Position Paper: A Theoretical Framework for General Cognition Evaluation of Cognitive Radios

Cognitive radio network (CRN) has been considered as the most promising solution for an efficient usage of wireless communication spectrum resource as the pervasive utility of Internet of Things (IoT) and other smart mobile devices. Such cognitive capabilities collectively define the intelligence of CRNs. While the capability of cognition and the intelligence are vital for CRNs, the quantitative study is largely an open area. Because of the structural complexity and the nature of multidisciplinary, there is not a theoretically reasonable method to evaluate the “effectiveness” and “intelligence” of cognitive radio models. In contrast, the human intelligence quotient (IQ) test provides a straightforward quantitative description of a person’s capability in conducting certain types of tasks like logical thinking. Inspired by the well-known Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory for human cognitive ability evaluation, in this paper a theoretical framework is proposed trying to apply the CHC model on cognitive radios. What this paper reports is the preliminary effort to lay down a theoretical framework for general cognition evaluation of cognitive radio or CRNs. By sharing the early stage conceptual idea with the colleagues in the smart cities community, we hope it will inspire more insightful discussions to accelerate the research in this important area.