Distributed Link Scheduling Algorithm Based on Successive Interference Cancellation in MIMO Wireless Networks

The performance of multiple input multiple output (MIMO) wireless networks is limited mainly by concurrent interference among sensor nodes. Effective link scheduling algorithms with the technology of successive interference cancellation (SIC) can maximize throughput in MIMO wireless networks. Most previous works on link scheduling in MIMO wireless networks did not consider SIC. In this paper, we propose a MIMO-SIC (MSIC) algorithm under the SINR model. First, a mathematical framework is established for the cross-layer optimization of routing and scheduling, with constraints of traffic balance and link capacity. Second, the interference regions are divided to characterize the level of interference between links. Finally, we propose a distributed link scheduling algorithm based on MSIC to eliminate the interference between competing links in the MIMO network. Experimental results show that the MSIC algorithm can increase the end-to-end throughput per unit by approximately 73% on average compared with non-SIC algorithms.