Communications-Aware NMPC for Multi-Rotor Aerial Relay Networks Under Jamming Interference

2026-03-30

AI Summary

This work addresses the challenge of communication link disruption in multirotor aerial vehicles caused by strong coupling between vehicle attitude and antenna pointing, particularly under coplanar configurations where maneuvers can break connectivity. To mitigate this, the authors propose a communication-aware hierarchical control framework: at the high level, a max-min optimization maximizes the capacity of the weakest communication link, while at the low level, a nonlinear model predictive controller (NMPC) simultaneously enforces dynamic feasibility, actuator constraints, and antenna alignment requirements. The approach innovatively embeds a geometric model of antenna directionality directly into the NMPC formulation, circumventing explicit radiation pattern parameterization, and highlights the critical role of fully-actuated vehicle configurations in sustaining reliable links. Experimental results in an active interference relay scenario demonstrate nearly two orders of magnitude improvement in end-to-end minimum link capacity, significantly reduced outages, and consistent maintenance of feasible communication links through tilt-enabled platforms.

Abstract

Multi-Rotor Aerial Vehicles (MRAVs) are increasingly used in communication-dependent missions where connectivity loss directly compromises task execution. Existing anti-jamming strategies often decouple motion from communication, overlooking that link quality depends on vehicle attitude and antenna orientation. In coplanar platforms, "tilt-to-translate" maneuvers can inadvertently align antenna nulls with communication partners, causing severe degradation under interference. This paper presents a modular communications-aware control framework that combines a high-level max-min trajectory generator with an actuator-level Nonlinear Model Predictive Controller (NMPC). The trajectory layer optimizes the weakest link under jamming, while the NMPC enforces vehicle dynamics, actuator limits, and antenna-alignment constraints. Antenna directionality is handled geometrically, avoiding explicit radiation-pattern parametrization. The method is evaluated in a relay scenario with an active jammer and compared across coplanar and tilted-propeller architectures. Results show a near two-order-of-magnitude increase in minimum end-to-end capacity, markedly reducing outage events, with moderate average-capacity gains. Tilted platforms preserve feasibility and link quality, whereas coplanar vehicles show recurrent degradation. These findings indicate that full actuation is a key enabler of reliable communications-aware operation under adversarial directional constraints.

Problem

• multi-rotor aerial vehicles
• jamming interference
• communications-aware control
• antenna orientation
• relay networks

Innovation

• communications-aware control
• Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC)
• antenna alignment
• multi-rotor aerial relay
• jamming resilience