Unleashing the Potential of Tethered Drones

August 19, 2020

TUAVs could potentially offload data during peak hours and shift their position around the clock to cover varying traffic distribution throughout the day. (© 2020 KAUST; Xavier Pita)

Wire-connected drones are a powerful new tool for improving cellular phone and Internet networks. Fitted with cellular transceivers, tethered drones could quickly be deployed to replace inoperable base stations and restore mobile coverage.

Tethered to tall buildings, they would offload data during peak hours and shift their position around the clock to cover varying traffic distribution throughout the day. In rural areas, high-flying TUAVs promise a more viable alternative to expensive, tall towers needed to provide coverage to large but sparsely populated regions.