UAV-Based Far-Field Antenna Pattern Measurement Method for Polarimetric Weather Radars: Simulation and Error Analysis

Continuing advances and the availability of relatively inexpensive commercial off-the-shelf UAV systems allow the development of in-situ antenna measurement systems for a wide variety of operating frequencies and applications. This paper presents a simulation framework and error analysis that provides a guideline for in-situ far-field (FF) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based antenna measurements of operational and research antennas for polarimetric weather radar systems. The analysis includes system design trade-offs which allow the evaluation of antenna measurement errors due to UAV position, gimbal orientation, and extraneous error sources that can be present in a UAV-based field-testing scenario. Results analyzed for all cases provide error bounds and limitations for two example characterization schemes. The UAV-based antenna measurement system simulation and analysis suggests and supports the feasibility of such a system for antenna characterization and polarimetric calibration of antennas in the near future.