Aerial Edge Computing: A Survey

In the beyond 5G/6G era, aerial edge computing (AEC) is expected to be used as significant components in Internet of Things. AEC brings flexible deployment with Line-of-Sight communication links for task offloading and computing services. In this article, we present a comprehensive survey of the AEC technology. First, we introduce a three-layer architecture of AEC, which includes the satellite, unmanned aircraft vehicles, and ground terminals. Second, we illustrate challenges in AEC, and summarize recent studies in terms of AEC performance metrics that include energy efficiency, latency, and operation cost to address challenges in AEC. Further, we introduce the advanced technologies applied in AEC management, e.g., artificial intelligence (AI) and the distributed optimization. Finally, the applications and the open issues with AEC are summarized and classified in the study.