Switzerland drone network

Swisscom Broadcast and Nokia build joint drone network across Switzerland

With the Switzerland drone network, Swisscom Broadcast is creating a secure infrastructure as the basis for providing and operating automated drone flights as a service. From autumn 2024, the network will enable customers to use secure drones for infrastructure inspections, police deployments and the protection of large-scale sites. Swisscom Broadcast is a one-stop shop for drone flight solutions, providing the infrastructure, SORA applications and data storage from a single source.

By Armin Schädeli
The photo shows a drone flying from its docking station.

Swisscom Broadcast has been providing customised drone flights as a service for more than a year. Its partnership with Nokia Drone Networks has now taken the service to the next level. The “drone-in-a-box” units will improve the availability of operationally efficient drone applications for industrial purposes and to ensure public safety. The partnership will enable drone operations to be automated beyond the visual line of sight (= BVLOS).

Benefits for various applications

The following three drone services are initially being offered as part of the drone-network launch:

  • Drones for the emergency services (first responders): The use of remotely operated drones supports the efficiency and effectiveness of the emergency services. The information collected from the remotely operated drones within the first few minutes enables all the emergency services involved to be deployed rapidly and in a coordinated manner. The safety of first responders on site is increased through the use of air hazard monitoring sensors. The rapid evaluation of accident scenes, fires or crime scenes reduces response times, which can save lives.
  • Infrastructure inspection: In the future, the drone-in-a-box units being networked and distributed across Switzerland will improve the safety of people involved in the maintenance of power lines, bridges and buildings. It will be easy for a company with critical infrastructure to order a drone for inspections that are hazardous or difficult to access. Ongoing inspections contribute to the early detection and elimination of damage, helping to keep company infrastructure well maintained and ensure compliance with the legal requirements for monitoring critical infrastructure. Swisscom Broadcast uses drones from our drone network to overfly infrastructure at intervals determined by the customer and generate detailed images. If required, these can be used to create a digital twin, for instance. Artificial intelligence is used to efficiently detect any significant changes to the infrastructure.
  • Improve the protection of your site: Geopolitical changes and new technologies may require increased protection of critical infrastructure, production locations, public spaces, prisons, borders and police or military facilities. The perimeter protection solution offered by Swisscom and partners uses drones on the ground and in the air for simple inspection tasks. These robots, combined with alarm sensors, significantly improve the security of sensitive facilities and premises. Automated, drone-based surveillance allows the reduction of costs within the framework of a defined security plan.

Strict regulation of autonomous drone flights

Specific drone regulations apply to drone flights outside direct visual contact. Risks need to be minimised upwards (air risk) and downwards (ground risk). The Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) monitors operational drone flight activities in Switzerland using the Specific Operations Risk Assessment method (or SORA). Nokia and the relevant regulatory authorities (OFCOM) ensure that all flight activities comply with the legal framework, particularly with regard to the use of frequencies and flight safety.

Nokia partnership makes the one-stop approach possible

Nokia and Swisscom have drawn on their many years of experience in 4G/5G in their joint development of the drone infrastructure. The two companies have the expertise and appropriate resources to efficiently implement this project, which will benefit the whole of Switzerland. Nokia has significant expertise in the development and production of high-quality hardware and software and experience in setting up a drone network in Belgium.

In the future, Swisscom Broadcast will enable customers to access drone infrastructure developed and produced in Europe and obtain drone services from a single source, including advice, automated piloting and monitoring of drone flights and secure data storage in Swisscom data centres.

Swisscom Broadcast CEO Dominik Müller: “The development of the nationwide drone network marks a further milestone in the development of digital security solutions in Switzerland. With Nokia’s Drone Networks, we are adopting an established, end-to-end solution for networked drones with industrial and public security applications. In Nokia, I am confident that we have a strong partner by our side. Together, we can take drone-based security to the next level.”

Raghav Sahgal, President of Cloud and Network Services at Nokia: “We are proud to be collaborating with Swisscom Broadcast, genuine innovators in drone-as-a-service solutions, on this important project to establish a nationwide drone-as-a-service network for Switzerland. The Nokia Drone Networks solution uses our Industrial Edge Technology (MXIE) with highly developed computing and software functions, thus facilitating large-scale projects. It will undoubtedly ensure that Swiss companies can access a first-class drone-as-a-service offering, in order to increase employee and public safety.”

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