A Deep-Learning-Based Method for Spectrum Sensing with Multiple Feature Combination

Abstract

Cognitive radio networks enable the detection and opportunistic access to an idle spectrum through spectrum-sensing technologies, thus providing services to secondary users. However, at a low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), existing spectrum-sensing methods, such as energy statistics and cyclostationary detection, tend to fail or become overly complex, limiting their sensing accuracy in complex application scenarios. In recent years, the integration of deep learning with wireless communications has shown significant potential. Utilizing neural networks to learn the statistical characteristics of signals can effectively adapt to the changing communication environment. To enhance spectrum-sensing performance under low-SNR conditions, this paper proposes a deep-learning-based spectrum-sensing method that combines multiple signal features, including energy statistics, power spectrum, cyclostationarity, and I/Q components. The proposed method used these combined features to form a specific matrix, which was then efficiently learned and detected through the designed ‘SenseNet’ network. Experimental results showed that at an SNR of −20 dB, the SenseNet model achieved a 58.8% spectrum-sensing accuracy, which is a 3.3% improvement over the existing convolutional neural network model.