3-D printed Helical Antenna for UAV Transmission Signal Direction of Arrival (DoA) Detection

In this paper, we present the implementation of a 3-D printed helical antenna operating at 5.9 GHz, intended for the detection of the direction of arrival (DoA) of a received signal that is transmitted from a flying Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The ground based receiver consists of four identical 3D printed helical antennas which have four different ports. Based on the differential signal from the four directive antennas as they are interpreted by RSSI receivers, the directivity of the four elements array is aligned with the DoA. The rotation of the system is achieved using two servomotors which are controlled by one Arduino based microcontroller. The current paper discusses the fabrication of the supportive cylinder of the helical antennas and the challenges that were encountered during the use of a filament 3D printer and a resin 3D printer. Radiation pattern and gain simulations, and the conducted S
₁₁
measurements verify that the fabrication of helical antennas using 3D printing is both predictable and reliable.