Drones continue to be among the greatest game-changers of the modern battlefield. The low-cost weapons can seemingly come out of nowhere, targeting high-value targets and striking forward positions.
Efforts are underway to counter the threat with everything from man-portable electronic warfare devices to physical netting. Still, one of the biggest issues is that by the time autonomous vehicles are seen or heard, it is often too late for warfighters on the ground to react quickly enough.
One United States Army soldier has responded by developing a “drone detector” that could be worn as a piece of protective gear: last week, U.S. Army Sgt. Ryan Minton, who is assigned to Regimental Support Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, showed off this device during an open house at the 7th Army Training Command’s Design Innovation Research and Testing (DIRT) Lab, Grafenwoehr, Germany, July 31, 2026.
The detector scans for radio signals associated with a potential drone and then alerts the user accordingly. Minton, a special projects engineer with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment’s Innovation Cell, had been working on his design for nearly two years, and it could begin testing at the Grafenwoehr Training Area in just the coming weeks.
“Not only do they have to look for security on the ground, but now they have to look for security in the sky as well,” Minton told Stars & Stripes. “I’m trying to mitigate that gap and create a safe environment for soldiers by creating something that’s low-cost and something that everyone can wear.”
Down and Dirty
The U.S. Army’s DIRT Lab serves as one of its collaborative hubs, and it is meant to connect soldiers, engineers, and researchers to turn field-identified challenges into tangible solutions.
“Leveraging technologies like 3D printing, advanced manufacturing, robotics, and drones, empowering Soldiers to rapidly prototype and test capabilities designed by those closest to the challenges,” the Army explained. It further enables soldiers to transform what are essentially abstract battlefield ideas into physical prototypes, rather than waiting for more traditional top-down procurement.
The labs are currently in multiple strategic locations, including Georgia’s Fort Benning, GA, where it is part of the Maneuver Innovation Lab, and Fort Stewart, home of the Third Infantry Division, as well as at international outposts like Grafenwoehr, Germany.
The DIRT Labs partners have included the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) and the Civil-Military Innovation Institute (CMI2), along with academic partners. The facilities provide U.S. Army soldiers with many of the necessary tools to bring their designs to life, such as 3D printers, metalworking gear, laser cutters, electronics, and even sewing machines. Past creations have included drone holsters, specialized ammunition feeders that were designed to reduce weapon jams, breach-land markets, and a variety of modified equipment mounts.
Scalable Design With Low Cost
Minton was actually brought into the DIRT Lab only after his leadership learned that he was developing such a platform. The efforts have paid off.
The parts for the detectors cost less than $120, and a completed device could be assembled in just an hour.
According to Minton, the detector can be produced in a variety of sizes, from one that could fit in a pocket and be powered by small batteries, to a larger model that could be carried in a pouch. Resembling a portable radio, the larger variant will beep or vibrate when a drone is detected.
That could provide the warfighter with the added time to respond to approaching drones.
Drone Detection Is Being Taken Seriously
Minton’s custom-made drone detector is far from the only attempt to introduce such a platform. It was two years ago that the U.S. Army’s Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) released a call for the development of a “Passive Detection, Tracking, And, Identification System for Ground Vehicles.”
It called for a device that could alert soldiers to the presence of a drone or drone swarm.
“The goal of this topic is to develop a passive sensor system capable of simultaneous detection, tracking, and identification of single and multiple (swarms) drones threatening ground vehicles,” the 2024 solicitation notice explained. “Another goal is to design an optimal architecture of passive sensor networks with integrated memory, and to develop and test learning and data-processing network algorithms suitable for detection of single and multiple drones (swarm). The system shall be able to detect and track up to 2km away with full hemispherical coverage.”
It seems that Sgt. Minton was able to provide a similar device independently thanks to the DIRT Lab.
