MCRA: A Multi-Charger Cooperation Recharging Algorithm Based on Area Division for WSNs

Recent breakthroughs in wireless charging technologies have greatly promoted the development of rechargeable wireless sensor networks (WSNs). To improve the lifetime of WSNs in many applications, the charging efficiency of mobile chargers (MCs) and the energy supplement of MCs should be improved. Although optimized charging path schemes in WSNs have been studied extensively, little attention has been paid to determine the energy consumption of MCs while charging and their movement during the charging tasks. In this paper, we analyze the relationship of the movement energy consumption of MCs and their energy transfer to the nodes and put forward our algorithm for improving the charging efficiency of the MCs. We divide the entire network into different charging regions and propose three charging schemes based on different situations in each region. The idea of cooperation among the MCs to charge MCs further enhances the charging efficiency of the MCs. A simulation demonstrates the advantages of our algorithm for improving the lifetime and charging efficiency of the MCs. This paper aims to improve the lifetime of WSNs and to decrease the cost for charging nodes and results in a longer lifetime for WSNs in applications with limited energy.