Cellular Network Provider, or CNP, is a company that manages and operates mobile telecommunications networks. These networks facilitate voice and data services for customers using cellular devices.
As drones move towards autonomy and larger-scale integration into national airspace, cellular connectivity has become vital for their successful operation, especially in enterprise and autonomous applications. Cellular Network Providers (CNPs) play a crucial role in enabling drone operations by providing high-speed, low-latency, and reliable communication channels that support Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flights.
High-Bandwidth, Low-Latency Connectivity
Cellular networks, leveraging 4G LTE and increasingly 5G technologies, enable fast and low-delay data transmission. This is vital for real-time drone command, control, and data sharing in autonomous operations.
Cost-Effective Use of Established Infrastructure
Since cellular networks are widely deployed, they provide a cost-effective communication solution without requiring new infrastructure investment specific to drone operations.
Support for Real-Time Decision Making
Cellular connectivity supports high-definition live video streaming and continuous telemetry, allowing enterprises and public safety agencies to maintain situational awareness and make rapid tactical decisions during missions such as search and rescue, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR).
Integration With Enterprise Systems
Cellular-based platforms can integrate drones into mobile command centers and enterprise data workflows, enabling seamless mission management and data sharing across teams.
Facilitation of Multi-Drone Operations
Cellular networks support scalable drone swarm and fleet deployments by enabling inter-drone communication and centralized coordination, which enhances operational efficiency and reduces mission time.
BVLOS Capability Enablement
Cellular connectivity serves as a primary communication link for drones flying beyond the visual line of sight, providing the required reliability and redundancy, often combined with satellite communication to maintain uninterrupted control over long distances or in coverage-challenged regions.
In summary, CNPs underpin modern drone operations by delivering the communication backbone necessary for reliable, real-time control and data exchange, which is fundamental for enterprise-scale, autonomous drone applications, and BVLOS missions. This infrastructure supports critical use cases spanning public safety, infrastructure inspection, logistics, agriculture, and environmental monitoring.
Many enterprise drone platforms integrate CNP compatibility to support BVLOS operations, remote ID compliance, and cloud-based flight management. Some CNPs offer drone-specific services such as priority airspace bandwidth access, network slicing for ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) via 5G, redundancy routing to prevent communication dropouts, and integration with drone UTM services.
It's better to use IoT-specific or drone-certified SIMs for drone operations due to broader roaming, dynamic IP handling, and greater reliability. The cellular network ensures consistent coverage across the entire route, even over hills and tree lines, making the operation efficient and compliant with BVLOS regulations.
In drone operations, CNPs supply infrastructure and connectivity for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) communication, real-time video transmission, and remote command reception over 4G LTE or 5G networks. A drone outfitted with cellular communication hardware connects to a CNP's network via a data plan or dedicated SIM card. Additional hardware is necessary for drones to connect to CNP networks.
The utility company's drone, inspecting a 20-kilometer power line, connects to a regional CNP via a 5G modem. The network coverage and a data plan are required for drones to utilize CNP services. In a BVLOS scenario, the network ensures uninterrupted communication even beyond the pilot's direct radio range.
CNPs provide the backbone for critical operations such as delivery drones, emergency response UAVs, inspection missions in remote areas, and UTM (Unmanned Traffic Management) systems. It's essential to ensure secure data transmission and enterprise-grade security options for drone operations, which CNPs offer.
Data-and-cloud-computing technology integrates drones into mobile command centers and enterprise data workflows, facilitating seamless mission management and data sharing across teams (integration with enterprise systems). The cellular connectivity provided by technology companies, such as 4G LTE and 5G networks, enables fastest and low-delay data transmission, making real-time drone command, control, and data sharing in autonomous operations possible (High-bandwidth, low-latency connectivity).
