Reliable Communication Performance for Energy Harvesting Wireless Sensor Networks

In this paper, we study the problem of how to provide reliable communications for energy harvesting (EH) wireless sensor network (WSN). Using the example of an autonomous quarry, where self-driving trucks autonomously collect and transport goods, there is a need for multiple wireless sensors collecting data about where and when goods can be collected, while guaranteeing reliable operation of the quarry. The vehicles transfer energy to the wireless sensors within range, forming a cluster. The sensors use this energy to transmit data to the vehicles. Finally, the vehicles relay information to an access point (AP). The AP processes the collected information and synchronize the operation of all vehicles. We propose an interference channel selection policy for the sensors-to-vehicles links and vehicles-to-AP links to improve the reliability of the communications, while enhancing the energy utilization. Accordingly, closed-form expression on how to achieve reliable communication within the considered system is derived and numerical results show that the proposed channel selection strategy not only improves the probability of achieving sufficiently reliable communication but also enhances the energy utilization.