Interference-aware optimization of three-tier RIS-enhanced hierarchical aerial computing: integrating terrestrial base stations for persistent 6G IoT coverage

Abstract The proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices in emerging 6G networks demands computing architectures that simultaneously deliver high throughput, low latency, and persistent coverage across heterogeneous deployment environments. Existing two-tier unmanned aerial vehicle–high-altitude platform (UAV–HAP) frameworks offer flexible edge processing but suffer from limited battery endurance, constrained computational capacity, and susceptibility to co-channel interference (CCI) when multiple aerial platforms share the same spectrum. This paper proposes a novel three-tier RIS-enhanced hierarchical aerial computing architecture that integrates a grid-powered reconfigurable intelligent surface–equipped base station (BS-RIS) alongside four RIS-equipped UAVs and a stratospheric HAP, so as to provide persistent, interference-managed 6G IoT coverage. The proposed architecture introduces a sub-array RIS partitioning mechanism in which each RIS panel, consisting of 256 elements divided into 4 sub-arrays, dedicates one sub-array per neighboring interfering platform, achieving 85 % inter-platform interference suppression (residual fraction $$\psi ^{\textrm{sup}}=0.15$$ ). A comprehensive signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio model is derived that captures both intra-platform CCI and inter-platform interference across all tiers. The resulting joint mixed-integer nonlinear programming problem is decomposed into three sequential stages: (i) a three-way hotspot-aware stable matching algorithm that associates IoT devices to platforms while penalising interference-heavy assignments; (ii) a sub-array-aware Riemannian conjugate gradient phase optimization that simultaneously enhances desired signal gains and suppresses inter-platform leakage; and (iii) a platform-aware hierarchical task distribution algorithm applying differentiated local-processing thresholds for battery-constrained UAVs (70 % delay margin) versus the grid-powered BS (100 % threshold). Extensive Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the proposed framework achieves approximately $$30\,\%$$ higher total computed data volume, $$15\,\%$$ points higher task completion rate, and $$20\,\%$$ lower average end-to-end delay compared to the two-tier UAV–HAP.