Drones in a telecom

Drones in the world and Russia

Main article: UAV

2020: Samsung started service of check of cellular towers by means of drones

On June 22, 2020 Samsung announced service of check of base stations by means of drones. Thanks to a new solution engineers can control work of hardware telecommunication infrastructure far off — without rising by cellular towers independently.

Development essence in the following: the specialist who is on the earth uses the smartphone with a special application for management the UAV which by means of the cameras mounted on it takes the picture of the antennas located, for example, on a building roof. The obtained visual data are available to print preview on phone screen and also go to a cloud server where a system with the help [[[artificial intelligence|[artificial intelligence]] and deep learning executes assessment of turning angles and an inclination of antennas whether having defined antennas were set correctly and under optimum angles.

Samsung presented the solution for optimization of performance of networks by means of UAVs

During demonstration it was shown that the solution of Samsung allows to cope with a task within 15 minutes – from start of the UAV before issue of results of measurements. For comparison, when using traditional methods with involvement of industrial climbers, the solution of similar tasks can take several hours.

Samsung will continue to add new features thanks to which engineers will be able to regulate far off slope angle of antennas for achievement of optimal provision, using for this purpose the mobile device and the computer.

Antennas of base stations usually are installed at big height, for example, on towers of cellular communication or roofs of buildings to provide an optimal covering of mobile communication. Field engineers technicians are forced to take with themselves the heavy and expensive equipment, rising by a mast, for measurement of a configuration.

Advantages of the solution in terms of security will be especially relevant when carrying out audit and maintenance of base stations where for check or adjustment of corners of the antenna it is necessary to send to a point several field specialists at once, and rise on a tower of communication should be performed by the certified employees who had expanded training according to the security regulation.^[1]

2018: Operators use drones for recovery of communication after natural disasters

At the end of June, 2018 it became known of what Verizon and also the competing AT&T company unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for recovery of communication after natural disasters began to use. Read more here.

2017: UAVs will provide communication services

According to the report of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), in 2015 57% of people around the world had no Internet access that means that two thirds of world's population are still not connected. Also will not be connected in the next years as construction of land telecommunication infrastructure to them will be more expensive, than potential income. The installation of traditional land infrastructure including the rights to a ground, the equipment, fiber optic cables / very high frequencies communications and access to power sources, is unprofitable here. In such regions much less potential clients and that to reach them, even more difficult infrastructure, and, despite a covering of more than 90% of the population of Earth will be required by networks 2G, increase in this indicator up to 100% when using traditional approaches seems improbable in the near future as investments of operators into creation of such traditional infrastructure will hardly pay off.

According to Json & Partners Consulting, the covering of the territory of Russia cellular networks makes about 10%. According to the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications, almost all localities are covered, but 1343 city settlements numbering inhabitants from 10 thousand to 500 thousand nevertheless are left without Internet access and mobile communication. Another 38%, or 6725 localities make the cities and villages where there is a voice cellular communication, but there is no both wire, and wireless Internet access. Therefore now for receiving communication services outside coverages of cellular networks, especially in hardly accessible areas satellite communication is, as a rule, used. Rates for satellite communication and data transmission are much higher than rates of mobile operators as design of satellites, their start and service require huge investments.

For the solution of needs for time expansion of network telecom operators use the mobile base stations (MBS) on wheels (COW, cow on wheels) or the mobile base stations (MBS). The feature of PBS consists in their big cost (lease can cost 170 thousand rubles/days), the size and limitation in application is normal in places with existence of highways. Therefore each of telecom operators, having tens of thousands of stationary BS, only several PBS own.

Rapid market development of consumer attached devices stimulated in recent years development of new miniature transmitters, antennas and standards of communication which allow to solve old problems in a new way. Now the need for permanent or time expansion of a coverage of a communication network can be implemented already not only at the expense of satellites or mobile BS, but also at the expense of more available solutions, for example UAVs (drones). Drones can become a part of telecommunication infrastructure of telecom operators, performing function of relaying of telecommunication signals. By estimates of PwC, the volume of the world market for implementing solutions using the UAV in the telecommunication industry is 6.3 billion US dollars in 2016.

Telecom operators do not use drones for relaying of telecommunication signals (radio, television, the Internet) on a permanent basis, but carry already out pilot starts of similar services. Large technology corporations (for example, Google, Facebook) buy the specialized companies and startups developing new technologies and on their base are going to start new telecom services. The expediency of use of drones for expansion of a covering of telecommunication services is connected with rather lower cost of such solutions in comparison with traditional base stations, lack of need of investments into land infrastructure and bigger universality of possible application.

By estimates of J'son & Partners, by 2020 cellular operators will use up to 3739 mobile base stations that on 1527 units or for 69% of stations it is more, than in 2016. Considering a gain the Internet of traffic in networks of mobile operators at the level of 40% for 2016 and its predicted increase more, than twice by 2020, operators will need increase in network transmission capacity and number of PBS/MBS. The most part from again purchased MBS there will be modern and compact stations of standards LTE/5G, including miniature MBS which can be attached on drones. Will depend on the strategy of each operator what there will be a share of these miniature MBS in the total number of MBS.

On the basis of the analysis of global trends in J'son & Partners Consulting selects the following options of expansions of telecommunication networks of mobile operators using drones:

• use of the attached drones
• use of drones for relaying of services in the territories which are not covered with communication networks;
• deployment of communication services based on groupings of atmospheric satellites.

Miniature MBS of the LTE standard (5G) which will allow to provide cellular communication and the Internet in places where access to a cellular network is limited or a signal of low-quality network and also in the remote areas and on special events become a basis of providing telecom services based on drones.

The attached drones

Use of the so-called "the attached drones" of Flying COWs (Cell on Wings) to which on strong, but very easy cable voltage from a ground station moves that it allows to hold them in air at specified height and in the pre-determined location almost unlimited time allows to solve problems of a local cellular covering in any territory. Besides, on a cable connection of MBS to broadband access channel on the earth is made that allows to use the normal serial equipment of type of femtocells and repeaters/boosters in the solution.

Facebook announced in June, 2017 completion of the second tests of massive Aquila drones in the desert Arizona. Robot planes rose by height of 1 km though the world's largest social network calculates that they will be able to clear the bar from 18 km to 27 km. The weight of the drone is 400 kg, and wingspan - 43 meters that it is more, than at Boeing-737. The project is implemented for the organization of a wireless internet in rural areas in which there is no access to cellular communication.

Atmospheric satellites

Atmospheric satellites can be used as as the single drones relaying a signal in a binding to the specific area and in the form of the whole grouping from tens, hundreds and even thousands of AS covering with a radio signal certain areas, the countries and the whole regions. As communication systems and transfer can be used by radio - or optic communication.

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