{"title":"Prediction of Ultra-High-Speed Spots Using RTK-GNSS Sensor Fusion for UAV-to-UAV mmWave/THz Communications","authors":"Phuc Duc Nguyen;Ryosuke Isogai;Keitarou Kondou;Yozo Shoji","doi":"10.1109/ACCESS.2025.3580781","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"mmWave/THz communications depend on highly focused and directive narrow beams. Accurate prediction of the beam’s spatial location and attitude in space, as well as the time it takes to reach its ultra-high-speed coverage area, referred to as the ultra-spot, is crucial for uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) to adjust their flight direction and approach velocity. This adjustment increases the likelihood of successful communication between UAVs. This paper introduces a novel approach for detecting these ultra-spots using real-time kinematic (RTK)-GNSS and inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor fusion positioning powered by an extended Kalman filter (RTK-GNSS-EKF). To achieve this, we implemented a mechanism that exchanges six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) information of positions among UAVs via a 920MHz wireless communication link. Additionally, we propose an algorithm that accurately estimates the time and distance from the in-flight UAV to the ultra-spot. For the first time, this work investigates the real-world 6-DOF fluctuations in position, velocity, and attitude experienced by an in-flight UAV due to wind, and analyzes the impact of these fluctuations on the ultra-spot prediction issue. Additionally, we analyze scenarios where the ultra-spot alters its attitude by actively changing the antenna angle, assessing the consequent effects on the volume of data transmitted and received at the ultra-spot. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method by simulation and verification with actual UAV-to-UAV and UAV-to-ground-station field experiments. Experimental results indicate an average ultra-spot detection accuracy of 172ms in time and 32.7cm in distance, with measurements taken 1s before the UAV’s actual approach to the ultra-spot. These findings confirm the feasibility of the proposed method for detecting mobile ultra-spots in UAV-to-UAV mmWave communication.","PeriodicalId":13079,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Access","volume":"13 ","pages":"106942-106957"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11039836","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"IEEE Access","FirstCategoryId":"94","ListUrlMain":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11039836/","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"计算机科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"COMPUTER SCIENCE, INFORMATION SYSTEMS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
mmWave/THz communications depend on highly focused and directive narrow beams. Accurate prediction of the beam’s spatial location and attitude in space, as well as the time it takes to reach its ultra-high-speed coverage area, referred to as the ultra-spot, is crucial for uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) to adjust their flight direction and approach velocity. This adjustment increases the likelihood of successful communication between UAVs. This paper introduces a novel approach for detecting these ultra-spots using real-time kinematic (RTK)-GNSS and inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor fusion positioning powered by an extended Kalman filter (RTK-GNSS-EKF). To achieve this, we implemented a mechanism that exchanges six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) information of positions among UAVs via a 920MHz wireless communication link. Additionally, we propose an algorithm that accurately estimates the time and distance from the in-flight UAV to the ultra-spot. For the first time, this work investigates the real-world 6-DOF fluctuations in position, velocity, and attitude experienced by an in-flight UAV due to wind, and analyzes the impact of these fluctuations on the ultra-spot prediction issue. Additionally, we analyze scenarios where the ultra-spot alters its attitude by actively changing the antenna angle, assessing the consequent effects on the volume of data transmitted and received at the ultra-spot. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method by simulation and verification with actual UAV-to-UAV and UAV-to-ground-station field experiments. Experimental results indicate an average ultra-spot detection accuracy of 172ms in time and 32.7cm in distance, with measurements taken 1s before the UAV’s actual approach to the ultra-spot. These findings confirm the feasibility of the proposed method for detecting mobile ultra-spots in UAV-to-UAV mmWave communication.
IEEE AccessCOMPUTER SCIENCE, INFORMATION SYSTEMSENGIN-ENGINEERING, ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONIC
CiteScore
9.80
自引率
7.70%
发文量
6673
审稿时长
6 weeks
期刊介绍:
IEEE Access® is a multidisciplinary, open access (OA), applications-oriented, all-electronic archival journal that continuously presents the results of original research or development across all of IEEE''s fields of interest.
IEEE Access will publish articles that are of high interest to readers, original, technically correct, and clearly presented. Supported by author publication charges (APC), its hallmarks are a rapid peer review and publication process with open access to all readers. Unlike IEEE''s traditional Transactions or Journals, reviews are "binary", in that reviewers will either Accept or Reject an article in the form it is submitted in order to achieve rapid turnaround. Especially encouraged are submissions on:
Multidisciplinary topics, or applications-oriented articles and negative results that do not fit within the scope of IEEE''s traditional journals.
Practical articles discussing new experiments or measurement techniques, interesting solutions to engineering.
Development of new or improved fabrication or manufacturing techniques.
Reviews or survey articles of new or evolving fields oriented to assist others in understanding the new area.