Evaluation of Frequency Separation For Datalink in Swarm Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)

Floods in Malaysia have become a recurring annual phenomenon, mainly triggered by the north-east monsoon from November to March, affecting the east coast region. This study addresses the challenges of Search and Rescue (SAR) operations in flood-related situations, given the shortage of manpower and limited assets for rescue operations. To overcome these limitations, the research proposes utilizing a swarm of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to assist authorities in SAR activities. Successful implementation of the swarm UAV system necessitates high-performance wireless communication for real-time command and control (C&C) during safe operations and efficient payload communication with ground pilots/users. This research aims to evaluate connection stability by utilizing a frequency separation method to assess the impact of distance and frequency on connectivity. Specifically, the study compares the range of UAVs operating at 433 MHz and 915 MHz in relation to the ground station. The connection stability is measured using the Received Signal Strength Index (RSSI) from five different UAVs. The experimental work employs the ArduPilot platform, with UAVs equipped with essential hardware components such as a flight controller, radio telemetry, and a GPS module, while software tools like QGroundControl and Mission Planner are used for UAV control and mission planning. The outcomes indicate that combining frequencies leads to improved connectivity for swarm UAV applications, primarily due to the wider bandwidth availability, offering valuable insights for optimizing UAV-assisted SAR operations in flood-prone areas.