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    Exploiting tethered and untethered UAVs: a hybrid aerial communication system


    Khemiri, Safa, Kishk, Mustafa A. and Alouini, Mohamed-Slim (2025) Exploiting tethered and untethered UAVs: a hybrid aerial communication system. Scientific Reports, 15 (1). ISSN 2045-2322

    Abstract

    Thanks to its flexibility and cost-effectiveness, an unmanned aerial vehicle-mounted base station (UAV-BS) is a promising technology for the upcoming 6G wireless networks. Furthermore, tethered UAVs (T-UAVs), which are powered via a tether by an energy source on the ground, can overcome the limited operation time of UAV-BS networks. Hence, T-UAVs sacrifice their mobility and flexibility to maintain long-lasting flight, unlike untethered UAVs (U-UAVs) that can not fly for more than 30 mins. To exploit the best of each type of UAV, the deployment of both T-UAVs and U-UAVs as aerial base stations is investigated. In this paper, we propose a hybrid system composed of tethered and untethered UAVs. We analyze the system by generating Monte Carlo simulations to find a compromise between the two different types of UAVs. Our results prove that for specific cases, the coexistence of tethered and untethered UAVs improves the performance of the system.
    Item Type: Article
    Keywords: tethered and untethered UAVs; hybrid aerial communication system;
    Academic Unit: Faculty of Science and Engineering > Electronic Engineering
    Item ID: 21263
    Identification Number: 10.1038/s41598-025-99761-8
    Depositing User: Mustafa Kishk
    Date Deposited: 02 Mar 2026 15:14
    Journal or Publication Title: Scientific Reports
    Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
    Refereed: Yes
    Related URLs:
    Use Licence: This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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