A New Method to Improve Performance of Cooperative Underwater Acoustic Wireless Sensor Networks via Frequency Controlled Transmission Based on Length of Data Links

In this paper a new method to improve performance of cooperative underwater acoustic (UWA) sensor networks will be introduced. The method is based on controlling and optimizing carrier frequencies which are used in data links between network nods. In UWA channels Pathloss and noise power spectrum density (psd) are related to carrier frequency. Therefore, unlike radio communications, in UWA Communications signal to noise ratio (SNR) is related to frequency besides propagation link length. In such channels an optimum frequency in whole frequency band and link lengths cannot be found. In Cooperative transmission, transmitter sends one copy of transmitted data packets to relay node. Then relay depending on cooperation scheme, amplifies or decodes each data packet and retransmit it to destination. Receiver uses and combines both received signals to estimate transmitted data. This paper wants to propose a new method to decrease network power consumptions by controlling and sub-optimizing transmission frequency based on link length. For this purpose, underwater channel parameters is simulated and analyzed in 1km to 10km lengths (midrange channel). Then link lengths sub categorized and in each category, optimum frequency is computed. With these sub optimum frequencies, sensors and base station can adaptively control their carrier frequencies based on link length and decrease network’s power consumptions. Finally Different Cooperative transmission schemes “Decode and Forward (DF)” and “Amplify and Forward (AF)”, are simulated in UWA wireless Sensor network with and without the new method. In receiver maximum ratio combiner (MRC) is used to combining received signals and making data estimations. Simulations show that the new method, called AFC cooperative UWA communication, can improve performance of underwater acoustic wireless sensor networks up to 40.14%.