Work / 04

UWB Communication System for Modular UAVs

A modular communication system for drones using ultra-wideband (UWB) technology. Real-time links between the flight controller and the ESCs replace the wiring, so rotor modules can attach to the payload itself.

My contribution: one of four student contributors, and third author of the IEEE CASE 2024 paper.

1 Overview and key features

The project designs and implements a modular communication system for drones using UWB technology. The system enables real-time communication between the flight controller and the ESCs, overcoming the limits of traditional wiring. It is suitable for advanced logistics applications and highly customizable UAV configurations.

**Table 1** Key features, as documented
Feature	Specification
Modular design	Supports tricopter, quadcopter and hexacopter setups
UWB communication	Decawave DWM1001C at 6489.6 MHz, 499.2 MHz bandwidth, up to 6.8 Mbps
Latency	End-to-end delay within about 5 ms for motor control, validated in simulation and real-world tests

2 System architecture

A master module captures the PWM signals from the flight controller. Several slave modules, each with its own ESC, motor and UWB receiver, reproduce them. The slaves synchronize motor control using PWM triggered by a sync signal from the master.

System architecture: a master module (battery, flight controller with radio and sensors, PWM to a UWB transmitter) broadcasts a TX message of address and duty-cycle pairs to four slave modules, each with a battery, a UWB receiver with its own address, an ESC and a motor. — **Fig. 1** System architecture. The master module turns the flight controller's PWM outputs into one TX message of address and duty-cycle pairs; each slave module's receiver picks its own address and drives its ESC and motor.

3 Results

Experiments show stable flight despite the wireless delays introduced. Hardware-in-the-loop simulations confirm robust control even around the 5 ms delay threshold, consistent with the real-world outcomes.

Fig. 2 Outdoor flight: rotor modules on a box, no frame. 24 s, no sound, 1.5 MB.

4 Research context: “Anything is a drone”

Developed within the Embedded Systems Lab at the University of Trento (UniTrento DII), the project explores how any object can become a flying platform using modular, wireless UWB-based propulsion units. The concept removes the traditional frame and cables: the payload itself becomes the drone's structure.

Modular plug-and-play propeller units.
Wireless communication between controller and rotors.
Dynamic frame concept: the payload becomes the structure.
Scalable and energy-efficient design for flexible missions.

Developed within the EES Lab as part of the Embedded Systems course, based on the University of Trento patent “Wireless Control for Reconfigurable and/or Frameless Autonomous Vehicles”.

Fig. 3 “Anything is a drone”: the modular wireless UAV prototype (YouTube).

5 Publication and resources

Published at the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering (CASE): design and experimental validation of a wireless modular UAV architecture.