Joint Routing and Links Scheduling in Two-Tier Multi-Hop RF-Energy Harvesting Networks

Abstract

This letter considers a two-tiered multi-hop RF-harvesting network comprising of wireless routers and so called eh-nodes that harvest energy from RF emitted by the said routers. Our aim is to derive the shortest possible superframe or time division multiple access schedule for use by routers, which are responsible for meeting flow and energy demands. We present a linear program to derive the optimal schedule whilst satisfying the said demands. We also outline a heuristic algorithm called Algo-TS to generate transmission sets. Our results show Algo-TS produces superframes that are at most 2% longer than the optimal solution in all tested scenarios.