161 research outputs found
A Novel Multiobjective Cell Switch-Off Framework for Cellular Networks
Cell Switch-Off (CSO) is recognized as a promising approach to reduce the
energy consumption in next-generation cellular networks. However, CSO poses
serious challenges not only from the resource allocation perspective but also
from the implementation point of view. Indeed, CSO represents a difficult
optimization problem due to its NP-complete nature. Moreover, there are a
number of important practical limitations in the implementation of CSO schemes,
such as the need for minimizing the real-time complexity and the number of
on-off/off-on transitions and CSO-induced handovers. This article introduces a
novel approach to CSO based on multiobjective optimization that makes use of
the statistical description of the service demand (known by operators). In
addition, downlink and uplink coverage criteria are included and a comparative
analysis between different models to characterize intercell interference is
also presented to shed light on their impact on CSO. The framework
distinguishes itself from other proposals in two ways: 1) The number of
on-off/off-on transitions as well as handovers are minimized, and 2) the
computationally-heavy part of the algorithm is executed offline, which makes
its implementation feasible. The results show that the proposed scheme achieves
substantial energy savings in small cell deployments where service demand is
not uniformly distributed, without compromising the Quality-of-Service (QoS) or
requiring heavy real-time processing
Design of static intercell interference coordination schemes for realistic lte-based cellular networks
Today, 3.5 and 4G systems including Long Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced
(LTE-A) support packet-based services and provide mobile broadband access for
bandwidth-hungry applications. In this context of fast evolution, new and challenging
technical issues must be e ectively addressed. The nal target is to achieve a
signi cant step forward toward the improvement of the Quality of Experience (QoE).
To that end, interference management has been recognized by the industry as a key
enabler for cellular technologies based on OFDMA. Indeed, with a low frequency
reuse factor, intercell interference (ICI) becomes a major concern since the Quality of
Service (QoS) is not uniformly delivered across the network, it remarkably depends on
user position. Hence, cell edge performance is an important issue in LTE and LTE-A.
Intercell Interference Coordination (ICIC) encompasses strategies whose goal
is to keep ICI at cell edges as low as possible. This alleviates the aforementioned
situation. For this reason, the novelties presented in this Ph.D. thesis include not
only developments of static ICIC mechanisms for data and control channels, but
also e orts towards further improvements of the energy e ciency perspective.
Based on a comprehensive review of the state of the art, a set of research
opportunities were identi ed. To be precise, the need for
exible performance
evaluation methods and optimization frameworks for static ICIC strategies. These
mechanisms are grouped in two families: the schemes that de ne constraints on the
frequency domain and the ones that propose adjustments on the power levels. Thus,
Soft- and Fractional Frequency Reuse (SFR and FFR, respectively) are identi ed as
the base of the vast majority of static ICIC proposals.
Consequently, during the rst part of this Ph.D. thesis, interesting insights into
the operation of SFR and FFR were identi ed beyond well-known facts. These
studies allow for the development of a novel statistical framework to evaluate the
performance of these schemes in realistic deployments. As a result of the analysis, the
poor performance of classic con gurations of SFR and FFR in real-world contexts
is shown, and hence, the need for optimization is established. In addition, the
importance of the interworking between static ICIC schemes and other network
functionalities such as CSI feedback has also been identi ed. Therefore, novel CSI
feedback schemes, suitable to operate in conjunction with SFR and FFR, have been
developed. These mechanisms exploit the resource allocation pattern of these static
ICIC techniques in order to improve the accuracy of the CSI feedback process. The second part is focused on the optimization of SFR and FFR. The use of
multiobjective techniques is investigated as a tool to achieve e ective network-speci c
optimization. The approach o ers interesting advantages. On the one hand, it allows
for simultaneous optimization of several con
icting criteria. On the other hand, the
multiobjective nature results in outputs composed of several high quality (Pareto
e cient) network con gurations, all of them featuring a near-optimal tradeo
between the performance criteria. Multiobjective evolutionary algorithms allow
employing complex mathematical structures without the need for relaxation, thus
capturing accurately the system behavior in terms of ICI. The multiobjective
optimization formulation of the problem aims at achieving e ective adjustment of
the operational parameters of SFR and FFR both at cell level and network-wide.
Moreover, the research was successfully extended to the control channels, both the
PDCCH and ePDCCH.
Finally, in an e ort to further improve the network energy e ciency (an aspect
always considered throughout the thesis), the framework of Cell Switch O (CSO),
having close connections with ICIC, is also introduced. By means of the proposed
method, signi cant improvements with respect to traditional approaches, baseline
con gurations, and previous proposals can be achieved. The gains are obtained in
terms of energy consumption, network capacity, and cell edge performance.Actualmente los sistemas 3.5 y 4G tales como Long Term Evolution (LTE) y
LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) soportan servicios basados en paquetes y proporcionan
acceso de banda ancha m ovil para aplicaciones que requieren elevadas tasas de
transmisi on. En este contexto de r apida evoluci on, aparecen nuevos retos t ecnicos
que deben ser resueltos e cientemente. El objetivo ultimo es conseguir un salto
cualitativo importante en la experiencia de usuario (QoE). Con tal n, un factor
clave que ha sido reconocido en las redes celulares basadas en Orthogonal Frequency-
Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) es la gesti on de interferencias. De hecho, la
utilizaci on de un factor de reuso bajo permite una elevada e ciencia espectral pero
a costa de una distribuci on de la calidad de servicio (QoS) que no es uniforme en la
red, depende de la posici on del usuario. Por lo tanto, el rendimiento en los l mites
de la celda se ve muy penalizado y es un problema importante a resolver en LTE
y LTE-A.
La coordinaci on de interferencias entre celdas (ICIC, del ingl es Intercell Interfe-
rence Coordination) engloba las estrategias cuyo objetivo es mantener la interferencia
intercelular (ICI) lo m as baja posible en los bordes de celda. Esto permite aliviar
la situaci on antes mencionada. La contribuci on presentada en esta tesis doctoral
incluye el dise~no de nuevos mecanismos de ICIC est atica para los canales de datos y
control, as como tambi en mejoras desde el punto de vista de e ciencia energ etica.
A partir de una revisi on completa del estado del arte, se identi caron una serie
de retos abiertos que requer an esfuerzos de investigaci on. En concreto, la necesidad
de m etodos de evaluaci on
exibles y marcos de optimizaci on de las estrategias de
ICIC est aticas. Estos mecanismos se agrupan en dos familias: los esquemas que
de nen restricciones sobre el dominio de la frecuencia y los que proponen ajustes
en los niveles de potencia. Es decir, la base de la gran mayor a de propuestas ICIC
est aticas son la reutilizaci on de frecuencias de tipo soft y fraccional (SFR y FFR,
respectivamente).
De este modo, durante la primera parte de esta tesis doctoral, se han estudiado
los aspectos m as importantes del funcionamiento de SFR y FFR, haciendo especial
enfasis en las conclusiones que van m as all a de las bien conocidas. Ello ha permitido
introducir un nuevo marco estad stico para evaluar el funcionamiento de estos
sistemas en condiciones de despliegue reales. Como resultado de estos an alisis, se
muestra el pobre desempe~no de SFR y FFR en despliegues reales cuando funcionan con sus con guraciones cl asicas y se establece la necesidad de optimizaci on. Tambi en
se pone de mani esto la importancia del funcionamiento conjunto entre esquemas
ICIC est aticos y otras funcionalidades de la red radio, tales como la informaci on que
env an los usuarios sobre el estado de su canal downlink (feedback del CSI, del ingl es
Channel State Information). De este modo, se han propuesto diferentes esquemas de
feedback apropiados para trabajar conjuntamente con SFR y FFR. Estos mecanismos
explotan el patr on de asignaci on de recursos que se utiliza en ICIC est atico para
mejorar la precisi on del proceso.
La segunda parte se centra en la optimizaci on de SFR y FFR. Se ha investigado el
uso de t ecnicas multiobjetivo como herramienta para lograr una optimizaci on e caz,
que es espec ca para cada red. El enfoque ofrece ventajas interesantes, por un lado, se
permite la optimizaci on simult anea de varios criterios contradictorios. Por otro lado,
la naturaleza multiobjetivo implica obtener como resultado con guraciones de red
de elevada calidad (Pareto e cientes), todas ellas con un equilibrio casi- optimo entre
las diferentes m etricas de rendimiento. Los algoritmos evolucionarios multiobjetivo
permiten la utilizaci on de estructuras matem aticas complejas sin necesidad de relajar
el problema, de este modo capturan adecuadamente su comportamiento en t erminos
de ICI. La formulaci on multiobjetivo consigue un ajuste efectivo de los par ametros
operacionales de SFR y FFR, tanto a nivel de celda como a nivel de red. Adem as,
la investigaci on se extiende con resultados satisfactorios a los canales de control,
PDCCH y ePDCCH.
Finalmente, en un esfuerzo por mejorar la e ciencia energ etica de la red (un
aspecto siempre considerado a lo largo de la tesis), se introduce en el an alisis global
el apagado inteligente de celdas, estrategia con estrechos v nculos con ICIC. A trav es
del m etodo propuesto, se obtienen mejoras signi cativas con respecto a los enfoques
tradicionales y propuestas previas. Las ganancias se obtienen en t erminos de consumo
energ etico, capacidad de la red, y rendimiento en el l mite de las celdas.Actualment els sistemes 3.5 i 4G tals com Long Term Evolution (LTE) i LTE-
Advanced (LTE-A) suporten serveis basats en paquets i proporcionen acc es de
banda ampla m obil per a aplicacions que requereixen elevades taxes de transmissi
o. En aquest context de r apida evoluci o, apareixen nous reptes t ecnics que
han de ser resolts e cientment. L'objectiu ultim es aconseguir un salt qualitatiu
important en l'experi encia d'usuari (QoE). Amb tal , un factor clau que ha estat
reconegut a les xarxes cel lulars basades en Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple
Access (OFDMA) es la gesti o d'interfer encies. De fet, la utilizaci o d'un factor de
re us baix permet una elevada e ci encia espectral per o a costa d'una distribuci o de
la qualitat de servei (QoS) que no es uniforme a la xarxa, dep en de la posici o de
l'usuari. Per tant, el rendiment en els l mits de la cel la es veu molt penalitzat i es
un problema important a resoldre en LTE i LTE-A.
La coordinaci o d'interfer encies entre cel les (ICIC, de l'angl es Intercell Interfe-
rence Coordination) engloba les estrat egies que tenen com a objectiu mantenir la
interfer encia intercel lular (ICI) el m es baixa possible en les vores de la cel la. Aix o
permet alleujar la situaci o abans esmentada. La contribuci o presentada en aquesta
tesi doctoral inclou el disseny de nous mecanismes de ICIC est atica per als canals de
dades i control, aix com tamb e millores des del punt de vista d'e ci encia energ etica.
A partir d'una revisi o completa de l'estat de l'art, es van identi car una s erie de
reptes oberts que requerien esfor cos de recerca. En concret, la necessitat de m etodes
d'avaluaci o
exibles i marcs d'optimitzaci o de les estrat egies de ICIC est atiques.
Aquests mecanismes s'agrupen en dues fam lies: els esquemes que de neixen restriccions
sobre el domini de la freq u encia i els que proposen ajustos en els nivells de
pot encia. Es a dir, la base de la gran majoria de propostes ICIC est atiques s on la
reutilitzaci o de freq u encies de tipus soft i fraccional (SFR i FFR, respectivament).
D'aquesta manera, durant la primera part d'aquesta tesi doctoral, s'han estudiat
els aspectes m es importants del funcionament de SFR i FFR, fent especial emfasi en
les conclusions que van m es enll a de les ben conegudes. Aix o ha perm es introduir un
nou marc estad stic per avaluar el funcionament d'aquests sistemes en condicions
de desplegament reals. Com a resultat d'aquestes an alisis, es mostra el pobre
acompliment de SFR i FFR en desplegaments reals quan funcionen amb les seves
con guracions cl assiques i s'estableix la necessitat d'optimitzaci o. Tamb e es posa de
manifest la import ancia del funcionament conjunt entre esquemes ICIC est atics i altres funcionalitats de la xarxa radio, tals com la informaci o que envien els usuaris
sobre l'estat del seu canal downlink (feedback del CSI, de l'angl es Channel State
Information). D'aquesta manera, s'han proposat diferents esquemes de feedback
apropiats per treballar conjuntament amb SFR i FFR. Aquests mecanismes exploten
el patr o d'assignaci o de recursos que s'utilitza en ICIC est atic per millorar la precisi o
del proc es.
La segona part se centra en l'optimitzaci o de SFR i FFR. S'ha investigat l' us
de t ecniques multiobjectiu com a eina per aconseguir una optimitzaci o e ca c, que
es espec ca per a cada xarxa. L'enfocament ofereix avantatges interessants, d'una
banda, es permet l'optimitzaci o simult ania de diversos criteris contradictoris. D'altra
banda, la naturalesa multiobjectiu implica obtenir com resultat con guracions de
xarxa d'elevada qualitat (Pareto e cients), totes elles amb un equilibri gaireb e optim
entre les diferents m etriques de rendiment. Els algorismes evolucionaris multiobjectiu
permeten la utilitzaci o d'estructures matem atiques complexes sense necessitat de
relaxar el problema, d'aquesta manera capturen adequadament el seu comportament
en termes de ICI. La formulaci o multiobjectiu aconsegueix un ajust efectiu dels
par ametres operacionals de SFR i FFR, tant a nivell de cel la com a nivell de xarxa.
A m es, la recerca s'est en amb resultats satisfactoris als canals de control, PDCCH
i ePDCCH.
Finalment, en un esfor c per millorar l'e ci encia energ etica de la xarxa (un
aspecte sempre considerat al llarg de la tesi), s'introdueix en l'an alisi global l'apagat
intel ligent de cel les, estrat egia amb estrets vincles amb ICIC. Mitjan cant el m etode
proposat, s'obtenen millores signi catives pel que fa als enfocaments tradicionals i
propostes pr evies. Els guanys s'obtenen en termes de consum energ etic, capacitat de
la xarxa, i rendiment en el l mit de les cel les
A Planning and Optimization Framework for Hybrid Ultra-Dense Network Topologies
The deployment of small cells has been a critical upgrade in Fourth Generation (4G) mobile networks as they provide macrocell traffic offloading gains, improved spectrum reuse and reduce coverage holes. The need for small cells will be even more critical in Fifth Generation (5G) networks due to the introduction of higher spectrum bands, which necessitate denser network deployments to support larger traffic volumes per unit area. A network densification scenario envisioned for evolved fourth and fifth generation networks is the deployment of Ultra-Dense Networks (UDNs) with small cell site densities exceeding 90 sites/km2 (or inter-site distances of less than 112 m). The careful planning and optimization of ultra-dense networks topologies have been known to significantly improve the achievable performance compared to completely random (unplanned) ultra-dense network deployments by various third-part stakeholders (e.g. home owners). However, these well-planned and optimized ultra-dense network deployments are difficult to realize in practice due to various constraints, such as limited or no access to preferred optimum small cell site locations in a given service area. The hybrid ultra-dense network topologies provide an interesting trade-off, whereby, an ultra-dense network may constitute a combination of operator optimized small cell deployments that are complemented by random small cell deployments by third-parties. In this study, an ultra-dense network multiobjective optimization framework and post-deployment power optimization approach are developed for realization and performance comparison of random, optimized and hybrid ultra-dense network topologies in a realistic urban case study area. The results of the case study demonstrate how simple transmit power optimization enable hybrid ultra-dense network topologies to achieve performance almost comparable to optimized topologies whilst also providing the convenience benefits of random small cell deployments
Designing problem-specific operators for solving the Cell Switch-Off problem in ultra-dense 5G networks with hybrid MOEAs
The massive deployment of base stations is one of the key pillars of the fifth generation (5G) of mobile communications. However, this network densification entails high energy consumption that must be addressed to enhance the sustainability of this industry. This work faces this problem from a multi-objective optimization perspective, in which both energy efficiency and quality of service criteria are taken into account. To do so, several newly problem-specific operators have been designed so as to engineer hybrid multi-objective evolutionary metaheuristics (MOEAs) that bring expert knowledge of the domain to the search of the algorithms. These hybrid approaches have been able to improve upon canonical versions of the algorithms, clearly showing the contributions of our approach. Furthermore, this paper tests the hypothesis that the hybridization using several of those problem-specific operators simultaneously can enhance the search of MOEAs that are endowed only with a single one.Funding for open access charge: Universidad de Málaga / CBUA
This work has been partially funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation via grant PID2020-112545RB-C54, by the European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR under grants TED2021-131699B-I00 and TED2021-129938B-I00 (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, FEDER) and the Andalusian PAIDI program with grants A-TIC-608-UGR20, P18.RT.4830, and PYC20-RE-012-UGR. The authors also thank the Supercomputing and Bioinformatics Center of the Universidad de Málaga, for providing its services and the Picasso supercomputer facilities to perform the experiments (http://www.scbi.uma.es/). Funding for open access charge: Universidad de Málaga/CBUA
Designing problem-specific operators for solving the Cell Switch-Off problem in ultra-dense 5G networks with hybrid MOEAs
The massive deployment of base stations is one of the key pillars of the fifth generation (5G) of mobile
communications. However, this network densification entails high energy consumption that must be addressed
to enhance the sustainability of this industry. This work faces this problem from a multi-objective optimization
perspective, in which both energy efficiency and quality of service criteria are taken into account. To do
so, several newly problem-specific operators have been designed so as to engineer hybrid multi-objective
evolutionary metaheuristics (MOEAs) that bring expert knowledge of the domain to the search of the
algorithms. These hybrid approaches have been able to improve upon canonical versions of the algorithms,
clearly showing the contributions of our approach. Furthermore, this paper tests the hypothesis that the
hybridization using several of those problem-specific operators simultaneously can enhance the search of
MOEAs that are endowed only with a single one.Spanish Ministry of
Science and Innovation via grant PID2020-112545RB-C54European
Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR under grants TED2021-131699BI00TED2021-129938B-I00 (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033,
FEDER)Andalusian PAIDI program with grants A-TIC-608-
UGR20, P18.RT.4830PYC20-RE-012-UGRSupercomputing and Bioinformatics Center of the Universidad de
MálagaUniversidad de Málaga/CBU
LTE in unlicensed spectrum: indoor planning, performance evaluation, and coexistence with WiFi
The pursuit of more bandwidth and more efficient spectrum usage has led to consider the use of Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology in unlicensed spectrum, a concept particularly useful for indoor deployments. However, LTE must be modified in order to guarantee a fair coexistence with other systems, particularly WiFi.
There exist several coexistence methods, such as listen-before-talk (LBT), advanced channel selection, duty cycle, and variations of them. Research into unlicensed spectrum has focused into LTE Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) and LTE-Unlicensed (LTE-U), expected to be specified in 2016.
The contribution of this thesis is complementary to the current work, and is focused on coexistence from the perspective of network planning and radio access optimization. This is accomplished with a framework that yields optimized network topologies that maximize the benefits from the LTE deployment, fulfill coverage criteria, and minimize interference. The efficacy of the statistically optimized network topologies has also been validated by means of system level simulations
Optimización de problemas de varios objetivos desde un enfoque de eficiencia energética aplicado a redes celulares heterogéneas 5G usando un marco de conmutación de celdas pequeñas
This Ph.D. dissertation addresses the Many-Objective Optimization Problem (MaOP) study to reduce the inter-cell interference and the power consumption for realistic Centralized, Collaborative, Cloud, and Clean Radio Access Networks (C-RANs). It uses the Cell Switch-Off (CSO) scheme to switch-off/on Remote Radio Units (RRUs) and the Coordinated Scheduling (CS) technique to allocate resource blocks smartly. The EF1-NSGA-III (It is a variation of the NSGA-III algorithm that uses the front 1 to find extreme points at the normalization procedure extended in this thesis) algorithm is employed to solve a proposed Many-Objective Optimization Problem (MaOP). It is composed of four objective functions, four constraints, and two decision variables. However, the above problem is redefined to have three objective functions to see the performance comparison between the NSGA-II and EF1-NSGA-III algorithms.
The OpenAirInterface (OAI) platform is used to evaluate and validate the performance of an indoor coverage system because most of the user-end equipment of next-generation cellular networks will be in an indoor environment. It constitutes the fastest growing 5G open-source platform that implements 3GPP technology on general-purpose computers, fast Ethernet transport ports, and Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) software-defined radio hardware. This document is composed of five contributions. The first one is a survey about testbed, emulators, and simulators for 4G/5G cellular networks. The second one is the extension of the KanGAL's NSGA-II code to implement the EF1-NSGA-III, adaptive EF1-NSGA-III (A-EF1-NSGA-III), and efficient adaptive EF1-NSGA-III (A-EF1-NSGA-III). They support up to 10 objective functions, manage real, integer, and binary decision variables, and many constraints. The above algorithms outperform other works in terms of the Inverted Generational Distance (IGD) metric. The third contribution is the implementation of real-time emulation methodologies for C-RANs using a frequency domain representation in OAI. It improves the average computation time 10-fold compared to the time domain without using Radio Frequency hardware and avoids their uncertainties. The fourth one is the implementation of the Coordination Scheduling (CS) technique as a proof-of-concept to validate the advantages of frequency domain methodologies and to allocate resource blocks dynamically among RRUs. Finally, a many-objective optimization problem is defined and solved with evolutionary algorithms where diversity is managed based on crowded-distance and reference points to reduce the power consumption for C-RANs. The solutions obtained are considered to control the scheduling task at the Radio Cloud Center (RCC) and to switch RRUs.Este disertación aborda el estudio del problema de optimización de varios objetivos (MaOP) para reducir la interferencia entre células y el consumo de energía para redes de acceso de radio en tiempo real, colaborativas, en la nube y limpias (C-RAN). Utiliza el esquema de conmutacion de celdas (CSO) para apagar / encender unidades de radio remotas (RRU) y la técnica de programación coordinada (CS) para asignar bloques de recursos de manera inteligente. El algoritmo EF1-NSGA-III (es una variación del algoritmo NSGA-III que usa el primer frente de pareto para encontrar puntos extremos en el procedimiento de normalización extendido en esta tesis) se utiliza para resolver un problema de optimización de varios objetivos (MaOP) propuesto. Se compone de cuatro funciones objetivos, cuatro restricciones y dos variables de decisión. Sin embargo, el problema anterior se redefine para tener tres funciones objetivas para ver la comparación de rendimiento entre los algoritmos NSGA-II y EF1-NSGA-III.
La plataforma OpenAirInterface (OAI) se utiliza para evaluar y validar el rendimiento de un sistema de cobertura en interiores porque la mayoría del equipos móviles de las redes celulares de próxima generación estarán en un entorno interior. Ella constituye la plataforma de código abierto 5G de más rápido crecimiento que implementa la tecnología 3GPP en computadoras de uso general, puertos de transporte Ethernet rápidos y hardware de radio definido por software comercial (COTS). Este documento se compone de cinco contribuciones. La primera es una estudio sobre banco de pruebas, emuladores y simuladores para redes celulares 4G / 5G. El segundo es la extensión del código NSGA-II de KanGAL para implementar EF1-NSGA-III, EF1-NSGA-III adaptativo (A-EF1-NSGA-III) y EF1-NSGA-III adaptativo eficiente (A -EF1-NSGA-III). Admiten hasta 10 funciones objetivas, gestionan variables de decisión reales, enteras y binarias, y muchas restricciones. Los algoritmos anteriores superan a otros trabajos en términos de la métrica de distancia generacional invertida (IGD). La tercera contribución es la implementación de metodologías de emulación en tiempo real para C-RAN utilizando una representación de dominio de frecuencia en OAI. Mejora el tiempo de cálculo promedio 10 veces en comparación con el dominio del tiempo sin usar hardware de radiofrecuencia y evita sus incertidumbres. El cuarto es la implementación de la técnica de Programación de Coordinación (CS) como prueba de concepto para validar las ventajas de las metodologías de dominio de frecuencia y asignar bloques de recursos dinámicamente entre las RRU. Finalmente, un problema de optimización de muchos objetivos se define y resuelve con algoritmos evolutivos en los que la diversidad se gestiona en función de la distancia de crouding y los puntos de referencia para reducir el consumo de energía de las C-RAN. Las soluciones obtenidas controlan la tarea de programación en Radio Cloud Center (RCC) y conmutan las RRU.Proyecto personal: Redes celulares de próxima generaciónDoctorad
Energy sustainable paradigms and methods for future mobile networks: A survey
In this survey, we discuss the role of energy in the design of future mobile
networks and, in particular, we advocate and elaborate on the use of energy
harvesting (EH) hardware as a means to decrease the environmental footprint of
5G technology. To take full advantage of the harvested (renewable) energy,
while still meeting the quality of service required by dense 5G deployments,
suitable management techniques are here reviewed, highlighting the open issues
that are still to be solved to provide eco-friendly and cost-effective mobile
architectures. Several solutions have recently been proposed to tackle
capacity, coverage and efficiency problems, including: C-RAN, Software Defined
Networking (SDN) and fog computing, among others. However, these are not
explicitly tailored to increase the energy efficiency of networks featuring
renewable energy sources, and have the following limitations: (i) their energy
savings are in many cases still insufficient and (ii) they do not consider
network elements possessing energy harvesting capabilities. In this paper, we
systematically review existing energy sustainable paradigms and methods to
address points (i) and (ii), discussing how these can be exploited to obtain
highly efficient, energy self-sufficient and high capacity networks. Several
open issues have emerged from our review, ranging from the need for accurate
energy, transmission and consumption models, to the lack of accurate data
traffic profiles, to the use of power transfer, energy cooperation and energy
trading techniques. These challenges are here discussed along with some
research directions to follow for achieving sustainable 5G systems.Comment: Accepted by Elsevier Computer Communications, 21 pages, 9 figure
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