V.N. Kharisov1, V.S. Pavlov2, P.I. Bakulina3, A.Yu. Fedorov4

1-3 Moscow branch of JSC “VNIIR-Progress” (Moscow, Russia)

4 JSC “VNIIR-Progress” (Cheboksary, Russia).

1 vkharisov@abselectro.ru; 2 Vpavlov@abselectro.ru; 3 pshivrina@abselectro.ru; 4 ayfedorov@vniir.ru

To determine the position of a radio emission source, radio monitoring systems are known that consist of several spatially distributed radio receivers implementing angle-measuring or time-difference-of-arrival methods based on multi-position observations. A modern alternative is mobile systems based on unmanned aerial vehicles, where multi-positioning is achieved by sequentially receiving observations as the aircraft moves along its flight path. The use of digital antenna arrays mounted on an aircraft as a direction-finding system for obtaining bearings to a radio emission source is particularly promising.

In the case of a mobile system with sequential observations, the classical time-difference-of-arrival method is not applicable due to the lack of correlation between signals received at different points along the trajectory at significantly different times. Therefore, an angle-of-arrival method based on a digital antenna array installed on an unmanned aerial vehicle was selected to solve this problem, with coordinates estimated using the maximum likelihood estimation criterion. The synthesized algorithm utilizes likelihood functionals of bearings obtained at various points to calculate the coordinates. This approach differs from the standard direction-finding method, in which angle estimates to the target are measured from different points in space, and coordinates are subsequently estimated based on these measurements. Such algorithms are referred to as single-stage, as opposed to two-stage algorithms, where coordinates are estimated based on bearing angle estimates obtained at different points.

Studies of the algorithm demonstrate that under challenging conditions, with bearing errors of approximately 10°, an error in determining the position of the radio emission source on the order of tens of meters can be achieved, with an average distance of several kilometers between the source and the unmanned aerial vehicle. A full-scale experiment generally confirmed the operability of the algorithm. The error in determining the coordinates of the radio emission source was 107 meters, with a root mean square direction-finding error of 20°, excluding anomalous measurements. The discrepancy between the experimental and theoretical characteristics can be attributed to inaccuracies in the orientation of the aircraft.

Kharisov V.N., Pavlov V.S., Bakulina P.I., Fedorov A.Yu. Radio source localization using a digital antenna array. Radiotekhnika. 2025. V. 89. № 10. P. 173−183. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18127/j00338486-202510-21 (In Russian)

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