DroneResponseNet Demonstrates Its Capabilities in Live Operation

17.12.2025

On December 11, 2025, more than 80 representatives from authorities and the media witnessed at the Lüneburg Police Directorate how control-center-supported situational reconnaissance using drones could be carried out in the future – enabled by the DroneResponseNet research project.

The actual flight took place at a location separate from the presentation: the drone was stationed at the fire station in Buchholz in der Nordheide, while mission planning, monitoring, evaluation, and execution were carried out live in Lüneburg, approximately 35 km away. The system, developed by the Center for Telematics together with Frequentis, the Lüneburg Police Directorate, and the Harburg Police Inspectorate, combines autonomous drone flight with flight planning that minimizes ground and air risk, video transmission, and the real-time generation of a 3D situational model.

At the core of the drone component of the demonstrator is an onboard computer developed by us, which is fully integrated into the drone and autonomously executes all processes. Continuous path tracking, sensor data processing, real-time generation of a three-dimensional model, and communication with the control center are handled directly by this OBC, independently of the drone software. For environmental perception, the drone is equipped with a fixed camera as well as a LiDAR sensor. The images and point clouds captured during the flight are fused and processed directly on the onboard computer. Based on this data, a 3D situational model of the area of interest is generated in real time. In addition, a gimbal-mounted, rotatable camera provides a live video stream. During the demonstration, both data streams were transmitted to Lüneburg via 5G with virtually no latency and could be followed live by police and media representatives.

Another key research focus is the integration of the system into existing control center infrastructures. In cooperation with project partner Frequentis, the demonstrator was fully integrated into the LifeX control center software. Dispatchers and incident commanders can use the system interactively, adjust mission parameters, and directly integrate the generated situational picture into their established workflows.

The results of the demonstration show that autonomous drone systems can already make a significant contribution to early situational awareness today – even before emergency forces arrive at the scene. This enables more informed decision-making in early phases of an operation, relieves operational personnel, and increases public safety in the long term. Accordingly, feedback from participating police representatives and the press was very positive, with strong interest expressed in the research results and their future application.

Project Partners

• Frequentis Deutschland GmbH
• Lüneburg Police Directorate
• Harburg Police Inspectorate

Television Coverage

• Sat.1 report
• Sat.1 YouTube report
• Tagesschau report
• NDR report
• RTL Nord report (from 4:42 min)

Funding

• BDBOS KoPa 45