Reliability of UAV Connectivity in Dual-MNO Networks: A Performance Measurement Campaign

Abstract

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be controlled in beyond-visual-line-of-sight use cases via today's commercial mobile network operator (MNO) deployments, such as those based on long-term evolution (LTE) technology. In order to improve the reliability of UAV connectivity, especially in more critical use cases, several MNO networks may be utilized simultaneously. To evaluate this option in typical environments, performance measurements were conducted over two public LTE networks in urban, suburban, and rural areas in/near the city of Tampere, Finland, and at various UAV flight altitudes: 1 m, 15-20 m, and 50 m above the ground. The results indicate that there are distinct benefits in utilizing more than one MNO for improved levels of connection reliability.

Multipath Transport Analysis Over Cellular and LEO Access for Aerial Vehicles

“…Utilizing multiple links redundantly is particularly effective in improving the communication reliability in drone applications. In this regard, the studies [3], [4], [11] propose to use multiple cellular links to achieve this goal. Performing real-life measurements with a drone, the authors of [4] highlight that utilizing dual connectivity via different Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) can achieve 99.9% communication reliability compared with 97.6% reliability of a single-link connectivity.…”

“…The latest 3 rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards include the Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTNs) in the study items [7], [8], and emergent Lowearth Orbit (LEO) constellations, such as Starlink [9] and OneWeb [10], provide high-throughput services over LEO links. Although various studies evaluate the potential of cellular networks toward next-generation aerial use cases [3], [4], [11], [12], a research gap exists in understanding the joint performance of cellular and satellite networks in a MP fashion to evaluate their suitability toward safety-critical aerial applications. In addition, suitable MP transport algorithms should be explored to efficiently orchestrate cellular and LEO links.…”