Estimation and Validation of the 3D Smooth-Turn Mobility Model for Airborne Networks

The simulation and evaluation of networking protocols for airborne networks (ANs) require accurate random mobility models. In our previous studies, we developed a 3D smooth-turn (ST) random mobility model that captures the smoothness of aerial trajectories. The model follows physical laws that govern the spatiotemporal correlation of aerial turns. In this paper, we suggest an estimation procedure to extract parameters in the model from real flight test data. The good match between the estimated trajectories and real flight trajectories also validates the suitability of this model for ANs. The 3D ST random mobility model and the estimation procedure lead to the creation of "realistic" simulation and evaluation environment for airborne networks.