A new piconet formation algorithm for UWB ad hoc networks

This paper describes a new piconet formation algorithm (PFA) for ultra-wideband (UWB) networks. The algorithm adopts a master-slave configuration and tries to minimize the total transmission power of master nodes and interference within piconets. The U.S. Federal Communication Commission (FCC) has imposed strict power regulations on the transmission power of UWB devices. To comply with FCC power regulations and to maintain maximum network capacity, we propose an algorithm that selects the nodes with the minimum average distance to neighboring nodes as the master nodes forms piconets that have the minimum total emission power for a given radio range. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm performs better than a random selection algorithm in terms of power emission under all circumstances. The performance of PFA can approach the performance of the optimal k-means algorithm when the radio range is large.