ORCID

0000-0002-5199-6536

Keywords

Pointing, Acquisition, and Tracking (PAT); Directional Wireless Communication; Free-space Optical Communication; aerial systems; UAV; Discrete-event simulator

Subject Categories

Aerospace Engineering | Electrical and Computer Engineering | Systems and Communications

Abstract

Mobile highly directional links operating super-6 GHz bands, such as optical bands, promise high-throughput, low-latency, and low-probability-of-detection/intercept connectivity for aerial platforms, yet their practical utility hinges on fast, robust, and in-band optical pointing, acquisition, and tracking (PAT). This dissertation, with a focus on free-space optical (FSO) links, develops a system-level framework for in-band PAT between mechanically steered UAV nodes, link-budget, and kinematic constraints. First, we formulate in-band acquisition as a stochastic search under directional belief and propose a randomized steering policy that samples scan set-points from optimized Beta distributions, with parameters tuned via metaheuristics. Second, we specify an in-band full-duplex (IBFD) handshake and analyze feasibility bounds that couple packet timing, beam divergence, and admissible angular rates, yielding actionable requirements for aerial hardware and geometry. Third, we ground pointing-error models in reality by constructing a measurement-driven motion channel from a UAV vibration study that maps micro-motion and jitter into beam-footprint statistics in the optical bands. These elements are unified in a discrete-event simulator that co-integrates steering dynamics, the in-band handshake, and closed-loop tracking to enable reproducible, end-to-end evaluation. Simulations informed by measured vibration show consistently faster acquisition than helical/raster baselines across a range of priors and dynamics, and produce practical design rules for divergence, receiver field-of-view (FOV), and steering rates. The resulting methodology provides a coherent path from algorithmic novelty to deployable aerial highly directional links, and sets the stage for cooperative multi-node discovery and learning-augmented priors.

Completion Date

2026

Semester

Summer

Committee Chair

Yuksel, Murat

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Department

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Format

PDF

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

Release Date

8-15-2027

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Available for download on Sunday, August 15, 2027

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