Benefit-Aware Charging Scheme Considering Multiple Routing Mechanisms in Wireless Rechargeable Sensor Networks

In this paper, we define the concept of the charging benefit, which is to extend the network lifetime of the network with as little energy consumption as possible from the mobile charger (MC). Considering that routing mechanisms and charging methods are the main factors affecting energy consumption and the network lifetime, two routing mechanisms and three charging methods are adopted. Besides, two key factors, the threshold of charging request sent by nodes and the time when the MC starts from the Base Station, are carefully designed to optimize the charging method of the MC. Finally, three charging schemes are proposed, and the charging benefit and scalability of the three schemes are verified by numerous simulations. The experimental results show that the proposed charging scheme with fully charging partial nodes has the highest charging benefit, especially under the multi-hop energy balance routing mechanism, and thus is recommended.