The rapid evolution of 5G and beyond has advanced space-air-terrestrial networks, with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) offering enhanced coverage, flexible configurations, and cost efficiency. However, deploying UAV-based systems presents challenges including varying propagation conditions and hardware limitations. While simulators and theoretical models have been developed, real-world experimentation is critically important to validate the research. Digital twins, virtual replicas of physical systems, enable emulation that bridge theory and practice. This paper presents our experimental results from AERPAW's digital twin, showcasing its ability to simulate UAV communication scenarios and providing insights into system performance and reliability.

翻译：5G及后续技术的快速发展推动了空天地一体化网络的演进，其中无人机凭借其增强的覆盖能力、灵活的配置方式以及成本效益展现出显著优势。然而，无人机系统的实际部署面临诸多挑战，包括多变的传播条件和硬件限制。尽管已有多种仿真器和理论模型被开发出来，但通过真实世界实验验证研究成果仍至关重要。数字孪生作为物理系统的虚拟副本，能够实现连接理论与实践的仿真。本文展示了我们在AERPAW数字孪生平台上取得的实验结果，证明了其模拟无人机通信场景的能力，并为系统性能与可靠性提供了深入见解。