Energy-Efficient Sensor Scheduling Algorithm in Cognitive Radio Networks Employing Heterogeneous Sensors

We consider, in this paper, the maximization of throughput in a dense network of collaborative cognitive radio (CR) sensors with limited energy supply. In our case, the sensors are mixed varieties (heterogeneous) and are battery powered. We propose an ant colony-based energy-efficient sensor scheduling algorithm (ACO-ESSP) to optimally schedule the activities of the sensors to provide the required sensing performance and increase the overall secondary system throughput. The proposed algorithm is an improved version of the conventional ant colony optimization (ACO) algorithm, specifically tailored to the formulated sensor scheduling problem. We also use a more realistic sensor energy consumption model and consider CR networks employing heterogeneous sensors (CRNHSs). Simulations demonstrate that our approach improves the system throughput efficiently and effectively compared with other algorithms.