Interference-aware relay selection for multiple source-destination cooperative networks

We consider relay selection in a multiple source-destination cooperative network with multiple potential relays. Interference induced by simultaneous transmissions makes relay selection different from interference-free scenarios which has not been well addressed in literature. In this paper, we propose a new relay selection metric in interference-limited networks in order to improve network throughput. The proposed metric is interference-aware and abstracts the potential interference to the neighborhood as a penalty. Based on the metric, a centralized scheme is proposed to formulate the relay selection problem into a weighted matching problem. A distributed version is further designed based on negotiations which guarantees stability and quick convergence. Simulation results indicate a significant improvement in overall transmission rate over selection metrics of interference-free scenarios, i.e., about 10%.