Aspects of the disclosure provide for a method. The method includes detecting, by one or more processors, a misalignment between a first optical system of a first communication device and a second optical system of a second communication device; rotating, by the one or more processors, the first optical system according to a primary search pattern and the second optical system according to a secondary search pattern, the primary search pattern including keeping the first optical system fixed for a set amount of time, and the secondary search pattern comprising a series of positions ordered in increasing distance from a starting position; capturing, by the one or more processors, a set of frames at the second communication device; determining, by the one or more processors, whether a beacon beam transmitted from the first communication device is detected in one or more of the captured frames at the second communication device; and forming, by the one or more processors, a communication link between the first communication device and the second communication device when the beacon beam is detected.

In one example, the set amount of time that the first optical system is fixed is a length of time that the secondary search pattern takes to complete one cycle. In another example, the primary search pattern is a series of positions forming concentric circles centered on the starting beacon position of the primary device.