Using Incompletely Cooperative Game Theory in Wireless Sensor Networks

In WSNs, energy conservation is the primary goal, while throughput and delay are less important. So used energy is traded for throughput and delay. In this paper, a novel concept of incompletely cooperative game theory is used in WSNs to simultaneously achieve all the goals. In the game, each node adjusts its equilibrium strategy to the estimated game state. After discussing the utility function of the game, the equilibrium strategy for the game in WSNs is presented, Moreover, a simplified game-theoretic MAC protocol (G-MAC) is provided for WSNs, by using an auto degressive backoff mechanism, which is easy to be implemented. Simulation results show that the incompletely cooperative game can increase system throughput, and decrease delay and packet-loss-rate, while still maintaining reasonable energy consumption, and that G-MAC supports the game effectively.