Low-Cost, Long-Range Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Data Logger Using Long Range (LoRa) Module

Abstract

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, are in high demand due to their suitability for observation and surveillance. It also has been utilized for both recreational and commercial purposes. Unfortunately, as with the term "unmanned", the UAV operator cannot determine the state of the drone when it is in the air. One of the crucial parts is to recover the UAV’s mission data if something happens that prevents it from continuing to operate. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a low-cost, long-range data logger payload that can transmit the measured data in real-time. Additionally, it is essential to integrate the aforementioned functions into a unified system. In this work, an Arduino Uno, Arduino Nano, GY-86 10DOF IMU, micro-SD card converter, LoRa SX1278, and a 7.4V lithium-ion battery are used to develop the data logger system. The system utilized the long-range (LoRa) module by using Arduino IDE software and Node-RED as an internet of things (IoT) platform. The MJX Bug 16 Pro UAV device is used to mount the system and measure the altitude and atmospheric pressure of the flying device. The data logger payload is expected to provide precise live data on altitude and air pressure from the UAV to the operator’s base station.