Comparative Analysis of Precise Positioning Methods for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

With the advancement of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), ensuring an object’s precise positioning has become one of the key challenges especially in environments with limited or no satellite signals. Purpose: to conduct a comparative analysis of Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) and Precise Point Positioning (PPP) methods to evaluate their effectiveness under various UAV operational conditions. Results: the study revealed that RTK provides high real-time accuracy when a base station is available making it suitable for tasks requiring rapid analytics, such as in urban agglomerations. In contrast, PPP enables autonomous positioning and is better suited for remote areas, though it requires an initialization period to achieve high accuracy. The comparison showed that both methods have unique advantages and limitations that define their applicability in different usage scenarios. Practical significance: the study’s findings can be used to optimize the selection and implementation of positioning systems in various industries, such as cartography, logistics, and environmental monitoring enhancing the efficiency and reliability of UAV operations. Discussion: further refinement of these methods is recommended to improve their effectiveness and expand their applications including integration with modern UAV control systems.