies if requested. This is different from traditional aviation, where FAA flight tracking data is normally public.
The new rules are an attempt to deal with the explosion in the use of drones. The FAA registered almost 1 million users of recreational drones and they owned 1.3 million of the devices last year. Another 385,000 commercial drones were registered with the agency, according to their data.
At the same time, there was a wave of reports of devices flying dangerously close to traditional planes and helicopters – even Air Force One – and cases of them being used for smuggling drugs or terrorist attacks in other nations. O National Transport Safety Council concluded that the drones were involved in several aerial collisions in the United States.
As the regulations were considered useful for the industry, the basic concept was widely supported. However, the FAA’s The identification beacons proposal issued a year ago drew more than 53,000 public comments, while several constituents were dueling over how it should be implemented.
Traditional hobbyists who for decades have flown aircraft models, some of which do not have the electronics to support a radio beacon, have told thousands that they fear the rules are too restrictive.
Newer recreational users flying small helicopters said they were concerned about refurbishing their aircraft or adding expensive new requirements. Many also raised privacy concerns about how the tracking information could be used.