Characterization of the Combined Effective Radiation Pattern of UAV-Mounted Antennas and Ground Station

An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-based communication typically involves a link between a UAV-mounted antenna and a ground station. The radiation pattern of both antennas is influenced by nearby reflecting surfaces and scatterers, such as the UAV body and the ground. Experimentally characterizing the effective radiation patterns of both antennas is challenging, as the received power depends on their interaction. In this study, we learn a combined radiation pattern from experimental UAV flight data, assuming the UAV travels with a fixed orientation (constant yaw angle and zero pitch/roll). We validate the characterized radiation pattern by cross-referencing it with experiments involving different UAV trajectories, all conducted under identical ground station and UAV orientation conditions. Experimental results show that the learned combined radiation pattern reduces received power estimation error by up to 10 dB, compared to traditional anechoic chamber radiation patterns that neglect the effects of the UAV body and surrounding objects.