Drone Transponder Market

The global drone transponder market is expected to grow rapidly during the forecast period due to the rising use of drones in industrial and agricultural applications and the need to reduce carbon emissions. Additionally, ADS-B mandates are expected to encourage market growth. However, market growth may be restrained by the vulnerability of drones to cyberattacks.

In recent years drones have started being used for various industrial applications, including aviation, construction, mining, oil & gas, telecom, and logistics. The use of drones in these industries is driven by the benefits over conventional manual inspection technologies. With rapid advances in technologies, drones can detect edge erosion and blade defects in a wind turbine and can inspect the turbine blade lightning receptors, towers, and nacelles. In addition, drones can detect leaks, corrosion, and other problems related to oil & gas rigs and pipelines. They are also used in transmission lines for vegetation management to monitor trees and prevent them from interfering with transmission. Drones are an economically feasible solution for discrete site assessment and reliable and cost-effective inspection.

Government agencies, companies, and other organizations are actively studying the prospective use of UAVs to create new and innovative business models. For instance, in 2016, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) registered nearly 300,000 UAV owners in the first month of registration. Moreover, companies such as Amazon.com, Inc., United Parcel Service of America, Inc. (UPS), Google, Inc., and other delivery service providers are experimenting with UAVs for the delivery of goods.

Drones are also used in agriculture to monitor crops, manage livestock, crop spraying, and mapping of farmland for irrigation. Moreover, agricultural drones are used to monitor crop health to take preventive measures, thereby reducing losses. The growth of automation in the agricultural industry has further led to the adoption of drones, encouraging market growth. Thus, the increasing use of drones in industrial and agricultural applications is expected to drive the growth of the global drone transponder market during the forecast period.

The optimization of drone components to reduce the size, weight, and power consumption is expected to result in increased flight duration. Drone manufacturers plan to achieve this with the use of lightweight materials such as composites, which also offer high strength. Furthermore, the use of smart sensors in components such as transponders and drone payloads is expected to help achieve the desired weight of the drone. DJI is the first company expected to incorporate transponders in drones with lightweight materials such as 3D-printed body frames. The use of such materials offers manufacturers of drone transponders lucrative opportunities for growth.

Despite the numerous advantages of drones, these unmanned systems are susceptible to cyberattacks, which is a potential threat to market growth. Drones are vulnerable to hacking as they use unencrypted GPS information for navigation. They are remotely controlled and are reliant on external wireless signals. The programming languages used are also known to have vulnerabilities, which makes the software easy for hackers and engineers to crack.

The ADS-B transponder has a GPS sensor that is vulnerable to hacking or GPS spoofing. Manufacturers need to ensure that their GPS sensors comply with the various security standards to prevent GPS-related cyberattacks.