--With increased 5G deployments, network densification is higher than ever to support the exponentially high throughput requirements. However, this has meant a significant increase in energy consumption, leading to higher operational expenditure (OpEx) for network operators creating an acute need for improvements in network energy savings (NES). A key determinant of operational efficacy in cellular networks is the user association (UA) policy, as it affects critical aspects like spectral efficiency, load balancing etc. and therefore impacts the overall energy consumption of the network directly. Furthermore, with cellular network topologies lending themselves well to graphical abstractions, use of graphs in network optimization has gained significant prominence. In this work, we propose and analyze a graphical abstraction based optimization for UA in cellular networks to improve NES by determining when energy saving features like cell switch off can be activated. A comparison with legacy approaches establishes the superiority of the proposed approach. With the fifth generation (5G) and beyond 5G (B5G) roll-out, various use cases have been enabled that go beyond just providing connectivity for mobile devices.

Verizon is using a fleet of drones over southwest Florida to provide cellular connectivity to first responders who working around the clock in search and rescue missions to find survivors who may be trapped inside one of the more than 400 buildings destroyed by Hurricane Ian. Tethered drones that can fly for up to 1,000 hours are beaming down 4G and 5G coverage for an approximate radius of five to seven miles. Cory Davis, National Director for Verizon Frontline's Response Team and Public Safety Operations, told DailyMail.com He explained that along with the drones, Verizon is using satellites that beam down internet from low Earth orbit, generators hitched to trailers and recently sent a portable cell site on a barge to Sanibel Island, which has been completely cut off by the hurricane. Ian hit Lee County, home to Fort Myers, the hardest and Verizon, which is calling the county'ground zero,' is using the most assets to provide communications for first responders who have rescued hundreds of people since the monster storm made landfall last week.

Upgrading to more efficient cellular radio towers could save enough electricity to power cities such as Phoenix, New Orleans or Seattle, according to a new study produced by US research firm J. Gold Associates. Annually, US cell sites use a total of almost 21 million megawatt hours (MWh) of power. That's the equivalent of the average power used by almost two million households. "Cellular services have become a critical infrastructure component of modern life. It's hard to imagine not being able to communicate on the go with our mobile devices, or increasingly through a wireless home gateway enabling Internet services to both residential and business customers," the report said.

Wireless operators spend millions of dollars every year paying for the electricity to power their cell sites and small cells. But there are new energy-saving features that are being developed that could make a dramatic difference in energy consumption. And these new features incorporate tools like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. In a new Ericsson white paper called "Breaking the Energy Curve," the company said that machine learning can be used to make certain network features more autonomous. Two of those features, MIMO Sleep Mode and Cell Sleep Mode, are using machine learning to study data traffic patterns and save operators money.

The latest appeal of unmanned aircraft is that they can be deployed in a variety of disaster-ravaged locations. An unmanned drone is prepared to take off March 8 at Woodbine Municipal Airport in South Jersey carrying a "femtocell" that Verizon can fly into an area that loses cellular coverage during a natural or other emergency. CAPE MAY COUNTY, N.J.-- Cell service get clobbered by a hurricane? The rash of devastating storms that knocked out power and phone service to millions in the U.S. last year laid bare how vulnerable those technological lifelines are to extreme weather. Some companies are trying to use one of this decade's coolest developments -- remote-controlled drones -- as a temporary fix.