An SMDP-Based Prioritized Channel Allocation Scheme in Cognitive Enabled Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks

An efficient channel allocation scheme for vehicular networks is required due to the popularization and rapid growth of the corresponding applications in recent years. We propose a channel resource allocation scheme based on a semi-Markov decision policy to provide a solution for the problem of the channel resource shortage in vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs). In this paper, we consider the channel allocation problem under a cognitive enabled VANET environment. By a semi-Markov decision process (SMDP), the channel allocation decision is made to maximize the overall system rewards. Besides, we consider services from two categories: primary users (PUs) and secondary users. On the top of the overall rewards maximization, we give priority to PU services without blocking any PU requests via cooperation between the roadside units and the base station. Numerical results and evaluations are presented to illustrate the desired performance of the proposed channel allocation scheme.