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Research

Duke study finds closing-rate checks catch most disguised drone boats near ships

A Duke University researcher tested how shore cameras and radar can spot uncrewed surface vessels attacking a protected ship. Adversarial hull patches suppressed camera detection in up to 29% of attempts but never made a drone boat read as benign, while physical disguise could beat both camera and radar checks. A closing-rate check flagged 94 to 95% of disguised direct run-ins at 15 to 20 knots, versus 12% for a speed-only check. Preprint, not yet peer-reviewed.

Illustration of a harbor camera and radar mast watching a low uncrewed speedboat disguised as a pleasure craft heading toward a moored warship

Illustration: Autonomy Wire (AI-generated)

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