An Interlayer Energy Balance-Oriented Multihop Uneven Clustering Routing Protocol for Active IRS-Assisted Cognitive Radio Sensor Networks
Jihong Wang, Xitong Su · IEEE Sensors Journal · 2024
Uneven clustering routing protocols can alleviate the “hot spot” issues in cognitive radio sensor networks (CRSNs) and extend network lifespan. However, with data being transmitted solely through direct links between transmitters and receivers, their potential of prolonging the network lifespan has not been fully realized. To fully leverage the advantages of active intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) in enhancing transmission links and reducing energy consumption, this article makes the first attempt to integrate active IRS into CRSNs for assisting uplink data transmission and designs an interlayer energy balance-oriented multihop uneven clustering routing protocol (IEBMUCRP) for active IRS-assisted CRSNs. Specifically, we provide a theoretical derivation of the maximum transmission range of CRSNs nodes assisted by active IRS, and this serves as the basis for determining the layer in which each individual CRSNs node resides. In addition, this article deduces the optimal cluster radii by minimizing the weighted sum of the energy consumption of a single cluster and the expected energy used by an individual cluster in inner layers to relay its data packets, thereby achieving a balanced death rate among nodes across different layers and alleviating the “hot spot” issues. IEBMUCRP effectively utilizes active IRS to reduce the energy consumption of cluster heads in the first layer for data transmission, the number of interlayer data transmission hops, and associated energy consumption. Simulation results indicate that, compared to existing multihop clustering protocols, the network lifespan and average packet delivery ratio are, respectively, enhanced by over 197% and 104% under IEBMUCRP.