SkySched: A Hierarchical and Scalable Reinforcement Learning Framework for Multi-UAV Vehicular Edge Computing Network

Abstract

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are increasingly deployed as embodied aerial agents in low-altitude economies, forming mobile aerial edge networks that enable flexible computation offloading for vehicles. However, their limited endurance and frequent join/leave behaviours result in highly dynamic topologies, undermining long-term resource availability. Moreover, existing vehicle-centric task scheduling strategies cause resource contention and decision complexity in dense environments. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a hierarchical and scalable reinforcement learning-based scheduling framework (SkySched). In SkySched, UAVs collaboratively make deployment and task scheduling decisions. The framework consists of two tightly coupled modules. First, an adaptive UAV deployment module introduces a capability encoding mechanism that compresses heterogeneous UAV attributes into a unified one-dimensional capability index. This compact representation enables a Scalable Proximal Policy Optimization (SPPO) algorithm to efficiently coordinate UAV positioning, maximizing task coverage and sustaining network-wide computing availability under dynamic topology variations. Second, a hierarchical task scheduling module is designed, where K-means-based Roadside Unit (RSU) clustering enables vertical task offloading, while a SPPO-driven horizontal UAV-to-UAV task redistribution mechanism achieves fine-grained load balancing across the UAV swarm. Simulations demonstrate that SkySched consistently outperforms state-of-the-art methods in terms of task coverage and load fairness, validating its effectiveness as an agentic AI-driven embodied networking solution for UAV-assisted vehicular edge computing.