San Diego PD keeps US Open attendees safe with real-time drone video

The 121st US Open golf tournament, held in Torrey Pines, San Diego, drew unpredictable flows of thousands of people, causing heavy congestion on cellular networks. Tasked with keeping the crowd safe, the SDPD knew it was critical to maintain a high-quality signal to send and receive tactical video feeds to improve their situational awareness and response times.

The Dejero EnGo worked flawlessly, even during the busiest times of the event. We used the system for five days straight, for approximately 15 hours of flight time. It was extremely easy to use for sending and receiving the live transmission.

San Diego PD UAS Personnel

The Challenges

Cellular network congestion can limit bandwidth and reduce situational awareness

Transmitting high-definition, real-time drone video from anywhere across the 192-acre golf course.

Overcoming the line-of-sight constraint between drone pilot and receiving antenna of alternative solutions.

Establishing reliable, wireless broadband for the Joint Operations Center in the field so that officers would be able to monitor all incoming video feeds and access mission-critical public safety applications.

Overcoming the anticipated cellular network congestion from large crowds using the networks in a concentrated area.

Simplifying the setup and interoperability of onsite equipment.

At this year’s US Open, the SDPD’s drone division wanted to be able to fly absolutely anywhere along the golf course without worrying about positioning to achieve reliable connectivity.

Octavio Navarro
Network Engineer & Founder
AggreGateway

The Solution

Combining multiple cellular networks into a single, ultra-reliable service to deliver high-definition, real-time drone video to commanders

Local network engineering contractor AggreGateway looked to Dejero’s easy-to-use solutions to provide San Diego PD police officers and incident commanders with the uninterrupted connectivity they needed. With the ability to monitor live video and access mission-critical apps from its Joint Operations Center (JOC) command post and SDPD headquarters in real-time, they were able to ensure the safety and security of the players, spectators, and PGA staff.

Each drone sends real-time video to its base station. Each base station is connected to a Dejero EnGo mobile transmitter.
The Dejero EnGo sends high-definition, real-time video to the JOC over the blended network connection.
Incoming feeds are monitored securely in real-time at the JOC.
Real-time drone feeds were also sent to SDPD headquarters, so the department chiefs could monitor the situation

With the right technology in hand, officers can make better informed decisions. The Dejero solutions provide uninterrupted connectivity to ultimately help SDPD officers make faster and better decisions.

Octavio Navarro, Network Engineer & Founder
AggreGateway

The Result

Real-time drone footage enables faster, smarter, and safer decision-making

Dejero mission-critical connectivity solution eliminated the line-of-sight constraints to provide continuous, uninterrupted drone video transmission enabling the SDPD officers to monitor and react to events in real-time.

Flexibility

Drone pilots no longer need to be in line-of-sight to a receiving antenna in order to send real-time video to command.

Visibility

Continuous, uninterrupted, low latency video transmission enables the officers to monitor and react to events in real-time.

Easy-to-use

Dejero solutions come pre-configured — no extra training required so officers are up and running with the press of a button.

Reliability

Dejero provided officers and chiefs with secure, resilient internet connectivity, so they can focus on the job at hand.

Support

Dejero’s 24/7 tech support ensured that AggreGateway could instantly address any issues.

The EnGo performed flawlessly, allowing the drone pilot to roam freely while transmitting crucial low-latency video, despite the congestion caused by thousands of people.

Octavio Navarro
Network Engineer & Founder
AggreGateway