Link Budgeting and Interference Management for UAV Networks in 5G and Beyond

Henry Michaelson, Nolan Pettit, Vaishnavi Annabhemoju, Shuai Nie, Justin M. Bradley

Abstract: UAVs have been studied and manufactured to help create wireless communications networks that are more flexible and cost-effective than a typical wireless network. These UAV networks could help bridge the digital divide in rural America by providing wireless communications service to areas where cell companies find it too expensive to build conventional cell towers. To test different aspects of a UAV based millimeter-wave frequency network, we created a MATLAB simulation. The simulation visualizes a digital twin of a farm in eastern Nebraska where UAVs are tested. The simulation allows for link budgeting and interference management calculations by accommodating changes in transmitter and receiver location, frequency of the network, power of the transmitted signal, weather conditions, and antenna specifications. The simulation is able to calculate critical network values such as signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), path loss, atmospheric loss, and antenna gains under dynamically changing conditions.