Abstract
The paper presents a long range data acquisition chain operating in areas without access to the electricity grid or communication infrastructure built with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). It is assumed that the length of the network chain significantly exceeds the flight range of a single drone. To build such a network three basic problems have to be solved. The first is energy harvesting for battery charging. The second concerns the choice of drone models that can cover a given distance in the shortest time. The third problem is the reduction of the flight range of drones as a function of payload mass. The evaluation of the proposed method is based on the results of simulations and cost analysis of 54 drones and 25 solar cells. The analysis ends with a proposition of seven steps that can help to choose the most suitable drone model for a given task.
Highlights
As a result of rapid technological progress, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have become more and more popular
The authors of this paper, in response to the statement presented by Zhou et al [22]: “industrial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which enable autonomous inspection and measurement of anything anytime anywhere”, propose to use a chain of drones to collect data for non-urbanized areas without electricity access, inaccessible to a single drone because of its limited range or unacceptable costs
The results described in this manuscript could be compared with known studies results in terms of single drone flight time carrying a payload with a given mass
Summary
As a result of rapid technological progress, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have become more and more popular. The literature describes a drone as an unmanned aerial vehicle which does not require a pilot presence on board. The authors of this paper, in response to the statement presented by Zhou et al [22]: “industrial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which enable autonomous inspection and measurement of anything anytime anywhere”, propose to use a chain of drones to collect data for non-urbanized areas without electricity access, inaccessible to a single drone because of its limited range or unacceptable costs. An unquestionable advantage of drones is the possibility to reach inaccessible places on Earth in a relatively short time Using sensors, they can monitor the environment at such places with simultaneous transmission of data to a base station. RRP needs extra time to discover the route and PRP has a huge excess of control messages
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