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BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article

Front. Phys.
Sec. Optics and Photonics
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphy.2025.1546228
This article is part of the Research Topic Advanced Methods in Exploring Light-Matter Interactions and Their Applications View all 5 articles

Numerical investigation of infrared imaging of multi-UAV formation under cloud and rain weather conditions

Provisionally accepted
Wenqiang Gao Wenqiang Gao 1Teng Zhang Teng Zhang 1*Enling Tang Enling Tang 1,2*Pengjun Zhang Pengjun Zhang 1*Qinglin Niu Qinglin Niu 1
  • 1 North University of China, Taiyuan, China
  • 2 Shenyang Ligong University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Infrared imaging is essential for detecting multiple unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) targets detection to capture flight altitude and behavior. This study focused on a typical stealth UAV formation with a flying-wing configuration. Considering the attenuation effects of clouds and rain on the infrared spectrum, a ground-based infrared imaging algorithm was developed. Infrared radiation imaging was conducted using the apparent ray tracing method and mesh clipping technology. The infrared radiation intensity distribution of the UAV formation target within the 8.0-12.0 μm band was calculated, and infrared thermal images incorporating the occlusion effect were obtained. The results showed that the radiance of the multi-UAV formation was approximately 8.0×10 -5 W/Sr, which was 10 3 -10 4 orders of magnitude lower than that under standard atmospheric conditions under cloudy weather conditions. The infrared radiance was approximately 1.7×10 -5 W/Sr, which was 10 4 -10 5 lower than that under standard atmospheric conditions under rainy weather conditions.

    Keywords: ground-based infrared thermography, UAV formation, cloud and rain weather, Atmospheric transmittance, mesh clipping

    Received: 16 Dec 2024; Accepted: 06 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Gao, Zhang, Tang, Zhang and Niu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Teng Zhang, North University of China, Taiyuan, China
    Enling Tang, North University of China, Taiyuan, China
    Pengjun Zhang, North University of China, Taiyuan, China

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