Energy-efficient UAV-wireless networks for data collection

Abstract

In this study, a singular unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is utilized to gather data from a set of ground sensors in wireless networks. The main objective is to minimize the total energy consumption of the ground sensors by finding the UAV’s optimal trajectory through an optimization problem. Two distinct channel models are implemented to represent the connection between the UAV and the sensors, which are compatible with fourth-generation (4G), fifth-generation (5G), and beyond 5G (B5G) systems. The optimization problem’s constraints involve ensuring the quality of service (QoS) and limiting the transmitted power of each ground sensor. To solve the intractable optimization problem, three different approaches are employed to obtain the UAV’s trajectory: (1) exhaustive search (ES) approach, (2) particle swarm optimization (PSO) approach, and (3) fixed placement approach. Finally, the proposed approaches’ effectiveness is validated using simulation results.