Base station monitoring device, control method for base station monitoring device, and control program for base station monitoring device

Abstract

In a base station in which anomalies are detected in a plurality of mutually different performance indicators, determine a performance indicator with a more serious degree of anomaly. 【Solution means】The base station monitoring device includes: an acquisition unit that acquires values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of the base station for a plurality of base stations; a detection unit that detects the presence or absence of degradation in the performance indicators; an extraction unit that extracts a target base station that is a base station in which degradation is detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators; a ranking unit that ranks a plurality of target base stations in which degradation is detected for each of the plurality of types of performance indicators based on the degree of degradation; the plurality of types of performance indicators are classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicators, and for each of the plurality of target base stations, a calculation unit that calculates an evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the ranking set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a base station monitoring device, a control method for the base station monitoring device, and a control program for the base station monitoring device.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, traffic flowing through a communication network has been monitored, and the applicant has been promoting the provision of a communication monitoring device or the like that can detect abnormalities in a radio access network and identify the causes thereof (for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] As an example of detecting an abnormality in a radio access network, the communication quality of a base station constituting the radio access network is monitored. Here, there are many types of performance indicators to be monitored that indicate the communication quality of the base station. When abnormalities are detected in a plurality of mutually different performance indicators in a certain base station, there is a demand for knowing the performance indicator to be preferentially addressed. That is, it is required to determine a performance indicator with a more serious degree of abnormality. However, since the calculation methods and definitions may differ for each quality indicator, it has been difficult to simply compare the quality indicators in which abnormalities have been detected.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] A base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: an acquisition unit that acquires values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of a plurality of base stations; a detection unit that detects the presence or absence of degradation in the performance indicators; an extraction unit that extracts a target base station, which is a base station in which degradation is detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators; a ranking unit that ranks the plurality of target base stations in which degradation is detected for each of the plurality of types of performance indicators based on the degree of degradation; the plurality of types of performance indicators are classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicators, and for each of the plurality of target base stations, a calculation unit that calculates an evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the ranking set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group.

[0006] In the base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the extraction unit may extract, as target base stations, a first base station in which degradation is detected in a first performance indicator and a second base station in which degradation is detected in a second performance indicator different from the first performance indicator.

[0007] In the base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the extraction unit may extract, as target base stations, a first base station in which degradation is detected based on a first detection method and a second base station in which degradation is detected based on a second detection method different from the first detection method.

[0008] In the base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the acquisition unit may acquire values of performance indicators, regarding a group of base stations existing within a predetermined area, as the plurality of base stations.

[0009] In the base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the detection unit may detect the presence or absence of degradation in the performance indicators by a detection method according to the tendency of change in the time series of the values of the performance indicators.

[0010] In the base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the calculation unit may calculate an evaluation value for each group based on the number of performance indicators in which degradation is detected in the target base station, the ranking set by the ranking unit, and a predetermined weighting factor.

[0011] In a base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of types of performance indicators may include a group of performance indicators related to the connection rate to the base station and a group of performance indicators related to the number of connections to the base station.

[0012] In a base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the detection unit detects the presence or absence of deterioration based on the values of the performance indicators acquired in time series over a predetermined period, and the ranking unit may use, as the degree of deterioration, a statistical value of the values of the performance indicators for which deterioration has been detected over a predetermined period.

[0013] The base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a notification unit that outputs information regarding the evaluation value for each group of target base stations.

[0014] A control method of a base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes steps in which the base station monitoring device acquires values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of the base station for a plurality of base stations, detects the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicators, extracts target base stations that are the base stations in which deterioration has been detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators, ranks the plurality of target base stations in which deterioration has been detected in each of the plurality of types of performance indicators based on the degree of deterioration, calculates an evaluation value based on the rank set for the target base station for each of the plurality of target base stations, the plurality of types of performance indicators are classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicators, and for each of the plurality of target base stations, calculates the evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the rank set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group.

[0015] A control program for a base station monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure causes the base station monitoring device to acquire values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of a plurality of base stations, detect the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicators, extract a target base station that is a base station in which deterioration is detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators, rank the plurality of target base stations in which deterioration is detected for each of the plurality of types of performance indicators based on the degree of deterioration, calculate an evaluation value based on the rank set for the target base station for each of the plurality of target base stations, the plurality of types of performance indicators being classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicators, and calculate, for each of the plurality of target base stations, an evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the rank set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016]

Figure 1

Figure 2

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Figure 8

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the invention according to the present disclosure (also referred to as the present invention) will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the drawings are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to those shown in the drawings. For example, the number of base station monitoring devices (servers) and base stations shown in the drawings, graphs, data sets (tables), and flowcharts are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a base station monitoring system according to an embodiment and the block configuration of a base station monitoring device. The base station monitoring system 600 may be an information processing system in which the base station 200 to which a communication terminal (not shown) is connected is monitored and managed by the base station monitoring device 100. In FIG. 1, three base stations 200 (200A, 200B, 200C) are shown, but there may be more base stations. Hereinafter, when it is not necessary to distinguish the base stations, they are simply referred to as base station 200. The base station monitoring device 100 acquires performance indicators indicating the performance of each base station 200 (200A, 200B, 200C) transmitted from a plurality of base stations 200 (200A, 200B, 200C) via a network 500 (including a radio access network (RAN) and a core network). Note that the performance indicator is a KPI (Key Performance Indicator: main performance indicator) obtained by standardizing the quality such as communication stability and reliability within the cell (radio wave range) formed by the base station 200 (200A, 200B, 200C), and may vary due to maintenance work, failures in the base station 200, or increases or decreases in the number of communication terminals located within the cell, or increases or decreases in communication traffic caused by the terminals located within the cell. That is, by monitoring the KPI, the base station monitoring device 100 can monitor abnormalities that may occur at the cell level of the base station 200. Hereinafter, the performance indicator and the KPI are used synonymously.

[0019] The network 500 may include at least any one of a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, fourth-generation communication (4G), fifth-generation communication (5G), and a mobile communication system after sixth-generation communication (6G). Note that the wireless access network 500 may be, for example, a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), a satellite communication network, a private network, or the like. Further, the network 500 may be a combination of these.

[0020] The base station monitoring device 100 may be any information processing device that can execute various processes related to the monitoring of the base station 200, and may be, for example, a server. In FIG. 1, only one base station monitoring device 100 is shown, but it is not limited thereto. That is, each function described hereinafter as being provided in the base station monitoring device 100 may be realized by a plurality of servers. Further, the base station monitoring device 100 may be, for example, a distributed server system that cooperates by communicating via a network, or a so-called cloud server. That is, the base station monitoring device 100 is not limited to a physical server and may include a virtual server by software.

[0021] Next, the hardware configuration and functional configuration of the base station monitoring device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The base station monitoring device 100 may include a control unit 110, a communication unit 120, an input / output unit 130, and a storage unit 170 as a hardware configuration. Note that although not shown, the base station monitoring device 100 may appropriately include a configuration provided in a general server.

[0022] The control unit 110 is typically a processor, which may be a central processing unit (CPU), a micro processing unit (MPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), etc. The control unit 110 may execute the functions and methods shown in each embodiment by reading the programs stored in the storage unit 170 and executing the codes or instructions included in the read programs.

[0023] The storage unit 170 stores (stores) various programs and various data required for the operation of the base station monitoring device 100. For example, the storage unit 170 may store the quality data received from the base station 200. The storage unit 170 may include, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a flash memory, etc. Further, the storage unit 170 may include a memory that provides a working area for the control unit 110.

[0024] The communication unit 120 may be implemented as hardware such as a network interface card (NIC), communication software, and combinations thereof. The communication unit 120 may transmit and receive information between the base station monitoring device 100 and other devices. For example, it may receive data necessary for monitoring the base station 200 from other servers or storage devices (not shown), or transmit data related to the monitoring of the base station 200 to a terminal of an administrator (not shown).

[0025] The input / output unit 130 may include an input device (such as a touch panel, a keyboard, etc.) for inputting various operations to the base station monitoring device 100, and an output device (such as a touch panel, a speaker, etc.) for outputting the processing results processed by the base station monitoring device 100. The input device and the output device may be installed in a monitoring center (not shown) for remotely monitoring the base station 200 to receive operations from a monitor (administrator) or output various information to the monitor.

[0026] Next, the functional configuration of the base station monitoring device 100 will be described. The base station monitoring device 100 may include an acquisition unit 111, a detection unit 112, an extraction unit 113, a ranking unit 114, a calculation unit 115, and a notification unit 116 as functions realized by the control unit 110. In FIG. 1, functional units that are not essential in each of the embodiments described hereinafter may not be provided. Further, the functions or processes of each functional unit may be realized by machine learning or AI (Artificial Intelligence) within a feasible range.

[0027] <First Embodiment> Hereinafter, the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6 together with the description of each functional unit of the base station monitoring device 100.

[0028] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of processing by the base station monitoring device 100 according to the first embodiment. First, the acquisition unit 111 acquires values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of the plurality of base stations 200 (step S11). The performance indicator is a KPI that standardizes the quality within the radio wave range of the base station 200, and the base station monitoring device 100 may acquire a plurality of types of KPIs from each base station 200. There are hundreds to thousands of types of KPIs indicating the quality of the base station 200, which may indicate connection rate, number of connections, throughput, traffic, interference, downtime, block error rate, etc. For example, as types of KPIs, there may be received signal strength and signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio of the uplink shared channel / control channel (UL (UpLink) RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) PUSCH / PUCCH, UL SINR (Signal to Inter-ference plus Noise Ratio) PUSCH / PUCCH), random access channel setup success rate (RACH (Random Access CHannel) Setup Success Rate), handover success rate, RRC connection re-establishment rate (RRC (Radio Resource Control) RE-Establishment Attempt), downlink / uplink throughput (DL(DownLink) / UL Throughput), downlink / uplink delay (DL / UL Delay), abnormal disconnection rate (ADR (Abnormal disconnection rate)), physical resource block usage rate (PRB (Physical Resource Block) Usage), IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) registration success rate, etc. Note that the KPI is not limited to these.

[0029] The performance indicators acquired by the base station 200 are transmitted to the base station monitoring device 100 at predetermined intervals (for example, every 15 minutes, every hour, every day, etc.) from the base station 200 and stored in the storage unit 170. FIG. 3 shows an example of a data table regarding the performance indicators. As shown in FIG. 3, in the performance indicator table TB10, for each base station 200, at least the measurement date and its numerical value may be stored for a plurality of types of performance indicators including, for example, those described above and others. Note that in FIG. 3, "**" may indicate a numerical value. Here, in the example of FIG. 3, an example of storing performance indicators for each base station 200 is shown, but the storage format is not limited to this as long as it is possible to determine which base station the performance indicator data relates to. Also, the performance indicators may be stored in another storage device (database server) not shown in the figure. Note that the performance indicators stored in the performance indicator table TB10 may be stored as time-series data associated with date and time information for each performance indicator.

[0030] The acquisition unit 111 may directly or indirectly acquire the performance indicators from the base station 200 using known communication protocols such as SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol), SSH (Secure SHell), Telnet, and NETCONF / YANG. Indirectly means, for example, a method in which a performance information collection device (not shown) that collects performance indicators collects the performance indicators from the base station 200, and the acquisition unit 111 acquires the performance indicators from the performance information collection device. Note that the performance indicators may be calculated by an appropriate method based on the information acquired by the base station 200 in any of the base station monitoring device 100, the base station 200, and the performance information collection device (not shown).

[0031] Referring to FIG. 2, the detection unit 112 detects the presence or absence of degradation in the performance index (step S12). The detection unit 112 may detect the presence or absence of degradation based on the values of the performance index acquired in time series over a predetermined period. Here, with reference to FIG. 4, the degradation detection process according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 4 is an example of a graph showing the time-series change of a certain performance index. Note that the figure is an example, and the graph may be different for each performance index. Also, in the example of FIG. 4, for example, the case where the performance index is acquired every 15 minutes is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this, and data may be handled at arbitrary intervals such as every half day, every 3 hours, or every 2 days. Alternatively, the detection unit 112 may convert the performance index into daily data by calculating the average value or the like. The degradation detection process may be performed for each base station 200 using each performance index acquired from each base station 200. That is, although only one type of performance index is shown in FIG. 4, the degradation detection process described below may also be performed for other performance indexes.

[0032] FIG. 4 is a graph showing the time-series change of the performance index acquired so far on the date "d15" which is the degradation detection process date. Note that the "detection process date" may refer to the date on which the detection process is performed. The detection unit 112 may detect the degradation that has occurred in the performance index using the first group 10 of the time-series performance index in the past first period T1 and the second group 20 of the time-series performance index in the second period T2 after the first period T1 on the detection process date "d15". Note that although not limited thereto, the first period T1 (d1 to d7) and the second period T2 (d8 to d14) may each be 7 days.

[0033] Here, the first group 10 of performance indicators in the first period T1 is a group of normal data in which no deterioration has been detected. The detection unit 112 may determine the presence or absence of deterioration in the second period T2 according to the degree of deviation of the second group 20 of performance indicators in the second period T2 from the first group 10 of performance indicators. That is, if it deviates from the normal state where no deterioration has occurred, it may be determined that some deterioration has occurred. As the determination of the degree of deviation, it may be performed by determining whether there is a significant difference between the first group 10 and the second group 20 of performance indicators using an existing statistical test method. Specifically, for example, it may be a Z-test, a robust Z-test, a T-test, a Wilcoxon signed-rank sum test, a Mann-Whitney U-test, etc. Alternatively, for example, it may be that there are a predetermined number or more days in which the difference between the first group 10 and the second group 20 of performance indicators exceeds a predetermined threshold value, etc.

[0034] Note that the detection unit 112 may detect the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicator by a detection method according to the tendency of the change in the time series of the value of the performance indicator. For example, when the value of the KPI changes significantly from the normal state in the case of deterioration, the above-described Z-test or the like can be used. On the other hand, there may be a case where an abnormal state continues and no significant change is seen in the value of the KPI. For the detection of deterioration in such a case, One Class SVM (Support Vector Machine), which is an unsupervised learning for deriving abnormal values from a specific group of numerical values, may be used. Note that the deterioration detection method is not limited to these.

[0035] Thus, according to an embodiment of the present invention, deterioration is detected by a method adapted to the nature of the performance indicator. Therefore, deterioration can be detected for various types of performance indicators.

[0036] In addition, when deterioration of a performance index is detected, the notification unit 116 may transmit information regarding the base station in which the deterioration of the performance index is detected to a communication terminal or the like of a management user (not shown) of the base station 200. Thereby, the management user who has received the notification can perform equipment replacement, confirmation of the connection state of cables, etc. as recovery work for the base station 200.

[0037] Returning to FIG. 2, the extraction unit 113 extracts a target base station which is a base station in which deterioration is detected in at least one of a plurality of types of performance indexes (step S13). FIG. 5 is an example of a table regarding the base station extracted as the target base station. In the table TB20, "×" indicates that deterioration has been detected in that KPI. As shown in the table TB20, the target base stations extracted by the extraction unit 113 include a first base station in which deterioration is detected in the first performance index and a second base station in which deterioration is detected in a second performance index different from the first performance index. That is, the extraction unit 113 may extract as target base stations a first base station in which deterioration is detected in the first performance index and a second base station in which deterioration is detected in a second performance index different from the first performance index. For example, the extraction unit 113 may extract as target base stations a base station in which deterioration is detected in the KPI regarding the connection rate and another base station in which deterioration is detected in the KPI regarding the downtime. In other words, the base station extracted by the extraction unit 113 as the target base station does not necessarily have to be a base station in which deterioration is detected in a certain type of KPI, and may be a base station in which some deterioration is detected in any of the KPIs regarding the base station.

[0038] In the example of FIG. 5, base stations A and B are detected to be degraded in at least five types of KPIs: "KPI_1", "KPI_2", "KPI_3", "KPI_4", and "KPI_5". Also, base station C is detected to be degraded in at least four types of KPIs: "KPI_1", "KPI_2", "KPI_4", and "KPI_5". Furthermore, base station D is detected to be degraded in at least three types of KPIs: "KPI_1", "KPI_4", and "KPI_5". Also, base station E is detected to be degraded in at least three types of KPIs: "KPI_2", "KPI_3", and "KPI_4". Also, base station F is detected to be degraded in at least three types of KPIs: "KPI_3", "KPI_4", and "KPI_5".

[0039] Also, in the table TB20 of FIG. 5, "method" indicates the detection method used for detecting degradation, and may be, for example, the above-mentioned Z-test, robust Z-test, unsupervised learning, etc. The extraction unit 113 may extract, as target base stations, a first base station in which degradation is detected based on a first detection method and a second base station in which degradation is detected based on a second detection method different from the first detection method. In the example of FIG. 5, it shows that different detection methods were used for detecting degradation in "KPI_1", such as "method P" for base station A, "method Q" for base stations B and C, and "method T" for base station D. Note that the detection method is not limited to two, and there may be more.

[0040] Thus, when the types of KPIs in which degradation is detected are different from each other, the severity of degradation cannot be compared between base stations. Also, when the detection method of degradation differs depending on the type of KPI, a simple comparison of the severity of degradation cannot be made. Therefore, when degradation is detected in a plurality of base stations, it is impossible to determine which base station should be prioritized for handling.

[0041] In response to the above problem, the ranking unit 114 may rank a plurality of target base stations in which deterioration is detected for each of a plurality of types of performance indicators based on the degree of deterioration (step S14). The ranking according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

[0042] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining the ranking. When ranking the target base stations, the ranking unit 114 may use, as the degree of deterioration, a statistical value over a predetermined period of the value of the performance indicator in which deterioration is detected. For example, as shown in the table TB20 of FIG. 5, deterioration has been detected for the KPIs of "KPI_1" at base stations A, B, C, and D. At this time, the ranking unit 114 may rank base stations A, B, C, and D using, as the statistical value over the predetermined period (for example, the second period T2 in FIG. 4) used for detecting the deterioration, for example, the average value of "KPI_1" in the period T2 of each of base stations A, B, C, and D. As a result, it may be ranked as shown in the table TB30 of FIG. 6. Note that the statistical value is not limited to this, and the worst value, the best value, the median, the standard deviation, etc. may be used. Thereby, it becomes possible to make a determination according to the variation tendency of the KPI according to the passage of time.

[0043] Note that according to an embodiment of the present invention, the ranking may be made such that the more serious the deterioration is, the higher the rank. That is, for example, when the average value is used as the statistical value, the base station with a worse (more deteriorated) average value of "KPI_1" in the period T2 is ranked higher. In the examples of FIGS. 5 and 6, regarding "KPI_1", it can be seen that the order is base stations D, A, B, and C from the one with the largest degree of deterioration. The same ranking is made for other KPIs as well.

[0044] Referring to FIG. 2, the calculation unit 115 calculates an evaluation value for each of the plurality of target base stations based on the rank set for the target base station (step S15). As described above, the evaluation value may be a numerical value that enables relative comparison when the types of KPIs for which degradation is detected and the detection methods for degradation differ among a plurality of base stations and the severity of degradation between base stations cannot be simply compared. That is, the evaluation value may be an index that enables comprehensive judgment. The calculation unit 115 may calculate the evaluation value based on the number of performance indicators for which degradation is detected in the target base station, the rank set by the ranking unit 114, and a predetermined weighting factor.

[0045] Specifically, the calculation unit 115 may calculate the evaluation value for each base station 200 using the following formula. Evaluation value = Sum of ranks of KPIs for which degradation is detected / (Number of KPIs for which degradation is detected × Weighting factor) 2 Note that the weighting factor may be, for example, "1", but is not limited thereto. Also, in one embodiment of the present invention, since the ranking is such that the greater the severity of degradation, the higher the rank, the smaller the evaluation value, the greater the severity of degradation.

[0046] The calculation of the evaluation value will be described using FIG. 6 as an example. For base station A, degradation is detected for five types of KPIs, namely "KPI_1", "KPI_2", "KPI_3", "KPI_4", and "KPI_5", and the respective ranks are "2", "4", "2", "3", and "2". Therefore, the evaluation value of base station A is (2 + 4 + 2 + 3 + 2) / (5 × 1) 2 = 0.52 (assuming the weighting factor = 1). Similarly, the evaluation values of base stations B, C, D, and E are calculated as shown in FIG. 6. Since the smaller the evaluation value, the greater the severity of degradation, among base stations A to E, which are the target base stations for which degradation has been detected in the KPI, when arranged in descending order of the severity of degradation, it is base station C, base station A, base station D and base station E, base station B, base station F.

[0047] Thus, according to an embodiment of the present invention, even when the types of KPIs for which degradation is detected and the methods for detecting degradation differ among a plurality of base stations and the severity of degradation between base stations cannot be simply compared, relative comparison between base stations becomes possible. Further, since the evaluation value is calculated by a simple calculation formula based on the number of KPIs for which degradation is detected and the ranked order, there is an advantage that no processing load is required.

[0048] Note that the notification unit 116 may output information regarding the evaluation value of the target base station to a terminal of a monitor (not shown) or the like. Thereby, the monitor can determine which base station among the base stations 200 for which degradation is detected should be prioritized for countermeasures.

[0049] Note that the plurality of base stations 200 for comparing the severity of degradation may be a group of base stations existing within a predetermined area. Note that the predetermined area may be, for example, a divided area such as a prefecture or a municipality. Alternatively, the plurality of base stations 200 may be set for each telecommunications carrier that provides the base station 200. Thereby, flexible monitoring can be performed according to the requirements of the management operator of the base station 200 and in accordance with the necessity of region-limited monitoring and the like.

[0050] <Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, a mode in which, even when the types of KPIs for which degradation is detected and the methods for detecting degradation differ among a plurality of base stations, the severity of degradation between base stations can be relatively compared using an evaluation value calculated by a simple calculation formula based on the number of KPIs for which degradation is detected and the ranked order was described. In contrast, in the second embodiment, when an abnormality is detected in a plurality of different performance indicators in a certain base station, an evaluation value may be used to determine a performance indicator with a more serious degree of abnormality.

[0051] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of processing by the base station monitoring device 100 according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 8 is an example of statistical values for each group of performance indicators calculated in the second embodiment. In the flowchart of FIG. 7, steps T11 to T14 are the same as S11 to S14 in the flowchart of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2, and thus the description thereof is omitted. That is, also in the second embodiment, similar to the first embodiment, for a plurality of base stations 200, detection of deterioration in each performance indicator and ranking for each performance indicator may be performed.

[0052] Here, the plurality of types of performance indicators may be classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicator. The nature of the performance indicator is a category of communication quality that can be determined by the performance indicator, and includes, for example, but is not limited to, connection rate, number of connections, throughput, traffic, interference, downtime, block error rate, and the like. The group of performance indicators may be stored in the storage unit 170.

[0053] Referring to FIG. 7, the calculation unit 115 calculates, for each of the plurality of target base stations, an evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the ranking set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group (step T15).

[0054] An example will be described with reference to FIG. 8. It is assumed that the performance indicators in which deterioration is detected at each base station 200 and the ranking of the performance indicators in FIG. 8 are the same as those in FIG. 6. Here, in FIG. 8, the three types of "KPI_1", "KPI_2", and "KPI_3" are KPIs grouped as "connection rate" as the nature of the performance indicator, and the two types of "KPI_4" and "KPI_5" are KPIs grouped as "interference" as the nature of the performance indicator. Although only two types of performance indicator natures are shown in FIG. 6, the present invention is not limited thereto, and there may be three or more types.

[0055] According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the above-described evaluation values may be calculated for each group. For example, for base station A, from table TB40, the evaluation value regarding "connection rate" is (2 + 4 + 2) / (3 × 1) 2 ≈ 0.89, and from table TB41, the evaluation value regarding "interference" is (3 + 2) / (2 × 1) 2 = 1.25.

[0056] In the second embodiment, similar to the first embodiment, a KPI with a smaller evaluation value indicates a greater severity of degradation. In the example of FIG. 8, for base station A, the evaluation value regarding "connection rate" is smaller than the evaluation value regarding "interference". Therefore, in the case of base station A, it is determined that the degradation of the KPI regarding "connection rate" is more severe than the degradation of the KPI regarding "interference". Similarly, in the example of FIG. 8, for base stations B, D, and E, it is determined that the KPI regarding "connection rate" has a greater severity of degradation, and for base stations C and F, it is determined that the KPI regarding "interference" has a greater severity of degradation.

[0057] Thus, according to an embodiment of the present invention, when the types of performance indicators in which abnormalities are detected are different in a certain base station, it is possible to determine a performance indicator with a more severe degree of abnormality. In addition, since the evaluation value can be calculated by a simple formula, the processing load can be suppressed.

[0058] Here, when degradation of KPIs is detected in multiple base stations, there may be a case where it is desired to preferentially recover the base station that has a greater impact on the users who use the terminals connected to the base station where the degradation was detected. However, the magnitude of the impact on users may not be determinable solely based on the degree of KPI degradation. Specifically, in the case of base station A that accommodates an average of 100 users and base station B that accommodates an average of 10,000 users, if the KPI degrades by 10% in base station A and the same KPI degrades by 1% in base station B, it may be said that the degree of impact on users is greater for base station B. More specifically, this is the case when the detected degraded KPI is, for example, the RACH success rate, IMS registration success rate, or attach success rate. In such a case, in base station A, 10 users are affected, while in base station B, 100 users are affected, and base station B with a smaller degree of degradation has a greater impact on users.

[0059] In such cases, in calculating the evaluation value, in addition to the detected degraded KPI, for example, it may be calculated including the average number of user connections and the maximum number of user connections. Alternatively, the average throughput and the maximum throughput may be used.

[0060] If the detected degraded KPI is "KPI_1", the average number of user connections is "KPI_2", and the maximum number of user connections is "KPI_3", then in base station A, KPI_1 is "1", KPI_2 is "2", and KPI_3 is "2". In base station B, the respective rankings are KPI_1 is "2", KPI_2 is "1", and KPI_3 is "1". Therefore, the evaluation value of base station A is (1 + 2 + 2) / (3×1) 2 ≈0.56, and the evaluation value of base station B is (2 + 1 + 1) / (3×1) 2 ≈0.44, and the evaluation value of base station B is smaller, indicating a greater severity of degradation.

[0061] Thus, according to an embodiment of the present invention, even when degradation occurs in multiple base stations with different scales of accommodated users, it is possible to determine which has a greater severity.

[0062] Note that the notification unit 116 may output information regarding the evaluation values for each group of target base stations to a terminal of a monitor (not shown) or the like. Thereby, the monitor can determine which performance indicators should be prioritized for dealing with the base station 200 in which degradation has been detected.

[0063] Although the present invention has been described based on the drawings and embodiments, it should be noted that those skilled in the art can easily make various modifications and corrections based on the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be noted that these modifications and corrections are included in the scope of the present invention. For example, the functions included in each component, each step, etc. can be rearranged so as not to be logically contradictory, and a plurality of components, steps, etc. can be combined into one or divided. Also, the configurations shown in the above embodiments may be appropriately combined.

[0064] For example, in the above, an aspect in which ranking is performed so that the more serious the degradation, the higher the rank is shown. However, ranking may be performed so that the more serious the degradation, the lower the rank. In that case, it may be determined that the greater the calculated evaluation value, the more serious the degradation.

[0065] The program of each embodiment of the present disclosure may be provided in a state stored in a storage medium readable by an information processing apparatus. The storage medium can store the program in a "non-transitory tangible medium". The program includes, for example, a software program and an information processing apparatus program. When each functional unit of the base station monitoring apparatus 100 as an information processing apparatus is realized by software, the base station monitoring apparatus 100 functions as the acquisition unit 111, the detection unit 112, the extraction unit 113, the ranking unit 114, the calculation unit 115, and the notification unit 116 by the processor executing the program loaded on the memory.

[0066] When appropriate, the memory medium can include one or more semiconductor-based or other integrated circuits (ICs) (e.g., field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific ICs (ASICs), etc.), hard disk drives (HDDs), hybrid hard drives (HHDs), optical disks, optical disk drives (ODDs), magneto-optical disks, magneto-optical drives, floppy disks, floppy disk drives (FDDs), magnetic tapes, solid state drives (SSDs), RAM drives, secure digital cards or drives, any other appropriate memory medium, or any suitable combination of two or more of these. When appropriate, the memory medium can be volatile, non-volatile, or a combination of volatile and non-volatile.

[0067] Also, the program of the present disclosure may be provided to the base station monitoring device 100 via any transmission medium (such as a communication network or a broadcast wave) capable of transmitting the program.

[0068] In addition, each embodiment of the present disclosure can also be realized in the form of a data signal embedded in a carrier wave, in which the program is embodied by electronic transmission. Note that the program of the present disclosure may be implemented using, for example, script languages such as JavaScript (registered trademark), Python (registered trademark), etc., C language, Go language, Swift (registered trademark), Koltin, Java (registered trademark), etc.

[0069] According to each aspect of the present disclosure described above, by providing a technology related to KPI monitoring for network technologies after 5G, it is possible to contribute to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9, "Build the infrastructure for industry and innovation."

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0070] 100 Base station monitoring device 110 Control unit 111 Acquisition unit 112 Detection unit 113 Extraction unit 114 Ranking unit 115 Calculation unit 116 Notification Unit 200 (200A, 200B, 200C) Base Station 500 Network 600 Base Station Monitoring System

Claims

1. For a plurality of base stations, an acquisition unit that acquires values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of the base stations; A detection unit that detects the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicators; An extraction unit that extracts a target base station that is a base station in which deterioration is detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators; A ranking unit that ranks a plurality of target base stations in which deterioration is detected for each of the plurality of types of performance indicators based on the degree of deterioration; The plurality of types of performance indicators are classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicators, and for each of the plurality of target base stations, an evaluation value for each group of the target base station is calculated based on the ranking set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group; A base station monitoring device comprising:

2. The extraction unit extracts, as the target base station, a first base station in which deterioration is detected in a first performance indicator and a second base station in which deterioration is detected in a second performance indicator different from the first performance indicator. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

3. The extraction unit extracts, as the target base station, a first base station in which deterioration is detected based on a first detection method and a second base station in which deterioration is detected based on a second detection method different from the first detection method. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

4. The acquisition unit acquires the values of the performance indicators using a group of base stations existing within a predetermined area as the plurality of base stations. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

5. The detection unit detects the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicators by a detection method according to a tendency of change in the time series of the values of the performance indicators. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

6. The calculation unit calculates the evaluation value for each group based on the number of performance indicators in which deterioration is detected in the target base station, the ranking set by the ranking unit, and a predetermined weighting factor. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

7. The nature of the performance indicators for classifying the plurality of types of performance indicators includes connection rate, number of connections, throughput, traffic, interference, downtime, and block error rate. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

8. The detection unit detects the presence or absence of deterioration based on the values of the performance indicators acquired in time series over a predetermined period. The ranking unit uses, as the degree of deterioration, a statistical value of the values of the performance indicators in which the deterioration has been detected over the predetermined period. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

9. The base station monitoring device further includes an output unit that outputs information regarding the evaluation value for each group of the target base stations. The base station monitoring device according to claim 1.

10. A base station monitoring device performs steps of: acquiring values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of a plurality of base stations; detecting the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicators; extracting a target base station that is a base station in which deterioration has been detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators; ranking, for each of the plurality of types of performance indicators, a plurality of target base stations in which deterioration has been detected in the performance indicator based on the degree of deterioration; calculating, for each of the plurality of target base stations, an evaluation value based on the rank set for the target base station; the plurality of types of performance indicators are classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicator, and for each of the plurality of target base stations, calculating the evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the rank set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group; A control method for a base station monitoring device that executes the above steps.

11. In a base station monitoring device a function of acquiring values of a plurality of types of performance indicators indicating the performance of a plurality of base stations; a function of detecting the presence or absence of deterioration in the performance indicators; a function of extracting a target base station that is a base station in which deterioration has been detected in at least one of the plurality of types of performance indicators; a function of ranking, for each of the plurality of types of performance indicators, a plurality of target base stations in which deterioration has been detected in the performance indicator based on the degree of deterioration; a function of calculating, for each of the plurality of target base stations, an evaluation value based on the rank set for the target base station; the plurality of types of performance indicators are classified into at least two or more groups according to the nature of the performance indicator, and for each of the plurality of target base stations, calculating the evaluation value for each group of the target base station based on the rank set for the target base station for the performance indicators classified into the group; A control program for a base station monitoring device that realizes the above functions.

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