AI optical detection solution for non‑cooperative objects

BCMS® VENTUR gives operator teams in regulated environments one live picture of birds, drones, and other objects, in the air and on the ground. It detects, classifies, and tracks each one, alerts your team or fires deterrents under your rules, and records every event.

A BCMS® camera unit scanning the sky, then the console following one event from detection and classification to the risk index, the response, the record and its patterns on the site map

Partners and customers

  • Lenovo
  • NVIDIA
  • IQSIGHT
  • SGS
  • Italsicurezza
  • Zagreb Airport
  • Eagles Aviation Academy
  • Aeroporto dei Parchi
  • SO.GE.A.P. Aeroporto di Parma
How it works

Detect, classify, track, assess, respond, document.

Each detection is classified and scored for risk, and the score triggers the response your team has configured. Every event is recorded, and the records become analysis your team can plan with.

Live loop · automatic

Detect · classify

Detection reaches around 3 km with daylight cameras and about 1 km with thermal cameras, depending on the size of the bird and the camera. Species classification below about 1 km, once trained on the site's footage.

Search brackets converge on a bird in the camera view and lock
Candidate labels settle on a species beside the detection card
Live loop · under your rules

Track · assess · respond

Every object is followed with position, speed, and heading, feeding a live risk index as it moves. Deterrents trigger selectively, under the rules your team sets.

A comet trail and velocity vector follow the bird, with speed, height and heading beside it
A deterrence event is logged against the detection that triggered it, under the configured profile
Analysis · over seasons and years

Document · patterns

Each event is recorded with video and metadata, building an auditable operational and environmental history. Over time, the detections show seasonal and daily patterns, which THE EDGE COMPANY's biologists turn into reports your team uses to plan ahead.

A new row lands in the detection log and the day counter steps
Accumulated detections fill a sector heatmap and a time-of-day profile on the statistics view

One solution, from raw observation to immediate, verifiable action.

The problem

Operations teams have never had more detection data. Or less certainty about what is happening.

  1. Two gulls in flight over a teal field of radar range rings

    You know something is there.

    A radar return gives range and bearing, not identity. A blip cannot tell you whether it is a gull, a drone, or clutter.

  2. A flat panel radar antenna on a lattice mast against a blue sky

    An alert tells you something happened.

    The evidence sits in separate systems, if it exists at all. Some airports only learn of a strike when a carcass is found on the runway.

  3. A control desk with two green radar scopes and rows of switches

    Detection shows presence. Not intent or direction.

    Without trajectory, speed, and species, you cannot judge whether a target is drifting away or converging on active airspace.

  4. A field worker in a high visibility vest beside a survey instrument

    Every system creates data. Teams still reconstruct the event by hand.

    One major airport counted 500 staff hours a year just locating and counting a single species.

  5. An airliner seen from below against the sky

    Most risks become visible only when they are already immediate.

    Reactive patrols and blanket deterrence answer what already happened. Habituation grows, and the pattern behind the risk stays invisible.

The complete solution

One operational picture. From first detection to earlier intervention.

BCMS® brings real-time classification, visual evidence, tracking, and automated documentation into one system, so teams understand each event as it happens and can decide how to respond.

  1. Accurate detection

    Know what it is before deciding what to do.

    Real-time species and family classification below about 1 km, once trained on the site's footage, with a reliability threshold the operator can trust. Each species responds to a different deterrent, so identifying the bird lets the right countermeasure fire at the right moment.

    Classification frames on a drone, a gull, and a third target over wind turbines, each labeled
  2. Everything documented

    See what happened. Keep the evidence.

    Every detection is paired with a video record, so what the system classified can be checked against what the camera saw.

    A drone detection card with its night camera frame beside the restricted airspace map
  3. Track movement

    Follow where it moves. Understand the risk.

    Position, speed, and heading feed a live risk index, so response is weighted by actual threat rather than alarm volume.

    Three gulls in flight with their tracked flight paths drawn behind them
  4. Keep records

    Turn every detection into a usable record.

    Structured, auditable event data supports wildlife-hazard reporting and regulatory compliance, down to per-activation deterrence statistics.

    The detections grid, each card naming a species or a drone with its distance and score
  5. Take precautions

    See patterns earlier. Act before risk becomes immediate.

    BCMS® analyzes live and historical activity to reveal recurring behavior and flag developing risk, helping teams focus resources and intervene sooner.

    A drone on a collision path with the warning frame and its projected track
The solution

What runs on your site, day and night.

  • Detection range

    Around 3 km

    Depending on the size of the bird and the camera.

  • Day and night

    Thermal cameras keep detecting after dark, in flight and at rest.

    A daylight camera view of a gull in flight against a blue skyA thermal camera view of two birds in flight at night
  • EASA rulemaking group participant

    A listed participant in EASA's rulemaking group on AI trustworthiness (RMT.0742), and a seat since October 2024 in the expert group on safety-related aerodrome equipment (RMT.0161). Innovation Partnership Contract signed in 2025.

  • Dedicated compute

    One server

    • On hardware you own
    • Or turnkey
  • Passive detection

    The cameras transmit no radio signal to find a target, unlike a radar.

    A camera unit on top of a lattice mast, with a wind turbine behind
    No spectrum license
  • Species classification

    Below about 1 km, once trained on the site's footage.

    A thermal camera view of two birds in flight at night
    • Detected
    • Bird of prey
    • Local risk indexLow
  • Live track

    Acquires and follows each new detection in real time.

  • 4K optical and thermal fusion

    Pan-tilt-zoom cameras under smart scanning, aimed by AI.

    • Optical and thermal lenses in one unit
    • Day and night, in flight and at rest
    A black pan-tilt-zoom camera unit on its mountGray pan-tilt camera with an optical and a thermal lens, cut out on a plain backgroundA white pan-tilt-zoom camera unit on its mount
  • Closed-loop deterrence

    BCMS® drives the deterrents you already own: gas cannons, distress calls, and third-party devices over documented APIs. It triggers them selectively by species and risk, under your team's rules, and logs every activation.

    A card with an eye icon, labeled Visual repellersA card with a starburst icon, labeled Laser technologyA card with a loudspeaker icon, labeled Acoustic solutions
  • Wind turbines against a pale blue sky

    Scales to multi-camera sites

    In wind farms, one camera can cover several turbines.

Compared

How BCMS® VENTUR compares with manual monitoring and avian radar.

  • Yes
  • Partial or conditional
  • Through integration
  • Not supported
  • Not applicable
Compare with
How BCMS® VENTUR compares with manual monitoring and avian radar.
Manual monitoringAvian radarBCMS® VENTUR
Continuous monitoringPartial or conditional. Yes. Yes.
Airborne-object detectionPartial or conditional. Yes. Yes.
Ground-object detectionPartial or conditional. Not supported. Yes.
Bird and drone classificationNot supported. Not supported. Yes.
Species identificationYes. Not supported. Yes.
Movement trackingPartial or conditional. Partial or conditional. Yes.
Visual verification with event-linked videoNot supported. Not supported. Yes.
Dynamic risk assessmentNot supported. Partial or conditional. Yes.
Structured event recordsPartial or conditional. Partial or conditional. Yes.
Recurring-pattern analysisPartial or conditional. Partial or conditional. Yes.
Risk-based alertsPartial or conditional. Partial or conditional. Yes.
Deterrence integrationNot applicable. Through integration. Yes.
Human oversight built inYes. Yes. Yes.
Site-specific AI training and biologist supportNot applicable. Not supported. Yes.
Detection from day one, fine-tuned in weeksNot applicable. Partial or conditional. Yes.
Passive operation, no spectrum licenseYes. Not supported. Yes.

Species identification: below about 1 km, once trained on the site's footage. The radar column describes the avian radar class in general, never a named product.

Regulated environments

Our work with EASA, and your data

Our team

Speak to our team

Engineers and biologists at THE EDGE COMPANY build and run BCMS®. They survey your site and train the models on its footage, and the biologists write your operational reports.

You can talk to a customer who runs BCMS® or visit their site. Several installations are under NDA, so we agree the scope in advance and keep each call or visit to the system. Live remote access to a working site is also possible, under NDA.

A reference site may not run the same components as your configuration, such as thermal cameras or deterrents. We list the differences before you visit.

Fabio Masci, founder of THE EDGE COMPANY, in his Air Force flight suit holding a child at the cockpit of an F-16, under the line: we look to the future with the strength of our experience
Industries

See how BCMS® works in your industry.

One detection solution, tuned to what each operation protects: aircraft, turbines, wildlife, airspace.

A tall pine standing above a forest canopy

Wildlife preservation

The same detection and documentation, designed for conservation: continuous bird monitoring, seasonal migration tracking, and biodiversity records. Non-lethal by design.

A white quadcopter drone in flight above a field at sunset

Drone detection

The cameras that watch for birds classify drones with the same pipeline. One system serves operational safety and airspace security: it detects and classifies drones, and never neutralizes them.

Installations

Where BCMS® runs today

One pin per site, by lifecycle status and product line, kept current from our own records. Names on request.

FAQ

Questions teams ask first.

How is BCMS® different from avian radar?

Radar returns give range and bearing without visual confirmation. BCMS® classifies what it sees, detects objects on the ground as well as in the air, and pairs every event with a video record. The cameras transmit no radio signal to find a target, unlike a radar, so there is nothing to coordinate with avionics or ILS.

Do we need a spectrum license or ATC coordination?

No. Detection is passive and needs no spectrum license. Camera stations reach the server over fiber or low-power radio links planned at the site survey, and measurements at operating airports demonstrated no interference with airport equipment.

How long does deployment take?

The system starts making detections as soon as it is powered up; fine-tuning and calibration take about two weeks. Implementation typically runs about 90 days from contract, driven mainly by procurement and customs. Installations use above-ground pole mounts on concrete blocks, so no excavation is required.

What happens in fog or heavy weather?

The system continues to operate with performance that scales with visibility; degraded modes alert the operator and mark coverage gaps. Operationally, conditions that reduce optical performance also ground the birds, so the residual risk profile mirrors the biology.

Does it detect drones?

Yes. One system covers operational safety against bird strikes and physical security against drone incursions, with classification distinguishing the two. BCMS® detects and documents drones; it does not neutralize them.

Can it work with the deterrents we already have?

Yes. BCMS® sits on top of existing dispersal hardware and makes it selective. Gas cannons, distress calls, and third-party devices are driven over documented APIs, activated by species and risk level under the rules your team sets, with every activation logged.

Is BCMS® certified?

No European certification scheme for this equipment exists yet. THE EDGE COMPANY works with EASA, under an Innovation Partnership Contract signed in 2025, on a concept of operations for BCMS® at aerodromes. Our data protection policy is in force, and GDPR documentation is available on request.

Who operates the system day to day?

BCMS® needs no specialist radar operators: its output is designed to be read by standard wildlife-control personnel. Professional services cover training, continuous model re-training, and yearly biologist-authored operational reports.

Can we evaluate it before buying?

Yes. THE EDGE COMPANY offers a try-and-buy route: the system is evaluated on your site against mutually agreed KPIs before purchase, then converts to acquisition or an operational lease.

Talk to our team

Thirty minutes with a technical colleague, not a sales presentation. Bring your site and your hazard picture; we bring the site-survey checklist.

More about you and your site (optional)