Software Defined Radios for Long Range Drone Communication

A multi-serial communication radio for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that allows transmitting multiple data links without adding excessive wireless devices and reducing weight, battery life, and interference. The radio has multiple serial port modules, data processing modules, and radio modules connected in series. It converts multi-channel data into single-channel packets, transmits them wirelessly, and converts back to multi-channel at the other end. This allows multiple data links to be sent over a single wireless connection.

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Intelligent switching between different versions of UAV data links to enable a single UAV to transmit different narrowband or broadband data over line-of-sight distances. The switching allows making full use of UAV data link bandwidth, improves versatility by carrying multiple link versions, and meets user needs beyond fixed pre-allocated link configurations. The switching is achieved by dynamically changing the intermediate frequency bandwidth and link transmission waveform based on a fixed radio frequency filter. This allows adapting link data transmission requirements and anti-interference capabilities for different communication distances.

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Improving wireless communication between drones and ground stations in congested RF environments by having the drones act as access points and isolating uplink traffic to a single resource unit while allowing wider resource units for downlink. This reduces interference and improves reliability compared to channel switching. The drone connects to the ground station using a wireless protocol that divides spectrum into resource units. The drone identifies a single resource unit for uplink and instructs the ground station to transmit there. This isolates uplink traffic and prevents interference from other devices. The downlink uses wider resource units.

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Optimizing communication efficiency in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to increase range by dynamically varying retry rates and forward error correction (FEC) coding based on real-time transmission statistics. The UAV analyzes transmission failures and modifies retry rates and FEC coding rates to balance reliability and efficiency.

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Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) air-ground communication device that allows UAVs to relay wireless signals between ground nodes in areas with poor terrain coverage. The device connects to a UAV and has separate radio frequency, baseband, and control modules. It receives wireless signals via the RF module, converts to baseband in the baseband module, and forwards the IP packets to the control module. The control module sends the baseband data back to RF to transmit. This allows the UAV to act as a relay node in a distributed ad-hoc network, extending range and coverage in challenging terrain.

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Low-cost communication measurement and control integrated transmission system for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that reduces cost and complexity compared to traditional systems. The system uses two antennas on the UAV and a ground station with multiple antennas and switches. It allows simultaneous uplink and downlink communication over a single frequency band, avoiding the need for wide bandwidths and frequency division duplexing. The ground station has a switch, computer, low-latency converter, and RF switches for routing and tracking. This allows using omnidirectional antennas for reliable tracking and lower angular velocities compared to high-gain directional antennas. It also uses a single wireless link for cost savings versus multiple links. The system is more economical for low-speed UAVs with low data rates compared to high-speed systems.

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Interworking method between multiple drone communications to provide communication services through multiple communication links between a drone equipped with multiple communication equipment and a ground control device for communication multiplexing. The method involves establishing multiple wireless connections with the ground control device, reporting connection quality, and dynamically changing links based on requests. This allows redundancy and handover between ground control devices using multiple radios on the drone.

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Dynamic adjustment of wireless communication link resources for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to improve reliability by adapting parameters like coding, modulation, power, and antenna direction based on factors like UAV location, altitude, speed, attitude, environment, and link quality. The UAV evaluates these factors using an algorithm to determine optimal link resource budget and plan. This allows real-time dynamic optimization of UAV-ground communication links to account for changing conditions and environments during flight.

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Dual-link integrated communication system for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that allows adaptive real-time adjustment of communication parameters like rates based on channel conditions. This improves channel utilization and reliability compared to fixed links. The system uses a ground terminal and UAV terminals with integrated main and secondary links, baseband modules, and processing. The processing coordinates the links, converts physical interfaces, and does comprehensive information processing. The UAV can dynamically switch and combine links based on conditions for optimal performance.

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Adjusting the transmission bandwidth of a communication link between an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a ground control station based on the UAV's working environment. If the UAV is operating in a near-field scenario with low delay requirements, the bandwidth is reduced to improve sensitivity. If the UAV is operating in a far-field scenario with reliability requirements, the bandwidth is increased to improve connection. This allows optimizing transmission performance for different UAV scenarios.

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An integrated onboard and ground radio station apparatus for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that enables simultaneous transmission of control and mission data on UAV's dedicated license frequency bands. The integrated design allows compact implementation of UAV-mounted and ground-based radios for both control and mission communication on the same frequency bands. This provides a single radio solution for UAVs that can operate on both control and mission frequencies, avoiding the need for separate radios for each purpose. The integrated design enables miniaturization and easier implementation on small UAVs compared to separate control and mission radios.

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Frequency band adaptive UAV communication system that improves robustness, transmission rate, and anti-interference performance of UAV communication. The system uses multiple RF communication modules working in different frequency bands on both the UAV and remote control terminals. A microcontroller in each terminal switches between the frequency bands based on parameters like signal strength, error rate, and distance to optimize performance and avoid interference.

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Scalable and reliable command and control system for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operating beyond visual line of sight. The system allows multiple UAVs to connect with multiple ground stations simultaneously on a single frequency. Each UAV's radio transmits on sequential channels, which are received and processed by ground radios. Routing algorithms optimize link performance between UAVs and ground stations. GMSK modulation with equalization restores waveforms over the channel impairments. This scalable multi-ground-station system improves reliability by seamlessly transitioning between stations based on performance.

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Long-range drone communication system that allows fast bidirectional data transfer between a drone and ground station using the 920 MHz band. The system mitigates interference in this band by having the drone and ground station select two non-interfering channels from a split portion of the band. One channel is determined as the downlink for drone-to-ground transmission, and the other as the uplink for ground-to-drone transmission. This allows simultaneous transmission on both channels for bi-directional communication.

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CS-ALOHA based cellular communication method for long range drone measurement and control using hybrid base stations. The method involves using cellular networks instead of point-to-point radios or satellites to extend the range and reliability of drone communications. Multiple hybrid base stations cover larger areas than a single base station. Drones communicate with the nearest base station using CS-ALOHA access protocol. This allows drones to roam between base stations without handover. The method uses dedicated downlink and uplink frames for drone telemetry, remote control, and acknowledgements.

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A ground base station for unmanned aircraft that has anti-interference capabilities to allow reliable communication beyond the horizon. The base station has a dedicated frequency range for unmanned aircraft communication. It continuously scans this range for clean frequency points free of interference. If interference is detected, it switches to a different frequency point. This ensures reliable communication even in heavily jammed environments. The base station can also authenticate and synchronize with child nodes to allow them to communicate through the base station when they can't directly contact each other.

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A method for UAV communication with adaptive distance using parallel multi-channel transmission and switching between two modulation methods, FSK and LoRa, to balance range and data rate. The UAV and remote control simultaneously use multiple radio frequency chips for parallel transmission. After a channel completes, the UAV checks the received signal strength. If FSK RSSI is low, switch to LoRa for anti-jamming. If LoRa RSSI is high, switch to FSK for higher rate. This adaptive switching between FSK and LoRa based on signal quality improves UAV communication range and data rate compared to fixed modulation.

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Communication device and wireless transmission system for integrating multiple data interfaces into a single device for unmanned aerial vehicles and other applications. The device has a RF module, baseband module, interface module, clock module, and power supply. Multiple data interfaces are connected to the interface module. This allows consolidating multiple wireless links into one device to reduce the number of required RF modules and interfaces on UAVs, ships, etc. The device enables simultaneous transmission of telemetry and control signals over a single wireless link instead of separate links for each function.

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System for reliable and high bandwidth communication with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at altitudes above ground level. The system provides separate RF frequency bands for different types of UAV communications. One band is dedicated to critical control and navigation commands, while the other band supports payload data and remote sensing applications. This allows high reliability command and control using ground-based cellular networks, while also enabling high bandwidth remote sensing operations for UAVs at altitudes where ground-based cellular coverage is inadequate. The separate frequency bands prevent interference between the two types of UAV communications.

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A compact, low-power, long-range digital radio module for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that enables reliable flight control over long distances. The radio uses LoRa spread spectrum modulation, power amplification, and error correction to improve transmission distance, sensitivity, and bit error rate compared to standard UAV radios. The small size, low power, and light weight make it suitable for UAVs. The radio has a suction cup antenna, power amplifier, transceiver, control module, power supply, and light.

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