A Game Theoretic Cross-Layer Design for Resource Allocation in Heterogeneous OFDMA Networks

Quality of Service (QoS) and fairness considerations are undoubtedly essential parameters that need to be considered in the design of next generation scheduling algorithms. This work presents a novel game theoretic cross-layer design that offers optimal allocation of wireless resources to heterogeneous services in Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) networks. The method is based on the Axioms of the Symmetric Nash Bargaining Solution (S-NBS) concept used in cooperative game theory that provides Pareto optimality and symmetrically fair resource distribution. The proposed strategies are determined via convex optimization based on a new solution methodology and by the transformation of the subcarrier indexes by means of time-sharing. Simulation comparisons to relevant schemes in the literature show that the proposed design can be successfully employed to typify ideal resource allocation for next-generation broadband wireless systems by providing enhanced performance in terms of queuing delay, fairness provisions, QoS support, and power consumption, as well as a comparable total throughput.