Smart Communication using UAVs and Metasurfaces

Different ways of smart communication to enhance mobility, flexibility, coverage and to achieve high Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) at the receiver in the case of Line of Sight (LoS) and Non-Line of Sight (NLoS) communication links are gaining a lot of attention. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) communication is predominantly based on LoS links, whereas technologies like Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS) and Intelligent Omni - Directional Surfaces (IOS) are based on NLoS links. The 6G supports various Internet of Things (IoT) based applications for smart communication with endless embedded sensors in our daily environment. This paper provides a comprehensive survey of various studies conducted for smart communication in 6G networks. Different techniques for UAV channel estimation have been suggested. It also promotes the use of blockchain technology and federated learning (FL) to increase the data storage in UAVs, security, and privacy features for the authorized users. Finally, we discuss various merits, challenges faced, and future scope in detail.