A High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) is a network node that operates in the stratosphere at an of altitude around 20 km and is instrumental for providing communication services. Precipitated by technological innovations in the areas of autonomous avionics, array antennas, solar panel efficiency levels, and battery energy densities, and fueled by flourishing industry ecosystems, the HAPS has emerged as an indispensable component of next-generations of wireless networks. In this article, we provide a vision and framework for the HAPS networks of the future supported by a comprehensive and state-of-the-art literature review. We highlight the unrealized potential of HAPS systems and elaborate on their unique ability to serve metropolitan areas. The latest advancements and promising technologies in the HAPS energy and payload systems are discussed. The integration of the emerging Reconfigurable Smart Surface (RSS) technology in the communications payload of HAPS systems for providing a cost-effective deployment is proposed. A detailed overview of the radio resource management in HAPS systems is presented along with synergistic physical layer techniques, including Faster-Than-Nyquist (FTN) signaling. Numerous aspects of handoff management in HAPS systems are described. The notable contributions of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in HAPS, including machine learning in the design, topology management, handoff, and resource allocation aspects are emphasized. The extensive overview of the literature we provide is crucial for substantiating our vision that depicts the expected deployment opportunities and challenges in the next 10 years (next-generation networks), as well as in the subsequent 10 years (next-next-generation networks).

中文翻译：

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未来高空平台站 (HAPS) 网络的愿景和框架


高空平台站（HAPS）是在平流层高度约20公里处运行的网络节点，有助于提供通信服务。在自主航空电子设备、阵列天线、太阳能电池板效率水平和电池能量密度领域的技术创新的推动下，在蓬勃发展的行业生态系统的推动下，HAPS 已成为下一代无线网络不可或缺的组成部分。在本文中，我们提供了未来 HAPS 网络的愿景和框架，并得到全面且最先进的文献综述的支持。我们强调 HAPS 系统尚未实现的潜力，并详细阐述其为大都市地区提供服务的独特能力。讨论了 HAPS 能源和有效载荷系统的最新进展和有前途的技术。建议将新兴的可重构智能表面 (RSS) 技术集成到 HAPS 系统的通信有效负载中，以提供经济高效的部署。详细概述了 HAPS 系统中的无线资源管理以及协同物理层技术，包括比奈奎斯特更快 (FTN) 信令。描述了 HAPS 系统中切换管理的许多方面。强调了人工智能 (AI) 在 HAPS 中的显着贡献，包括设计中的机器学习、拓扑管理、切换和资源分配方面。我们提供的文献的广泛概述对于证实我们的愿景至关重要，该愿景描述了未来 10 年（下一代网络）以及未来 10 年（下一代网络）的预期部署机会和挑战。