Handover Management in UAV Networks With Blockages

We investigate the performance of UAV-based networks in urban environments characterized by blockages, focusing on their capability to support the service demands of mobile users. The UAVbase stations (UAV-BSs) are modeled using a 2D marked-Poisson point process (MPPP), where the marks represent the altitude of each UAV-BS. Leveraging stochastic geometry, we analyze the impact of blockages on network reliability by studying the meta distribution (MD) of the SINR for a specific reliability threshold and the association probabilities for both LoS and NLoS UAV-BSs. Furthermore, to enhance the performance of mobile users, we propose a novel cache-based handover (HO) management strategy that dynamically selects the cell search time and delays the received signal strength (RSS)-based base station associations. This strategy aims to minimize unnecessary HOs experienced by users by leveraging caching capabilities at user equipment (UE), thus reducing latency, ensuring seamless connectivity, and maintaining the quality of service (QoS). This study provides valuable insights into optimizing UAV network deployments to support the stringent requirements of the network, ensuring reliable, low-latency, and high-throughput communication for next-generation smart cities.