[2603.20404] Hetero-Net: An Energy-Efficient Resource Allocation and 3D Placement in Heterogeneous LoRa Networks via Multi-Agent Optimization

Computer Science > Networking and Internet Architecture arXiv:2603.20404 (cs) [Submitted on 20 Mar 2026] Title:Hetero-Net: An Energy-Efficient Resource Allocation and 3D Placement in Heterogeneous LoRa Networks via Multi-Agent Optimization Authors:Abdullahi Isa Ahmed, Ana Maria Drăgulinescu, El Mehdi Amhoud View a PDF of the paper titled Hetero-Net: An Energy-Efficient Resource Allocation and 3D Placement in Heterogeneous LoRa Networks via Multi-Agent Optimization, by Abdullahi Isa Ahmed and 2 other authors View PDF HTML (experimental) Abstract:The evolution of Internet of Things (IoT) into multi-layered environments has positioned Low-Power Wide Area Networks (LPWANs), particularly Long Range (LoRa), as the backbone for connectivity across both surface and subterranean landscapes. However, existing LoRa-based network designs often treat ground-based wireless sensor networks (WSNs) and wireless underground sensor networks (WUSNs) as separate systems, resulting in inefficient and non-integrated connectivity across diverse environments. To address this, we propose Hetero-Net, a unified heterogeneous LoRa framework that integrates diverse LoRa end devices with multiple unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-mounted LoRa gateways. Our objective is to maximize system energy efficiency through the joint optimization of the spreading factor, transmission power, and three-dimensional (3D) placement of the UAVs. To manage the dynamic and partially observable nature of this system, we model ...