Throughput Maximization for UAV-Aided Backscatter Communication Networks

This paper investigates unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-aided backscatter communication (BackCom) networks, where the UAV is leveraged to help the backscatter device (BD) forward signals to the receiver. Based on the presence or absence of a direct link between BD and receiver, two protocols, namely transmit-backscatter (TB) protocol and transmit-backscatter-relay (TBR) protocol, are proposed to utilize the UAV to assist the BD. In particular, we formulate the system throughput maximization problems for the two protocols by jointly optimizing the time allocation, reflection coefficient and UAV trajectory. Different static/dynamic circuit power consumption models for the two protocols are analyzed. The resulting optimization problems are shown to be non-convex, which are challenging to solve. We first consider the dynamic circuit power consumption model, and decompose the original problems into three sub-problems, namely time allocation optimization with fixed UAV trajectory and reflection coefficient, reflection coefficient optimization with fixed UAV trajectory and time allocation, and UAV trajectory optimization with fixed reflection coefficient and time allocation. Then, an efficient iterative algorithm is proposed for both protocols by leveraging the block coordinate descent method and successive convex approximation (SCA) techniques. In addition, for the static circuit power consumption model, we obtain the optimal time allocation with a given reflection coefficient and UAV trajectory and the optimal reflection coefficient with low computational complexity by using the Lagrangian dual method. Simulation results show that the proposed protocols are able to achieve significant throughput gains over the compared benchmarks

Relaying in the Internet of Things (IoT): A Survey

The deployment of relays between Internet of Things (IoT) end devices and gateways can improve link quality. In cellular-based IoT, relays have the potential to reduce base station overload. The energy expended in single-hop long-range communication can be reduced if relays listen to transmissions of end devices and forward these observations to gateways. However, incorporating relays into IoT networks faces some challenges. IoT end devices are designed primarily for uplink communication of small-sized observations toward the network; hence, opportunistically using end devices as relays needs a redesign of both the medium access control (MAC) layer protocol of such end devices and possible addition of new communication interfaces. Additionally, the wake-up time of IoT end devices needs to be synchronized with that of the relays. For cellular-based IoT, the possibility of using infrastructure relays exists, and noncellular IoT networks can leverage the presence of mobile devices for relaying, for example, in remote healthcare. However, the latter presents problems of incentivizing relay participation and managing the mobility of relays. Furthermore, although relays can increase the lifetime of IoT networks, deploying relays implies the need for additional batteries to power them. This can erode the energy efficiency gain that relays offer. Therefore, designing relay-assisted IoT networks that provide acceptable trade-offs is key, and this goes beyond adding an extra transmit RF chain to a relay-enabled IoT end device. There has been increasing research interest in IoT relaying, as demonstrated in the available literature. Works that consider these issues are surveyed in this paper to provide insight into the state of the art, provide design insights for network designers and motivate future research directions

Optimizing energy efficiency for supporting near-cloud access region of UAV based NOMA networks in IoT systems

Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) are two promising technologies for wireless the fifth generation (5G) networks and beyond. On one hand, UAVs can be deployed as flying base stations to build line-of-sight (LoS) communication links to two ground users (GUs) and to improve the performance of conventional terrestrial cellular networks. On the other hand, NOMA enables the share of an orthogonal resource to multiple users simultaneously, thus improving the spectral efficiency and supporting massive connectivities. This paper presents two protocols namely cloud-base central station (CCS) based power-splitting protocol (PSR) and time-switching protocol (TSR), for simultaneously wireless information and power transmission (SWIPT) at UAV employed in power domain NOMA based multi-tier heterogeneous cloud radio access network (H-CRAN) of internet of things (IoT) system. The system model with k types of UAVs and two users in which the CCS manages the entire H-CRAN and operates as a central unit in the cloud is proposed in our work. Closed-form expressions of throughput and energy efficiency (EE) for UAVs are derived. In particular, the EE is determined for the impacts of power allocation at CCS, various UAV types and channel environment. The simulation results show that the performance for CCS-based PSR outperforms that for CCS-based TSR for the impacts of power allocation at the CCS. On contrary, the TSR protocol has a higher EE than the PSR in cases of the impact of various UAV types and channel environment. The analytic results match Monte Carlo simulations

Optimization of a Power Splitting Protocol for Two-Way Multiple Energy Harvesting Relay System

Energy harvesting (EH) combined with cooperative communications constitutes a promising solution for future wireless technologies. They enable additional efficiency and increased lifetime to wireless networks. This paper investigates a multiple-relay selection scheme for an EH-based two-way relaying (TWR) system. All relays are considered as EH nodes that harvest energy from renewable energy and radio frequency (RF) sources. Some of them are selected to forward data to the destinations. The power splitting (PS) protocol, by which the EH node splits the input RF signal into two components for EH and information transmission, is adopted at the relay nodes. The objective is to jointly optimize i) the set of selected relays, ii) their PS ratios, and iii) their transmit power levels in order to maximize data rate-based utilities over multiple coherent time slots. A joint-optimization solution based on geometric programming (GP) and binary particle swarm optimization is proposed to solve non-convex problems for two utility functions reflecting the level of fairness in the TWR transmission. Numerical results illustrate the system's behavior versus various parameters and show that the performance of the proposed scheme is very close to that of the optimal branch-and-bound method and that GP outperforms the dual problem-based method

A Tutorial on Nonorthogonal Multiple Access for 5G and Beyond

Today's wireless networks allocate radio resources to users based on the orthogonal multiple access (OMA) principle. However, as the number of users increases, OMA based approaches may not meet the stringent emerging requirements including very high spectral efficiency, very low latency, and massive device connectivity. Nonorthogonal multiple access (NOMA) principle emerges as a solution to improve the spectral efficiency while allowing some degree of multiple access interference at receivers. In this tutorial style paper, we target providing a unified model for NOMA, including uplink and downlink transmissions, along with the extensions tomultiple inputmultiple output and cooperative communication scenarios. Through numerical examples, we compare the performances of OMA and NOMA networks. Implementation aspects and open issues are also detailed.Comment: 25 pages, 10 figure