Abstract
In recent years, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have received considerable attention from regulators, industry and research community, due to rapid growth in a broad range of applications. Particularly, UAVs are being used to provide a promising solution to reliable and cost-effective wireless communications from the sky. The deployment of UAVs has been regarded as an alternative complement of existing cellular systems, to achieve higher transmission efficiency with enhanced coverage and capacity. However, heavily utilized microwave spectrum bands below 6 GHz utilized by legacy wireless systems are insufficient to attain remarkable data rate enhancement for numerous emerging applications. To resolve the spectrum crunch crisis and satisfy the requirements of 5G and beyond mobile communications, one potential solution is to use the abundance of unoccupied bandwidth available at millimeter wave (mmWave) frequencies. Inspired by the technique potentials, mmWave communications have also paved the way into the widespread use of UAVs to assist wireless networks for future 5G and beyond wireless applications. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive survey on current achievements in the integration of 5G mmWave communications into UAV-assisted wireless networks. More precisely, a taxonomy to classify the existing research issues is presented, by considering seven cutting-edge solutions. Subsequently, we provide a brief overview of 5G mmWave communications for UAV-assisted wireless networks from two aspects, i.e., key technical advantages and challenges as well as potential applications. Based on the proposed taxonomy, we further discuss in detail the state-of-the-art issues, solutions, and open challenges for this newly emerging area. Lastly, we complete this survey by pointing out open issues and shedding new light on future directions for further research on this area.
Highlights
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), popularly known as drones, refer to a class of aircrafts that operates without a human pilot aboard
We focus on the scenario of the combination of 5G millimeter wave (mmWave) communications with UAV-assisted wireless networks and the emerging studies related to the integration of these two important areas
In this paper, we have presented a comprehensive literature survey focusing on the current state-of-the-art achievements in the integration of 5G mmWave communications into UAV-assisted wireless networks
Summary
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), popularly known as drones, refer to a class of aircrafts that operates without a human pilot aboard. Drones are deployed as access networks for ground D2D transmitters (TXs) and receivers (RXs) (i.e., D2D pairs) at hotspot areas to provide additional capacity without the support of terrestrial BSs. There is no doubt that the use of mmWave frequencies will be definitely a very promising way for UAV-assisted wireless networks to sustain ultra-high-speed and real-time transmissions for future 5G and B5G wireless applications. This motivates us to deliver a detailed survey with the objective to give a comprehensive summary of current achievements in the integration of 5G mmWave communications into UAV-assisted wireless networks, and to discuss the state-of-the-art issues, solutions, and open challenges in this newly emerging area
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
