Location-based incentive pricing for tree-based relaying in multi-hop cellular networks

Multi-hop cellular networks that integrate the characteristics of both cellular and mobile ad hoc networks have received increasing attention. Providing incentives to foster cooperation among nodes is an important prerequisite for the success of the multi-hop cellular networks. In this paper, we present a location-based incentive pricing scheme to enhance service availability for tree-based relaying topology. The proposed scheme adjusts the price of feedback incentives based on the degree of the mobile nodes contributing to successful hop-by-hop connections. Simulation results indicate that the location-based incentive pricing scheme results in higher service availability than the fixed-rate pricing scheme under different relationships between price of feedback and willingness of forwarding packets. Moreover, the proposed pricing scheme shifts incentives from the nodes of low importance to the nodes of high importance in the routing topology so that it increases service availability without additional costs. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.