Requirements and Algorithms for Cooperation of Heterogeneous Radio Access Networks

This paper defines the requirements for cooperation of heterogeneous radio access networks (RANs) and proposes a novel radio resource management (RRM) framework for support of mobility and quality of service (QoS) in a heterogeneous communication environment comprising IMT-Advanced and legacy systems. The reference IMT-Advanced system is the one developed within the IST project WINNER (IST-2003-507581 Project Wireless Initiative New Radio, http://www.ist-winner.org). The RRM mechanisms are evolved from traditional ones to comply with the requirements imposed by a simplified new (RAN) architecture as proposed for IMT-Advanced systems. The RRM mechanisms are evaluated for the scenario of intra-RAN and inter-RAN user mobility. The RRM framework incorporates as novelty improved triggering mechanisms, a network-controlled mobility management scheme with policy enforcement on different levels in the RAN architecture, and a distributed handover and admission control mechanism for fast decision polling at different levels of the RAN. The RRM framework is further enhanced with computational intelligence based on fuzzy logic algorithms to enhance the process of handover. The RRM framework has been evaluated in terms of reduced user blocking probabilities