Optimization of Energy Harvesting in Mobile Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract

The restricted availability of energy supplies is one of the major challenges in designing mobile wireless sensor networks. In this research work, a proposed method for extending the lifetime of energy-constrained mobile wireless sensor networks (MWSNs) is presented. This method is based on the fact that RF signal carries both information and energy at the same time. Hence, by increasing the efficiency of energy harvesting from radio frequency (RF) signals, the lifetime of the wireless network can be significantly extended. The Simultaneous Wireless Information and Power Transfer (SWIPT) technique enables harvesting of energy by relay nodes which in turn can be used for wireless data transmission. To enhance the lifetime of the mobile wireless network, the transmitted RF energy can be recycled at the receiver side. On the other hand, a balance between energy harvesting and wireless data transmission is required in to maximize the overall efficiency of the system. Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is employed to obtain the optimum resource allocation policy which maximizes the system energy efficiency. A cost function is framed for this purpose and PSO attains the maximum energy efficiency by improving the solution of the cost function at each iteration with respect to given constraints.