Teledyne FLIR OEM is upgrading its counter-drone capabilities with Prism C‑UAS, a new software stack designed to detect and track unmanned aerial threats even at the edge of visibility.
The system combines infrared (IR) thermal image processing with artificial intelligence to identify drones that appear as faint specks, sometimes fewer than four pixels in size.
It applies proprietary filtering techniques to clean up and sharpen thermal footage, helping small moving targets stand out more clearly against background noise and improving detection range.
Once detected, targets are first analyzed by an AI-based object detector and then tracked by a multi-object tracking system, reducing errors and improving consistency.
Prism C-UAS supports data inputs from Teledyne’s Boson+ and Neutrino IR camera families, as well as commercial visible-light sensors, enabling multispectral configurations.
Designed for integration into existing platforms, the software works with established hardware and developer toolchains and can be deployed across a range of counter-drone systems.
Bridging the Gap
The system arrives amid increasing drone activity near sensitive sites.
The Federal Aviation Administration reported more than 100 drone incursions each month near US airports, while the US Department of Homeland Security has recorded over 60,000 drone flights near the US-Mexico border in the second half of 2024.
Prism C-UAS is intended to improve early detection and tracking performance for counter-drone operations in such environments.
“Prism C‑UAS enables sub two x two‑pixel drone detection and tracking, providing a significant increase in drone detection range over conventional systems,” said Jared Faraudo, vice president of product management at Teledyne FLIR OEM.
“It reflects our vertical integration and domain expertise, transforming raw thermal data into actionable intelligence for modern, multi‑layered defense architectures.”
Prism C-UAS made its debut at the SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing 2026 event in Maryland, USA.
