IIoT Data Sharing Based on Blockchain: A Multi-Leader Multi-Follower Stackelberg Game Approach

The evolution of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) greatly increases the volume of data generated by the connected IIoT devices. IIoT data is playing an increasingly important role in various industrial sectors. IIoT data sharing helps enterprises make better production decisions and respond to market changes timely. However, the distrust among IIoT entities, and IIoT entities’ distrust of data-sharing platforms may hinder the realization of data sharing. In this paper, a decentralized IIoT data sharing scheme based on blockchain and edge computing is proposed. A proof of storage and transmission (PoST) consensus mechanism is proposed to meet data storage and transmission requirements of data owners in IIoT data sharing networks. Based on the manufacture ties of data owners, shared data request probabilities are derived. The IIoT data sharing interactions between data owners and edge devices are modeled as a multiple-leader and multiple-follower Stackelberg game. The alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) algorithm is used to obtain the optimal IIoT data sharing solutions in a distributed manner. Simulation results show that compared with the cooperative scheme, the total profit of edge devices is maximally increased by 59%, and the total utility of data owners is maximally increased by 52%.