System for control of the power of an on-board signal generator of an unmanned aerial vehicle

We consider the issues of calibration of the transmission coefficient of an antenna system of the ground station used for monitoring of the energy characteristics of signals from global navigation satellite systems. We present the most commonly used method intended for calibration according to the solar radio-emission of the transmission coefficient of large-aperture reflector antenna systems used as basic in the construction of ground control stations. We describe the advantages and disadvantages of the method of calibration according to the radio-emission. To eliminate the disadvantages of calibration based on solar radio-emission (the limited range of working elevation angles and the necessity of using third-party data on the spectral intensity of solar radio-emission), it is proposed to consider an alternative approach, namely, the calibration based on the use of an artificial source of radio-emission placed on board of an unmanned aerial vehicle. The specific features of this approach, namely, the necessity of operation in the near-field zone of the investigated antenna system and the motion of an artificial source of radio-emission in a plane parallel to the aperture plane of the antenna system, are indicated. We develop a block diagram of the payload of an unmanned aerial vehicle for measuring in the near-field zone of the analyzed antenna system. We present the results of investigations of the characteristics of a payload signal generator of an unmanned aerial vehicle. We propose a solution, which eliminates the error in specifying the output power of the signal generator (the difference between the nominal and actual signal power) according to the results of measurement. The necessity of using a control signal power meter and a bandpass filter as components of the payload is demonstrated. A system for monitoring of the output power of signal generator is designed. The components of the payload satisfying the restrictions imposed on the weight and size characteristics are selected. The possibility of remote connection of an operator to the payload equipment of an unmanned aerial vehicle is realized. We also describe the prospects of subsequent development of the payload model. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2024.