Resource Allocation in Wireless Networks with RF Energy Harvesting and Transfer

Radio frequency (RF) energy harvesting and transfer techniques have recently become alternative methods to power the next generation of wireless networks. As this emerging technology enables proactive replenishment of wireless devices, it is advantageous in supporting applications with quality-of-service (QoS) requirement. This article focuses on the resource allocation issues in wireless networks with RF energy harvesting capability, referred to as RF energy harvesting networks (RF-EHNs). First, we present an overview of the RF-EHNs, followed by a review of a variety of issues regarding resource allocation. Then, we present a case study of designing in the receiver operation policy, which is of paramount importance in the RF-EHNs. We focus on QoS support and service differentiation, which have not been addressed by previous literatures. Furthermore, we outline some open research directions.Comment: To appear in IEEE Networ

Outage probability analysis for hybrid TSR-PSR based SWIPT systems over log-normal fading channels

Employing simultaneous information and power transfer (SWIPT) technology in cooperative relaying networks has drawn considerable attention from the research community. We can find several studies that focus on Rayleigh and Nakagami-m fading channels, which are used to model outdoor scenarios. Differing itself from several existing studies, this study is conducted in the context of indoor scenario modelled by log-normal fading channels. Specifically, we investigate a so-called hybrid time switching relaying (TSR)-power splitting relaying (PSR) protocol in an energy-constrained cooperative amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying network. We evaluate the system performance with outage probability (OP) by analytically expressing and simulating it with Monte Carlo method. The impact of power-splitting (PS), time-switching (TS) and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) on the OP was as well investigated. Subsequently, the system performance of TSR, PSR and hybrid TSR-PSR schemes were compared. The simulation results are relatively accurate because they align well with the theory

Recent Advances in Joint Wireless Energy and Information Transfer

In this paper, we provide an overview of the recent advances in microwave-enabled wireless energy transfer (WET) technologies and their applications in wireless communications. Specifically, we divide our discussions into three parts. First, we introduce the state-of-the-art WET technologies and the signal processing techniques to maximize the energy transfer efficiency. Then, we discuss an interesting paradigm named simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT), where energy and information are jointly transmitted using the same radio waveform. At last, we review the recent progress in wireless powered communication networks (WPCN), where wireless devices communicate using the power harvested by means of WET. Extensions and future directions are also discussed in each of these areas.Comment: Conference submission accepted by ITW 201