Traffic Offloading Based on Bidirectional Auction in LEO Satellite Networks

The paper presents a traffic offloading algorithm based on a bidirectional auction mechanism designed to balance traffic distribution in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite networks. By utilizing Inter-Satellite Links (ISLs), the algorithm transfers data from overloaded satellites to those with available capacity, improving overall network throughput and reducing end-to-end hops and energy consumption. Satellites exchange bandwidth and load information through detection packets sent to a ground station, which acts as an auction center, matching overloaded and underloaded satellites. Simulations show that the proposed algorithm outperforms other baseline methods in terms of throughput and energy efficiency under different load conditions. The algorithm enhances feeder link utilization and alleviates network congestion effectively.