Towards 6G Energy Sustainability: Effect of a Reduced UAV Power Control Factor on Downlink Transmission

Abstract

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have emerged as crucial components of 5G Internet of Things (IoT) networks, expanding coverage and capacity in various applications. While prior research has extensively examined the impact of power control factor adjustments on UAV uplink transmission, limited attention has been devoted to UAV downlink transmission, which is vital for seamless connectivity and quality of service. In this study, we address this research gap by investigating the effects of reduced power control factors on UAV downlink transmission. We use MATLAB simulations to model how user equipment (UE) is randomly placed in a UAV network. We then check the coverage probability and spectral efficiency for UAV altitudes between 200 and 500 m, taking into account different power control factors in the downlink transmission. Our findings show that a certain threshold of 0.05 for the power control factor keeps coverage probabilities at different heights, making sure that served UEs have enough signal strength. Surprisingly, there is no significant change in spectral efficiency when compared to the baseline results. This means that lowering the power control factor does not hurt spectral efficiency in UAV downlink transmission. These results help us figure out how to make UAV communication work better in 5G IoT networks. They also help us make smart choices about how to change the power to make up for lost downlink signals while keeping the quality of service high. Moreover, our study lays the groundwork for future research in UAV deployment and communication optimization within advanced wireless networks.