Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithms for Altitude and Transmit Power Adjustments in UAV-Assisted Cellular Networks

After providing ubiquitous and high-speed network connectivity to mobile users, cellular operators are exploring unique domains to extend the reach of cellular networks. In this direction, the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has received significant interest from both industry and academia. UAVs equipped with a transceiver module can act as relays and/or base stations to extend coverage and provide line-of-sight connectivity to mobile users, especially during emergencies such as earthquakes and floods. To reap the gains of UAV-based cellular networks, deployment and operational parameters of UAVs such as altitude and transmit power need to be carefully controlled. In this paper, we propose two algorithms for independently adjusting the altitude and transmit power of UAVs to maximize the system throughput. These algorithms are based on Particle Swarm Optimization and are shown to quickly converge to a better solution when compared to the traditional fixed altitude and fixed transmit power approaches.