A Stackelberg game for resource allocation in multiuser cooperative transmission networks

In this paper, we consider the problem of stimulating cooperation and resource allocation in cooperative transmission networks. We formulate this problem as a sellers' market competition where a relay is willing to share its resource with multiple users. We use a Stackelberg game to jointly consider the benefits of the relay and the users. Firstly, the relay determines the price of relaying according to the user demand. Secondly, the users purchase the optimal amount of resources to maximize their utilities. Although the Nash equilibrium, i.e., the solution of the game, can be obtained in a centralized manner, we develop a distributed algorithm to search the Nash equilibrium, which is more applicable in practical systems. Also, the convergence conditions of the algorithm are analyzed. Simulation results show, by using the distributed algorithm, the relay and the users could determine what price should ask for and how much bandwidth should buy, respectively. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. A Stackelberg game is applied to solve the problem of stimulating cooperation and resource allocation in cooperative transmission networks. The problem is formulated as a sellers' market competition where a relay is willing to share its resource with multiple users. And a distributed algorithm is performed to search the Nash equilibrium, i.e., the solution of the game, with the convergence conditions of the algorithm being analyzed.

[1]  Gregory W. Wornell,et al.  Cooperative diversity in wireless networks: Efficient protocols and outage behavior , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.

[2]  Elza Erkip,et al.  User cooperation diversity. Part I. System description , 2003, IEEE Trans. Commun..

[3]  Philip D. Straffin,et al.  Game theory and strategy , 1993 .

[4]  Cem U. Saraydar,et al.  Pricing and power control in a multicell wireless data network , 2001, IEEE J. Sel. Areas Commun..

[5]  Narayan B. Mandayam,et al.  Pricing for enabling forwarding in self-configuring ad hoc networks , 2004, WCNC.

[6]  Gerhard Fettweis,et al.  Cooperative multi-hop transmission in wireless networks , 2005, Comput. Networks.

[7]  Zhu Han,et al.  Multi-node cooperative resource allocation to improve coverage area in wireless networks , 2005, GLOBECOM '05. IEEE Global Telecommunications Conference, 2005..

[8]  Raviraj S. Adve,et al.  Stimulating Cooperative Diversity in Wireless Ad Hoc Networks through Pricing , 2006, 2006 IEEE International Conference on Communications.

[9]  Mohsen Guizani,et al.  A Cooperation Strategy Based on Nash Bargaining Solution in Cooperative Relay Networks , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology.

[10]  H. Vincent Poor,et al.  A game-theoretic approach to energy-efficient power control in multicarrier CDMA systems , 2006, IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications.

[11]  Peter Marbach,et al.  Cooperation in wireless ad hoc networks: a market-based approach , 2005, IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking.

[12]  Zhu Han,et al.  WLC41-4: Stackelberg Game for Distributed Resource Allocation over Multiuser Cooperative Communication Networks , 2006, IEEE Globecom 2006.

[13]  Aria Nosratinia,et al.  Cooperation diversity through coding , 2002, Proceedings IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory,.

[14]  K. J. Ray Liu,et al.  SER performance analysis and optimum power allocation for decode-and-forward cooperation protocol in wireless networks , 2005, IEEE Wireless Communications and Networking Conference, 2005.

[15]  M. Sonis.  Once more on Hénon map: Analysis of bifurcations , 1996 .

[16]  Aria Nosratinia,et al.  Outage analysis of coded cooperation , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.

[17]  Zhu Han,et al.  Auction-Based Distributed Resource Allocation for Cooperation Transmission in Wireless Networks , 2007, IEEE GLOBECOM 2007 - IEEE Global Telecommunications Conference.

[18]  Li Cong,et al.  Competitive Resource Sharing Based on Game Theory in Cooperative Relay Networks , 2009 .

[19]  Zhu Han,et al.  Distributed Relay Selection and Power Control for Multiuser Cooperative Communication Networks Using Buyer/Seller Game , 2007, IEEE INFOCOM 2007 - 26th IEEE International Conference on Computer Communications.

[20]  Cem U. Saraydar,et al.  Efficient power control via pricing in wireless data networks , 2002, IEEE Trans. Commun..

[21]  Zhisheng Niu,et al.  Adaptive Power Control in Multi-Cell OFDM Systems: A Noncooperative Game with Power Unit Based Utility , 2006, IEICE Trans. Commun..

[22]  Zhu Han,et al.  Energy-efficient cooperative transmission over multiuser OFDM networks: who helps whom and how to cooperate , 2005, IEEE Wireless Communications and Networking Conference, 2005.

[23]  Dusit Niyato,et al.  Competitive spectrum sharing in cognitive radio networks: a dynamic game approach , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications.

[24]  Elza Erkip,et al.  User cooperation diversity. Part II. Implementation aspects and performance analysis , 2003, IEEE Trans. Commun..