Resource allocation for AF-OFDMA system using combinatorial auction

We propose a combinatorial auction-based subcarrier assignment algorithm for single-relay Amplify-and-Forward (AF) Orthogonal-Frequency-Division-Multiple-Access (OFDMA) relaying systems. The proposed algorithm is based on a one-shot multiple-item auction, where each user submits bundles of subcarriers and their corresponding bids. Bundles are generated based on the Shapley and the pair-wise Synergy-Shapley values computed for the user’s data rate. After receiving all bids, the Winner-Determination-Problem (WDP) is solved using the structured search algorithm to allocate the subcarriers, then the power is allocated optimally at the source and relay nodes to maximize the sum rate. The effect of the number of submitted bundles/bids on the throughput and fairness indices is investigated. The proposed combinatorial auction outperforms in the throughput and fairness indices an auction algorithm without bundling strategies even though for the case where users are allowed to bid for few bundles in addition to the singleton bid. Numerical results are used to show the advantages of the proposed algorithm.