Distributed Multi-Object Auctions for Energy Transfer between Harvesting Nodes

The inclusion of energy harvesting nodes (HNs) in cellular networks is a promising approach to reduce the energy consumption. However, various network parameters have to be optimally adjusted in order to take full advantage of renewable energies due to their stochastic behavior. The main challenges that need to be addressed include i) reduce the energy consumption per transmitted bit, and ii) reduce the impact of randomness in energy sources. This paper focuses on the second challenge. More precisely, a network of HNs equipped with batteries is studied. The HNs harvest energy to serve users over a wireless link. Furthermore, HNs are connected with each other by means of energy transfer lines, so that those nodes with energy surplus may transmit it to those experiencing a deficit. The energy transfer network is assumed to be meshed in the sense that every HN is connected to all others. To solve the problem of how much energy nodes have to exchange among themselves, we propose a distributed approach based on auctions games. Nodes are divided into sellers and bidders depending on their current energy state. Those bidders who valuate the energy the most will be deemed as winners. Theoretical analysis and simulation results show that the proposed approach yields the existence of a Nash-equilibrium achieved when bidders bid accordingly to their optimal strategy.