458 research outputs found
On/Off Macrocells and Load Balancing in Heterogeneous Cellular Networks
The rate distribution in heterogeneous networks (HetNets) greatly benefits
from load balancing, by which mobile users are pushed onto lightly-loaded small
cells despite the resulting loss in SINR. This offloading can be made more
aggressive and robust if the macrocells leave a fraction of time/frequency
resource blank, which reduces the interference to the offloaded users. We
investigate the joint optimization of this technique - referred to in 3GPP as
enhanced intercell interference coordination (eICIC) via almost blank subframes
(ABSs) - with offloading in this paper. Although the joint cell association and
blank resource (BR) problem is nominally combinatorial, by allowing users to
associate with multiple base stations (BSs), the problem becomes convex, and
upper bounds the performance versus a binary association. We show both
theoretically and through simulation that the optimal solution of the relaxed
problem still results in an association that is mostly binary. The optimal
association differs significantly when the macrocell is on or off; in
particular the offloading can be much more aggressive when the resource is left
blank by macro BSs. Further, we observe that jointly optimizing the offloading
with BR is important. The rate gain for cell edge users (the worst 3-10%) is
very large - on the order of 5-10x - versus a naive association strategy
without macrocell blanking
Joint Resource Partitioning and Offloading in Heterogeneous Cellular Networks
In heterogeneous cellular networks (HCNs), it is desirable to offload mobile
users to small cells, which are typically significantly less congested than the
macrocells. To achieve sufficient load balancing, the offloaded users often
have much lower SINR than they would on the macrocell. This SINR degradation
can be partially alleviated through interference avoidance, for example time or
frequency resource partitioning, whereby the macrocell turns off in some
fraction of such resources. Naturally, the optimal offloading strategy is
tightly coupled with resource partitioning; the optimal amount of which in turn
depends on how many users have been offloaded. In this paper, we propose a
general and tractable framework for modeling and analyzing joint resource
partitioning and offloading in a two-tier cellular network. With it, we are
able to derive the downlink rate distribution over the entire network, and an
optimal strategy for joint resource partitioning and offloading. We show that
load balancing, by itself, is insufficient, and resource partitioning is
required in conjunction with offloading to improve the rate of cell edge users
in co-channel heterogeneous networks
Enhanced Inter-Cell Interference Coordination Challenges in Heterogeneous Networks
3GPP LTE-Advanced has started a new study item to investigate Heterogeneous
Network (HetNet) deployments as a cost effective way to deal with the
unrelenting traffic demand. HetNets consist of a mix of macrocells, remote
radio heads, and low-power nodes such as picocells, femtocells, and relays.
Leveraging network topology, increasing the proximity between the access
network and the end-users, has the potential to provide the next significant
performance leap in wireless networks, improving spatial spectrum reuse and
enhancing indoor coverage. Nevertheless, deployment of a large number of small
cells overlaying the macrocells is not without new technical challenges. In
this article, we present the concept of heterogeneous networks and also
describe the major technical challenges associated with such network
architecture. We focus in particular on the standardization activities within
the 3GPP related to enhanced inter-cell interference coordination.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, 2 table
Energy Efficient User Association and Power Allocation in Millimeter Wave Based Ultra Dense Networks with Energy Harvesting Base Stations
Millimeter wave (mmWave) communication technologies have recently emerged as
an attractive solution to meet the exponentially increasing demand on mobile
data traffic. Moreover, ultra dense networks (UDNs) combined with mmWave
technology are expected to increase both energy efficiency and spectral
efficiency. In this paper, user association and power allocation in mmWave
based UDNs is considered with attention to load balance constraints, energy
harvesting by base stations, user quality of service requirements, energy
efficiency, and cross-tier interference limits. The joint user association and
power optimization problem is modeled as a mixed-integer programming problem,
which is then transformed into a convex optimization problem by relaxing the
user association indicator and solved by Lagrangian dual decomposition. An
iterative gradient user association and power allocation algorithm is proposed
and shown to converge rapidly to an optimal point. The complexity of the
proposed algorithm is analyzed and the effectiveness of the proposed scheme
compared with existing methods is verified by simulations.Comment: to appear, IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications, 201
Context-Aware Handover Policies in HetNets
Next generation cellular systems are expected to entail a wide variety of wireless coverage zones, with cells of different sizes and capacities that can overlap in space and share the transmission resources. In this scenario, which is referred to as Heterogeneous Networks (HetNets), a fundamental challenge is the management of the handover process between macro, femto and pico cells. To limit the number of handovers and the signaling between the cells, it will hence be crucial to manage the user's mobility considering the context parameters, such as cells size, traffic loads, and user velocity. In this paper, we propose a theoretical model to characterize the performance of a mobile user in a HetNet scenario as a function of the user's mobility, the power profile of the neighboring cells, the handover parameters, and the traffic load of the different cells. We propose a Markov-based framework to model the handover process for the mobile user, and derive an optimal context-dependent handover criterion. The mathematical model is validated by means of simulations, comparing the performance of our strategy with conventional handover optimization techniques in different scenarios. Finally, we show the impact of the handover regulation on the users performance and how it is possible to improve the users capacity exploiting context information
Self organising cloud cells: a resource efficient network densification strategy
Network densification is envisioned as the key enabler for 2020 vision that requires cellular systems to grow in capacity by hundreds of times to cope with unprecedented traffic growth trends being witnessed since advent of broadband on the move. However, increased energy consumption and complex mobility management associated with network densifications remain as the two main challenges to be addressed before further network densification can be exploited on a wide scale. In the wake of these challenges, this paper proposes and evaluates a novel dense network deployment strategy for increasing the capacity of future cellular systems without sacrificing energy efficiency and compromising mobility performance. Our deployment architecture consists of smart small cells, called cloud nodes, which provide data coverage to individual users on a demand bases while taking into account the spatial and temporal dynamics of user mobility and traffic. The decision to activate the cloud nodes, such that certain performance objectives at system level are targeted, is carried out by the overlaying macrocell based on a fuzzy-logic framework. We also compare the proposed architecture with conventional macrocell only deployment and pure microcell-based dense deployment in terms of blocking probability, handover probability and energy efficiency and discuss and quantify the trade-offs therein
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