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REVIEW article

Front. Comms. Net.
Sec. Aerial and Space Networks
Volume 5 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/frcmn.2024.1286073
This article is part of the Research Topic An Aerial and Space Networks Perspective on SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure View all 3 articles

A Systematic Literature Review on the Role of UAV-Enabled Communications in Advancing the UN's Sustainable Development Goals

Provisionally accepted
Ihsane Gryech Ihsane Gryech 1*Evgenii Vinogradov Evgenii Vinogradov 1,2Abdul Saboor Abdul Saboor 1Petros S. Bithas Petros S. Bithas 3P. Takis Mathiopoulos P. Takis Mathiopoulos 3Sofie Pollin Sofie Pollin 1
  • 1 Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
  • 2 Technology Innovation Institute (TII), Masdar City, United Arab Emirates
  • 3 National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, show great potential in advancing the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a collection of 17 worldwide targets outlined by the United Nations (UN) to tackle diverse social, economic, and environmental issues and foster sustainable development by 2030. As per the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), UAVs can significantly improve areas of sustainability like wildlife and wildfire monitoring, precision agriculture, as well as healthcare. Furthermore, drones with communication capabilities are seen as key elements of non-terrestrial networks, and as enabling technologies for future 6G communication networks.This systematic literature review focuses on the role of UAV-enabled communications to achieve the SDGs. Our study is based on a thorough selection and analysis of scientific articles. Initially, we performed a broad search across three major databases: IEEE Xplore, Web of Science, and Scopus, yielding a set of 10499 papers. Following a strict selection methodology (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis -PRISMA), we narrowed this set down to 28 key journal articles.Our analysis highlights six global targets that greatly benefit from UAV-enabled aerial communication. In order of impact, these are: 'Sustainable Cities and Communities', where UAVs improve security and disaster management; 'Life on Land', where drones help with wildlife monitoring and reforestation; 'Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure', where UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) aid in infrastructure inspection; 'No Hunger', where drones improve agricultural practices; 'Good Health and Well-being', where UAVs assist with disease prediction and monitoring; and 'Clean water and sanitation', where drones play a crucial role in efficiently monitoring water quality and distribution.In summary, this paper offers a detailed look at the applications of UAVs in achieving the SDGs through aerial communications. By identifying areas of major impact and spotting gaps and weaknesses in current research, this review article aims to guide future research and policy-making in sustainable drone applications.1 Gryech et al.

    Keywords: aerial communication, Drones, Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, Sustainable cities, Sustainable development goals, unmanned aerial vehicles

    Received: 30 Aug 2023; Accepted: 24 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Gryech, Vinogradov, Saboor, Bithas, Mathiopoulos and Pollin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Ihsane Gryech, Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.