Empowering smart cities: High-altitude platforms based Mobile Edge Computing and Wireless Power Transfer for efficient IoT data processing

This work presents an efficient framework that combines High Altitude Platform (HAP)-based Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) networks with Wireless Power Transfer (WPT) to optimize resource allocation and task offloading. With the proliferation of smart sensor nodes (IoT) generating real-time data, there is a pressing need to overcome device limitations, including finite battery life and computational resources. Our proposed framework leverages HAP-based MEC servers, offering on-demand computation and communication resources without extensive physical infrastructure. Additionally, WPT, through terrestrial networks, addresses IoT device battery constraints by enabling energy harvesting from nearby access points. The primary focus is joint optimization, aiming to maximize computing bits while minimizing energy consumption under system constraints. Given the optimization problem's complexity, we employ a decomposition approach, breaking it into sub-problems. The first part handles mode selection and task segmentation, determining optimal placement and mode selection variables. The second part addresses resource allocation, optimizing transmission power, offloading time, energy harvesting time, and device computational resources. Numerical results demonstrate the framework's effectiveness compared to relevant benchmark schemes. This approach holds promise for enhancing IoT device performance and energy efficiency in smart city applications.