In the current era of rapid technological development, drone technology is evolving rapidly, and its application fields are constantly expanding. From aerial photography and surveying to logistics delivery, from agricultural plant protection to emergency rescue, drones are changing the way we live and work with their unique advantages. Behind the continuous evolution of drone technology, the application of a key technology is quietly driving the transformation of the industry. This is UWB (Ultra-Wideband) technology. In particular, the application of UWB chips in the drone field has brought infinite possibilities for the performance improvement and function expansion of drones.
Overview of UWB Technology
UWB, or Ultra-Wideband, is a wireless communication technology that uses non-sinusoidal narrow pulses in the nanometer to micrometer range to transmit data. Different from traditional communication technologies, UWB does not use a sinusoidal carrier but communicates by sending and receiving pulses with extremely short time intervals (less than 1ns), which makes its signal bandwidth extremely large. According to the definition of the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the UWB bandwidth is 25% higher than the center frequency or greater than 1.5GHz.
The development history of UWB technology has been rather tortuous. Its basic idea can be traced back to the 1940s, when patents related to random pulse systems laid the foundation for its development. In the 1960s, the US military was the first to apply UWB technology to radar, positioning, and communication systems. After years of research and improvement, in 2002, UWB technology was first approved by the FCC for use in civil communication. This milestone event marked the beginning of UWB technology's entry into a broader range of application fields. Subsequently, relevant standards were continuously improved. From the release of US and European standards in 2003, to the MB-OFDM standard of the WiMedia Alliance becoming the first international standard for UWB technology in 2007, and then to the IEEE's update of UWB-related standards (802.15.4z) in 2020, each update of the standard has paved the way for the further application of UWB technology.
UWB technology has attracted much attention due to its many unique advantages. Firstly, UWB technology has extremely high positioning accuracy and can achieve centimeter-level positioning, which is crucial in many scenarios that require precise positioning. Secondly, it is not sensitive to channel fading and can maintain stable signal transmission even in complex environments. In addition, UWB has a low transmit signal power spectral density and a low interception rate, with good security. At the same time, the system complexity is low, and the power consumption is relatively low. These advantages make UWB technology show great application potential in many fields.
Application of UWB Chips in Drone Positioning
During the flight of a drone, precise positioning is the key to ensuring its safe and efficient operation. Traditional positioning technologies, such as the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), can provide relatively accurate positioning information in open environments. However, in areas where satellite signals are blocked, such as indoors and in urban canyons, the positioning accuracy will drop significantly. While positioning technologies such as WiFi and Bluetooth can, to a certain extent, make up for the deficiencies of GNSS, they still have limitations in terms of positioning accuracy and anti-interference ability. The emergence of UWB technology provides a new solution to the drone positioning problem.
UWB chips can use their high-precision ranging capabilities to obtain the position information of drones in real time. Its working principle is based on the Time of Flight (TOF) ranging technology. By measuring the flight time of UWB signals from the transmitting end to the receiving end and combining the signal propagation speed, the distance between two points can be accurately calculated. Since the UWB signal bandwidth is extremely wide and the pulse time width is extremely short, the ranging accuracy can reach the centimeter level. In a drone positioning system, multiple UWB base stations are usually deployed, and the drone is equipped with a UWB tag. By interacting with multiple base stations, the position of the drone in space can be accurately determined using the triangulation algorithm.
This centimeter-level positioning accuracy brings many advantages to the flight of drones in complex environments. In low-altitude flight scenarios, drones may need to shuttle between buildings and in forests. The high-precision positioning of UWB chips can help drones accurately avoid obstacles and ensure flight safety. In the field of logistics delivery, drones need to land accurately in small spaces such as warehouses and helipads. UWB technology can enable drones to dock accurately and improve delivery efficiency. In indoor environments, such as inspections in factories and shooting in exhibition halls, UWB chips can provide stable and reliable positioning support for drones, enabling them to fly along the 預定 route and complete various tasks.
UWB Chips Facilitating Drone Navigation and Obstacle Avoidance
In addition to positioning, navigation and obstacle avoidance are also important aspects of the drone flight process. UWB chips can not only provide accurate position information but also provide strong support for the navigation and obstacle avoidance functions of drones.
In terms of navigation, UWB chips combined with the drone's flight control system can achieve more accurate path planning and flight control. Through the real-time obtained position information, the flight control system can dynamically adjust the flight attitude and speed of the drone according to the preset task objectives to ensure that the drone flies along the optimal path. When carrying out aerial photography tasks, drones need to fly along a specific route to obtain complete and clear images. UWB chips can help drones accurately stay on the preset route, avoiding route deviations caused by positioning errors, thus improving the quality of aerial photography.
The role of UWB chips in obstacle avoidance functions is also significant. During the flight of a drone, it may encounter various obstacles, such as trees, buildings, and power lines. Traditional obstacle avoidance technologies, such as visual obstacle avoidance and ultrasonic obstacle avoidance, may have certain limitations in complex environments. The addition of UWB technology provides a new dimension for drone obstacle avoidance. UWB chips can monitor the distance between the drone and surrounding obstacles in real time. When a too-close distance is detected, a signal is sent to the flight control system in a timely manner, and the flight control system will automatically adjust the flight direction of the drone to avoid obstacles. Compared with other obstacle avoidance technologies, UWB obstacle avoidance has the advantages of fast response speed, high accuracy, and being unaffected by light and weather, and can ensure the flight safety of drones in various complex environments.
Application of UWB Chips in Drone Communication
During the flight of a drone, it needs to communicate in real time with the ground control station, other drones, and surrounding devices to transmit flight data, image information, etc. UWB technology also has unique advantages in the field of drone communication.
UWB technology can achieve high-speed data transmission. The bandwidth it uses is above 500MHz, and it can send large data packets in a short time. In contrast, Bluetooth is usually limited to 20MHz. In application scenarios such as high-definition video transmission of drones and uploading a large amount of flight data, UWB chips can ensure the fast and stable transmission of data and avoid phenomena such as freezing and delay. When an aerial photography drone transmits the real-time captured high-definition video back to the ground control station, the UWB chip can ensure the smoothness of the video screen, allowing the operator to obtain the captured screen in a timely and accurate manner and make corresponding decisions.
At the same time, UWB communication has strong anti-interference ability. In complex electromagnetic environments, such as city centers and industrial areas, various wireless signals are intertwined, which is likely to interfere with drone communication. Due to its unique pulse characteristics, UWB signals can resist external interference to a certain extent and maintain the stability of communication. This enables drones to still communicate reliably with the outside world in these complex environments and ensures the smooth progress of flight tasks.
In addition, the security of UWB communication also provides a guarantee for drone communication. Since UWB has a low transmit signal power spectral density and a low interception rate, it is not easy to be illegally monitored and interfered with, effectively protecting the data security during drone communication. In some application scenarios with high requirements for information security, such as military reconnaissance and confidential communication, this advantage of UWB chips is particularly important.
