Spectrum leasing based on Nash Bargaining Solution in cognitive radio networks

Cognitive radio is becoming an emerging technology that has the potential of dealing with the stringent requirement and scarcity of the radio spectrum resource. In this paper, we focus on the dynamic spectrum access of cognitive radio networks, in which the primary user (PU) and secondary users (SUs) coexist. In property-rights model, the PU has property of the bandwidth and may decide to lease it to secondary network for a fraction of time in exchange for appropriate remuneration. We propose a cooperative communication-aware spectrum leasing framework, in which, PU selects SUs as cooperative relays to help transmit information, while the selected SUs have the right to decide their payment made for PU in order to obtain a proportional access time to the spectrum. Then, the spectrum leasing scheme is cast into a Nash Bargaining Problem, and the Nash Bargaining Solution (NBS) can be used to fairly and efficiently address the resource allocation between PU and secondary network, enhancing both the utility of PU and secondary network. Numerical results show that spectrum leasing based on NBS is an effective method to improve performance for cognitive radio networks.     

基于稳定匹配的认知无线网络协作物理层安全机制

在Underlay认知无线网络中,次用户被允许在主用户进行数据发送时接入主用户的频谱.此时,主用户将对次用户和窃听者造成干扰.利用协作干扰技术,主用户产生的干扰可以被用来改善次用户的物理层安全.基于此,本文针对包含多个主次用户的Underlay认知无线网络,提出了一种新的协作物理层安全机制.为了在保证主用户通信质量的前提下,最大化网络中次用户的总的安全容量,该机制将对次用户进行合理的频谱接入选择和功率控制.另外,考虑到个体理性和自私性对于频谱接入稳定性的影响,该机制利用稳定匹配理论将频谱接入选择问题建模为一对一的双边匹配问题,通过构建主次用户之间的稳定匹配来保证频谱接入的稳定性.仿真结果表明,使用本文所提安全机制,可以在保证主用户通信质量的前提下,稳定而又有效地改善网络中次用户获得的总的安全容量.     

Fair and Efficient Spectrum Splitting for Unlicensed Secondary Users in Cooperative Cognitive Radio Networks

In cooperative cognitive radio networks (CCRNs), a licensed primary-user (PU) is allowed to leverage several unlicensed secondary-users (SUs) to relay its traffic. In this paper, a staged dynamic spectrum allocation (DSA) scheme is proposed for CCRNs. In the first stage, the network is uncongested. A simple pricing based DSA scheme is proposed for the PUs to lease their idled frequency bands to the SUs. And, hence, the initial quality of service (QoS) demands (in terms of the minimum rate requirements) of the PUs and the SUs are both satisfied through direct transmission on the allocated frequency bands. In the second stage, the network reaches the full-loaded situation. Therefore, a cooperative relaying based DSA scheme is proposed to stimulate the PUs to split more extra frequency bands to fulfill the increased QoS demands of the SUs, on condition that the QoS of the PUs are well maintained. By applying the cooperative bargaining game theory in the proposed cooperative relaying based DSA, on the one hand, the SUs can get fairness rate-rewards from the PUs according to the level of contribution that they can make to compensate the PUs for the rate-losses. Hence, the increased QoS demands of the SUs can be accommodated in short term. On the other hand, the PUs could retain the SUs successfully to obtain the long-term revenue, on condition that their QoS constraints are still satisfied. Finally, the analysis results of the proposed bargaining game theoretic DSA scheme (in the second stage) are testified through computer simulations.     

Channel assignment scheme in clustered multichannel cognitive radio networks with outdated CSI over Rayleigh fading channels

This work investigates channel assignment for cooperative spectrum sensing in multichannel cognitive radio networks, where the heterogeneity of primary user (PU) activity and the effect of varying channel condition on the received signal‐to‐noise ratio during cluster formation are considered. With the objective to minimize interference to the PU while enhancing multiple spectrum utilization of the secondary user (SU), an overlapping cluster‐based assignment is formulated into a nonlinear integer optimization problem. To obtain an efficient solution, the nonlinear integer problem is transformed into a mixed integer linear problem, based on which, this paper proposes an exact solution and then two new heuristic algorithms for suboptimal solutions, respectively. Furthermore, a comparative study of four different cluster head selection schemes with respect to their performance in cooperative spectrum sensing, under cluster's heterogeneity in terms of SUs distribution relative to PU transmitter location is presented. Based on the study, a robust cluster head selection scheme is proposed. Simulation results show that good sensing performance and increased opportunistic spectrum utilization in multichannel cognitive radio networks are two sides of a coin that depend on the ratio of the SUs to the number of PU channels. How far away the PU is from the cluster center is also seen to be key in the optimal selection of cluster heads in cooperative spectrum sensing.     

Transceiver Designs for Interference Alignment Based Cognitive Radio Networks with Energy Harvesting

Cognitive radio (CR) can improve the usage of spectrum resources, although the secondary users (SUs) will cause interference. Interference alignment (IA) is a prospective technique that can manage the interference effectively and has been applied to CR networks. However, interference can be used as an energy source by wireless energy harvesting techniques. In this paper, we consider an underlay CR network consisting of a primary user (PU) and SUs that are either energy harvesting users or information transmission users. The normal IA scheme neglects the priority of the PU, which leads to poor performance, particularly at low signal noise ratio (SNR) values. Three transceiver designs are proposed to improve the information rate of the PU and these benefit from the existence of energy harvesting users, by aligning the interference created by those energy harvesting users at information transmission users. Simulation results are presented to show the proposed designs can significantly improve the performance especially in low SNR situations.     

A coalition formation game based relay selection scheme for cooperative cognitive radio networks

In a cognitive radio network, cooperative communications between a primary user (PU) and a second user (SU) may be able to significantly improve the spectrum utilization, and thus, the network performance. To be specific, the PU can select a number of SUs as its relays to cooperatively transmit its data. In turn, these relays can be granted access to the licensed channel of the PU to transmit their data. In this paper, an effective cooperation strategy for SUs is presented. We formulate the problem of cooperative relay selection as a coalition formation game, and develop a utility function based on the game. The utility function considers various factors such as transmission power and noise level. With the utility function, a distributed coalition formation algorithm is proposed, which can be used by SUs to decide whether to join or leave a coalition. Such a decision is based on whether it can increase the maximal coalition utility value. We rigorously prove that our proposed coalition formation algorithm can terminate and reach a stable state. Finally, this paper demonstrates that the proposed scheme is able to enhance the network throughput via a simulation study.     

CATECAS: a content-aware transmission efficiency based channel allocation scheme for cognitive radio users with improved QoE

Cognitive radio (CR) is a promising technology for the upcoming 5G communication which addresses opportunistic channel usage for enhanced spectrum utilization. However, Quality of Service (QoS) provisioning is a major challenge for CR Network due to the service interruption and packet error caused by random primary activities. In addition to this, periodic spectrum sensing for primary user protection reduces the effective throughput of the secondary users (SUs). However, to ensure QoS of SUs especially for video application, throughput enhancement is necessary which can be achieved by efficient spectrum sensing and channel allocation policy. As the QoS requirements are different for different secondary applications, we propose a novel content aware channel allocation scheme that enhances the Quality of Experience (QoE) of SUs. At first, the proposed scheme analyzes the QoS requirements of different SUs and prioritizes them. Consequently, the optimum sensing duration is determined to maximize the transmission efficiency and throughput of SUs. Finally, a novel content aware transmission efficiency-based channel assignment scheme (CATECAS) is proposed for SUs, considering the estimated channel quality and QoS requirements concurrently. Extensive performance analysis of CATESCAS on real-time video and file download applications confirms significant QoE improvement for SUs especially for rapid movement type of video application, which is considered as the most critical among different secondary applications.

     

Data traffic‐based analysis of delay and energy consumption in cognitive radio networks with and without resource reservation

A new opportunistic cross‐layer MAC protocol involving channel allocation and packet scheduling for cognitive radio networks is proposed. Cognitive radio allows secondary users (SUs) to exploit the available portions of the licensed spectrum bands without interfering with primary users. In particular, we consider a cognitive radio system, where SUs are equipped with two transceivers: a control transceiver and a software‐defined radio transceiver. Data traffic characteristics of SUs are considered to ameliorate system performance. So, we propose a mechanism of resource reservation to improve QoS requirements that favors successful SUs to transmit data during x time slots without interfering with primary users. The key novelty of this paper is giving priority for SUs with important data traffic and which frequently solicits data channels to transmit for the remaining time of the ongoing time slot and for the next time slots directly after checking the channel availability. We develop a new analytical model to evaluate delay parameter for two scenarios with and without resource reservation and we then investigate the impact of those scenarios on the energy consumption. We show through simulations that cognitive radio performances increase noticeably with the proposed scheme. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optimal Transmission Strategies for Dynamic Spectrum Access in Cognitive Radio Networks

Cognitive radio offers a promising technology to mitigate spectrum shortage in wireless communications. It enables secondary users (SUs) to opportunistically access low-occupancy primary spectral bands as long as their negative effect on the primary user (PU) access is constrained. This PU protection requirement is particularly challenging for multiple SUs over a wide geographical area. In this paper, we study the fundamental performance limit on the throughput of cognitive radio networks under the PU packet collision constraint. With perfect sensing, we develop an optimum spectrum access strategy under generic PU traffic patterns. Without perfect sensing, we quantify the impact of missed detection and false alarm, and propose a modified threshold-based spectrum access strategy that achieves close-to-optimal performance. Moreover, we develop and evaluate a distributed access scheme that enables multiple SUs to collectively protect the PU while adapting to behavioral changes in PU usage patterns. Our results provide useful insight on the trade-off between the protection of the primary user and the throughput performance of cognitive radios.     

A novel approach for energy‐efficient resource allocation in double threshold‐based cognitive radio network

This paper mainly focuses on solving the energy efficiency (EE) maximization problem in double threshold‐based soft decision fusion (SDF) cooperative spectrum sensing (CSS) in the cognitive radio network (CRN). The solution to this objective problem starts with the selection of suitable secondary users (SUs) both for the spectrum sensing and data transmission. Here, energy efficiency is maximized under the constraints of interference to the primary user (PU), an acceptable outage of SUs, the transmission power of the SUs and the probability of false alarm. We propose a novel algorithm called iterative Dinkelbach method (IDM) which jointly optimizes the sensing time and transmission power allocation to the SUs. Further, Lagrangian duality theorem is employed to find the exact power assigned to the SUs. Finally, simulation results are carried out to validate the effectiveness of our proposed scheme by comparing with the other existing schemes. The performance is also analyzed for different system parameters.     

认知双向中继网络的功率分配优化算法研究

相对于传统的认知单向中继系统,认知双向中继网络由于引入了网络编码技术,减少了传输时隙,能获得更高的频谱效率．对采用时分广播(Time Division Broadcast,TDBC)传输协议的译码转发(Decode-and-Forward,DF)认知双向中继网络的和速率进行了分析,提出了一种功率分配的优化算法,能在满足次用户(Secondary Users,SUs)总功率约束以及对主用户(Primary Users,PUs)最大干扰功率(Maximum Tolerable Interference Power,MTIP)约束的前提下,最大限度提高次用户网络的和速率．并推导了不同情况下,次用户网络功率分配的最优解．数值仿真结果验证了该理论分析的正确性,同时表明,次用户的总功率以及主用户的干扰功率限制,对次用户网络的和速率有较大影响．     

Joint power allocation and beamforming with users selection for cognitive radio networks via discrete stochastic optimization

Cognitive radio is a promising technique to dynamic utilize the spectrum resource and improve spectrum efficiency. In this paper, we study the problem of mutual interference cancellation among secondary users (SUs) and interference control to primary users (PUs) in spectrum sharing underlay cognitive radio networks. Multiple antennas are used at the secondary base station to form multiple beams towards individual SUs, and a set of SUs are selected to adapt to the beams. For the interference control to PUs, we study power allocation among SUs to guarantee the interference to PUs below a tolerable level while maximizing SUs?? QoS. Based on these conditions, the problem of joint power allocation and beamforming with SUs selection is studied. Specifically, we emphasize on the condition of imperfect channel sensing due to hardware limitation, short sensing time and network connectivity issues, which means that only the noisy estimate of channel information for SUs can be obtained. We formulate the optimization problem to maximize the sum rate as a discrete stochastic optimization problem, then an efficient algorithm based on a discrete stochastic optimization method is proposed to solve the joint power allocation and beamforming with SUs selection problem. We verify that the proposed algorithm has fast convergence rate, low computation complexity and good tracking capability in time-varying radio environment. Finally, extensive simulation results are presented to demonstrate the performance of the proposed scheme.     

Resource allocation for heterogeneous services in multiuser cognitive radio networks

This paper considers a downlink cognitive radio network consisting of one cognitive base station and multiple secondary users (SUs) that shares spectrum with a primary network. Unlike most of previous studies that focus on the SUs that carry only one type of service, in this paper, the SUs that carry heterogeneous services are considered. Specifically, the SUs are classified by service types, that is, the SUs that carry nonreal‐time services and the SUs that carry real‐time services. The QoS of the nonreal‐time SUs is guaranteed by the minimum mean rate constraint, whereas the QoS of the real‐time SUs is guaranteed by the minimum instantaneous rate constraint. Under this setup, a joint subchannel, rate, and power allocation scheme based on dual optimization method is proposed to minimize the mean transmit power consumption of the cognitive base station. The complexity of the proposed scheme is linear in the number of subchannels and the number of SUs. Extensive simulation results are provided to validate the proposed resource allocation scheme. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Spectrum auction with interference constraint for cognitive radio networks with multiple primary and secondary users

Extensive research in recent years has shown the benefits of cognitive radio technologies to improve the flexibility and efficiency of spectrum utilization. This new communication paradigm, however, requires a well-designed spectrum allocation mechanism. In this paper, we propose an auction framework for cognitive radio networks to allow unlicensed secondary users (SUs) to share the available spectrum of licensed primary users (PUs) fairly and efficiently, subject to the interference temperature constraint at each PU. To study the competition among SUs, we formulate a non-cooperative multiple-PU multiple-SU auction game and study the structure of the resulting equilibrium by solving a non-continuous two-dimensional optimization problem, including the existence, uniqueness of the equilibrium and the convergence to the equilibrium in the two auctions. A distributed algorithm is developed in which each SU updates its strategy based on local information to converge to the equilibrium. We also analyze the revenue allocation among PUs and propose an algorithm to set the prices under the guideline that the revenue of each PU should be proportional to its resource. We then extend the proposed auction framework to the more challenging scenario with free spectrum bands. We develop an algorithm based on the no-regret learning to reach a correlated equilibrium of the auction game. The proposed algorithm, which can be implemented distributedly based on local observation, is especially suited in decentralized adaptive learning environments as cognitive radio networks. Finally, through numerical experiments, we demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed auction framework in achieving high efficiency and fairness in spectrum allocation.     

Combined spatial-temporal energy harvesting and relay selection for cognitive wireless powered networks

In order to improve the Energy Efficiency (EE) and spectrum utilization of Cognitive Wireless Powered Networks (CWPNs), a combined spatial-temporal Energy Harvesting (EH) and relay selection scheme is proposed. In the proposed scheme, for protecting the Primary User (PU), a two-layer guard zone is set outside the PU based on the outage probability threshold of the PU. Moreover, to increase the energy of the CWPNs, the EH zone in the two-layer guard zone allows the Secondary Users (SUs) to spatially harvest energy from the Radio Frequency (RF) signals of temporally active PUs. To improve the utilization of the PU spectrum, the guard zone outside the EH zone allows for the constrained power transmission of SUs. Moreover, the relay selection transmission is designed in the transmission zone of the SU to improve the EE of the CWPNs. In addition to the EE of the CWPNs, the outage probabilities of the SU and PU are derived. The results reveal that the setting of a two-layer guard zone can effectively reduce the outage probability of the PU and improve the EE of CWPNs. Furthermore, the relay selection transmission decreases the outage probabilities of the SUs.     

Joint power and rate allocation for spectrum sharing cognitive radio multicast networks under service outage constraint

This letter considers a downlink spectrum sharing cognitive radio (CR) multicast network coexisting with a primary network. The problem of joint power and rate allocation to maximize the average sum rate is studied. In this regard, a joint power and rate allocation scheme is proposed, where the allocated rate can be higher than the lowest rate of all the secondary users (SUs) within the same group, which is different from the conventional multicast transmission scheme. To guarantee the quality of service (QoS) of the SU, the service outage probability defined as the probability that the maximum achievable rate of the SU is lower than the rate of the group, is constrained to be under a certain threshold, which is termed as the service outage constraint. The numerical results show that the proposed scheme provides significant improvement over the conventional scheme in terms of average sum rate.     

Coalitional game‐based behavior analysis for spectrum access in cognitive radios

The core of cognitive radio paradigm is to introduce cognitive devices able to opportunistically access the licensed radio bands. The coexistence of licensed and unlicensed users prescribes an effective spectrum hole‐detection and a non‐interfering sharing of those frequencies. Collaborative resource allocation and spectrum information exchange are required but often costly in terms of energy and delay. In this paper, each secondary user (SU) can achieve spectrum sensing and data transmission through a coalitional game‐based mechanism. SUs are called upon to report their sensing results to the elected coalition head, which properly decides on the channel state and the transmitter in each time slot according to a proposed algorithm. The goal of this paper is to provide a more holistic view on the spectrum and enhance the cognitive system performance through SUs behavior analysis. We formulate the problem as a coalitional game in partition form with non‐transferable utility, and we investigate on the impact of both coalition formation and the combining reports costs. We discuss the Nash Equilibrium solution for our coalitional game and propose a distributed strategic learning algorithm to illustrate a concrete case of coalition formation and the SUs competitive and cooperative behaviors inter‐coalitions and intra‐coalitions. We show through simulations that cognitive network performances, the energy consumption and transmission delay, improve evidently with the proposed scheme. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Interference‐aware spectrum handover for cognitive radio networks

Cognitive radio (CR) is a promising technique for future wireless networks, which significantly improves spectrum utilization. In CR networks, when the primary users (PUs) appear, the secondary users (SUs) have to switch to other available channels to avoid the interference to PUs. However, in the multi‐SU scenario, it is still a challenging problem to make an optimal decision on spectrum handover because of the the accumulated interference constraint of PUs and SUs. In this paper, we propose an interference‐aware spectrum handover scheme that aims to maximize the CR network capacity and minimize the spectrum handover overhead by coordinating SUs’ handover decision optimally in the PU–SU coexisted CR networks. On the basis of the interference temperature model, the spectrum handover problem is formulated as a constrained optimization problem, which is in general a non‐deterministic polynomial‐time hard problem. To address the problem in a feasible way, we design a heuristic algorithm by using the technique of Branch and Bound. Finally, we combine our spectrum handover scheme with power control and give a convenient solution in a single‐SU scenario. Experimental results show that our algorithm can improve the network performance efficiently.Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Attack Detection Scheme Against Cooperative Spectrum Sensing Data Falsification on Common Control Channel in Cognitive Radio Networks

Cognitive radio is an intelligent technology designed to help secondary users (SUs) increase their opportunity to access unused spectrum channels while avoiding interference with the primary users. In cognitive radio networks (CRNs), to find the available channels, SUs execute cooperative spectrum sensing and exchange channels-related control information, namely an available channels list (ACL), on a common control channel (CCC) before determining which channels they may transmit. However, some SUs, defined as attackers, could create a security issue by sharing false ACL information with other SUs to increase their own utilization of the available channels, which significantly decreases the performance of CRNs. In this paper, we propose an efficient detection scheme for CCC security to identify any attacker among the cooperating SUs. In the proposed scheme, all SUs share their ACL information on the CCC, with an associated reputation, which is updated according to its own behavior in each cooperation round, to cooperatively identify attackers. An attacker will be excluded from cooperating group with the result that its updated reputation value exceeds a certain threshold. Simulation results show how to further improve the performance of the proposed scheme by choosing optimized thresholds. In addition, we also illustrate that the proposed scheme can achieve considerable performance improvement compared with a attack detection technique COOPON for secure ACL information exchange.     

A smart spectrum utilization approach using multiantenna‐based cognitive relays in cognitive radio network

Efficient spectrum utilization is a promising technique for a prolonged unused radio frequency (RF) spectrum in a wireless network. In this paper, an adaptive spectrum sharing cognitive radio (CR) network has been proposed consisting of a primary user (PU) and secondary user transmitter (SU ? Tx) that communicates with secondary user receiver (SU ? Rx) via multiantenna‐based proactive decode‐and‐forward (DF) relay selection scheme. In our model, strategically an adaptable joint venture on underlay/overlay protocol is defined based on channel occupancy using spectrum sensing technique. Here, secondary transmitters (i.e., source transmitter) continuously sense the PU activities by energy detector and can simultaneously transmit to secondary receivers. Depending on sensing result secondary transmitters automatically switches in underlay mode if PU is active otherwise operates in overlay mode. The advantage of this scheme is that the joint mode of transmission allows the SUs to maximize their transmission rate. The outage performance at SU ? Rx and closed‐form expressions of joint underlay/overlay protocol has been evaluated. The power control policies at different transmitter nodes are taken care of. With the same diversity order, a trade‐off between multiantenna and multirelay is shown. This comparison shows improvement in outage behavior when the count in relays surpasses the number of antennas. Finally, the analytical model of smart efficient spectrum utilization without harming license users in CR is validated by MATLAB simulation.