  Integrated access and backhaul (IAB) is one of the promising techniques for
5G networks and beyond (6G), in which the same node/hardware is used to provide
both backhaul and cellular services in a multi-hop fashion. Due to the
sensitivity of the backhaul links with high rate/reliability demands, proper
network planning is needed to make the IAB network performing appropriately and
as good as possible. In this paper, we study the effect of deployment
optimization on the coverage of IAB networks. We concentrate on the cases
where, due to either geographical or interference management limitations,
unconstrained IAB node placement is not feasible in some areas. To that end, we
propose various millimeter wave (mmWave) blocking-aware constrained deployment
optimization approaches. Our results indicate that, even with limitations on
deployment optimization, network planning boosts the coverage of IAB networks
considerably.
