2025CSC466-GroupProject

CSC466 Group Project: Optimal Routing Protocol and Deployment Strategy for Multi-UAV Relay Networks

This repository contains public coursework artifacts for a CSC466 group project on multi-UAV relay networks and Flying Ad Hoc Networks (FANETs). The project uses OMNeT++ 6.1 to model how UAV relay nodes can support resilient communications when terrestrial infrastructure is disrupted or unavailable.

Project Context

Communication infrastructure is vulnerable during natural disasters, large-scale outages, and military or emergency-response scenarios. Ground-based cellular and wired networks may become unavailable, while satellite communication can be expensive, high-latency, or dependent on specialized terminals.

Multi-UAV relay networks provide a rapidly deployable alternative. UAVs can act as relay nodes, gateway nodes, or aerial base-station nodes to extend connectivity for ground users. This project studies how deployment strategy and routing behavior affect coverage, connectivity, latency, and communication reliability.

Research Objectives

The project focuses on two related questions:

1. UAV deployment strategy
   • Explore how UAV placement affects ground-user coverage and network connectivity.
   • Consider dynamic deployment requirements where UAV positions may need to adapt to changing connectivity conditions.
   • Evaluate coverage, hop count, and network fragmentation risks.
2. Routing protocol behavior
   • Study routing behavior in a multi-hop UAV relay network.
   • Consider challenges such as topology changes, wireless interference, and latency.
   • Compare routing approaches such as AODV and OLSR as reference protocols for UAV network evaluation.

Simulation Scenario

The simulation models a Vancouver Island communication scenario in which a ground user near UVic communicates with a ground station in Vancouver through UAV relay nodes.

Key simulation assumptions:

• Simulator: OMNeT++ 6.1
• Network type: Multi-UAV relay network / FANET
• UAV count: 6 relay UAVs
• Connectivity model: line-of-sight communication
• Traffic model: PingApp traffic generated at regular intervals
• Ground user range: 3 km
• UAV communication range: 30 km
• Ground station range: 50 km

Network Roles

• Sender / ground user: Generates application traffic.
• Receiver / ground station: Receives traffic and represents the connection to the wider network.
• Gateway UAV: Connects the UAV swarm to the ground station based on proximity and connectivity.
• Mesh UAVs: Provide multi-hop relay paths for packet forwarding.
• LTE/5G base-station UAV: Represents a mobile aerial access point for ground users.

Design Challenges

The project examines several limitations of UAV relay networks:

• Wireless backhaul capacity may degrade as hop count increases.
• UAV mobility can change topology and routing paths over time.
• Line-of-sight constraints, weather, obstacles, and radio interference may reduce reliability.
• Routing and channel decisions must balance coverage, latency, and stability.

Repository Contents

• uav/ - OMNeT++ simulation files and project implementation artifacts.
• img/ - project images and simulation screenshots.
• References/ - supporting reference material.
• update/ - project update materials.

Notes

This repository is a public-facing coursework artifact. It is intended to document the simulation concept, implementation context, and research direction for the CSC466 group project rather than to serve as a production networking system.