System and method for mitigating cell interference in a communication network

Abstract

Disclosed is a system (300) and a method (400) for mitigating cell interference in a communication network. The method (400) involves acquiring performance metrics data associated with each cells in the communication network. Further, based on the performance metrics data, an antenna tilt adjustment is performed at each cells and an outcome of the performed antenna tilt adjustment operation is monitored. Furthermore, a power attenuation operation is executed at one or more cells in the communication network to adjust a transmission power of transmitters of the one or more cells so that the coverage area for the one or more cells is reduced or restricted.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MITIGATING CELL INTERFERENCE IN A COMMUNICATION NETWORKTECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of communication networks and systems. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a system and a method for mitigating cell interference in a communication network.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The subject matter disclosed in the background section should not be assumed or construed to be prior art merely due to its mention in the background section. Similarly, any problem statement mentioned in the background section or its association with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed or construed to have been previously recognized in the prior art.

[0003] With the advent of technological advancements in telecommunications, several wireless technologies have emerged to meet the growing demand from broadband subscribers for improved applications and services. In recent years, user equipment’s (UEs) such as cellular telephones, laptop, computers, pagers, personal digital assistants, and similar devices are increasingly used in wireless communication networks for a variety of activities ranging from basic communications to conducting business transactions, managing entertainment media, and a host of other tasks.

[0004] To this end, various communication networks have adopted Self-Organizing Network (SON) technology. The SON technology is designed to simplify and accelerate configuration, optimization, and healing processes of mobile radio access networks. The functionality and behavior of the SON technology have been defined and specified in generally accepted mobile industry standards by organizations such as 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and NextGeneration Mobile Networks (NGMN) alliance. A key SON technology use case is Coverage and Capacity Optimization (CCO), which aims to maximize Quality of Service (QoS) of the mobile radio access networks, specifically coverage, quality, and capacity by adjusting key Radio Frequency (RF) parameters such as antenna tilt and azimuth configuration post-deployment. The CCO operates on a longer time scale, typically in the order of hours or days, to capture and respond to long-term or seasonal changes in traffic and environment, and to enable efficient data collection to accurately assess performance of the CCO.

[0005] Further, as the use of data applications have increased, there is a marginal shift towards more intensive data communication over airwaves. This often results in operation of radio frequencies on similar or overlapping frequencies, leading to interference between communications from the UEs and network sites. Identifying and determining level of interference in the mobile radio access networks, as well as implementing mitigation actions, traditionally requires significant human intervention. This manual process is time-consuming and prone to errors. For example, traditional methods for adjusting antenna tilt to shrink a coverage of an interfering aggressor cell have failed to mitigate the interference in the mobile radio access networks.

[0006] In light of the aforementioned challenges, there is a need for a solution that can reduce and mitigate the level of interference occurrence in the network to improve customer satisfaction.SUMMARY

[0007] The following embodiments present a simplified summary in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosed invention. This summary is not an extensive overview, and it is not intended to identify key / critical elements or to delineate the scope thereof. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0008] In an aspect of the present disclosure, a method for mitigating cell interference in a communication network is disclosed. The method comprises acquiring, by an acquisition engine from a database, performance metrics data comprising Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of a plurality of cells in the communication network. Based on the performance metrics data, the method comprises monitoring, by a monitoring engine, an outcome of an antenna tilt adjustment operation performed at each cell among the plurality of cells. Further, the method comprises executing, by an execution engine upon monitoring the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, a power attenuation operation to adjust a transmission power of transmitters of one or more cells among the plurality of cells.

[0009] In an aspect, for executing the power attenuation operation, the method comprises identifying, by an identification engine from the plurality of cells based on the monitoring, at least one of a first set of aggressor cells at which the antenna tilt adjustment operation has failed, a second set of aggressor cells at which a level of interference remained unchanged immediately post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, or a third set of aggressor cells where an increase in a number of User Equipment’s (UEs) affected by the interference is observed post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation. Further, the method comprises executing, by the execution engine, the power attenuation operation to adjust the transmission power of the transmitters of one or more cells among the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells.

[0010] In an aspect, in executing the power attenuation operation, the method comprises monitoring, by the monitoring engine over a time period following each antenna tilt adjustment operation, interference levels at each UE in one or more neighboring cells of the at least one of the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells. Further, the method comprises determining, by a determination engine based on the monitored interference levels, a recurring interference pattern indicative of an increase in the interference levels impacting the UEs in the one or more neighboring cells. Furthermore, the methodcomprises adjusting, by the execution engine based on the determined recurring interference pattern, the transmission power of the transmitters of the at least one of the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells.

[0011] In an aspect, the method comprises setting, by a configuration engine based on historical interference patterns of each aggressor cell among the plurality of cells, predefined monitoring intervals to assess the interference levels following each antenna tilt adjustment operation.

[0012] In an aspect, the method comprises determining, by a determination engine, a time interval of interference at which the increase in the number of UEs affected by the third set of aggressor cells is observed after completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation at the third set of aggressor cells. Further, the method comprises executing, by the execution engine prior to the time interval of interference, the power attenuation operation to reduce an output power of transmitters of the third set of aggressor cells.

[0013] In some aspects, the antenna tilt adjustment operation comprises adjusting, by the execution engine, an electrical tilt of one or more antennas of each cell among the plurality of cells to restrict a cell coverage area of each cell among the plurality of cells.

[0014] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a system for mitigating cell interference in a communication network is disclosed. The system comprises an acquisition engine, a monitoring engine, and an execution engine. The acquisition engine is configured to acquire, from a database, performance metrics data comprising Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of a plurality of cells in the communication network. The monitoring engine is configured to monitor, based on the performance metrics data, an outcome of an antenna tilt adjustment operation performed at each cell among the plurality of cells. Further, the execution engine is configured to execute, upon monitoring the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustmentoperation, a power attenuation operation to adjust a transmission power of transmitters of one or more cells among the plurality of cells.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0015] Various embodiments disclosed herein will become better understood from the following detailed description when read with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings constitute a part of the present disclosure and illustrate certain non-limiting embodiments of inventive concepts. Further, components and elements shown in the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present disclosure. For the purpose of consistency and ease of understanding, similar components and elements are annotated by reference numerals in the exemplary drawings.

[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a communication environment, in accordance with an example embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 2 illustrates an example diagram of a topographic interference mitigation (TIM) system architecture, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0018] FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of a system architecture of a server in the communication environment and the topographic interference mitigation (TIM) system architecture, in accordance with an example embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0019] FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of a method for mitigating cell interference in the communication environment, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] Aspects of the present disclosure will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one or more example embodiments. The embodiments are presented by way of example only and are notintended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Rather, these descriptions are provided to ensure a clear and consistent understanding of the disclosed subject matter by those skilled in the art. It should be understood that the various embodiments described herein may be modified, combined, or adapted without departing from the overall scope and intent of the invention.

[0021] The following description presents various embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiments disclosed herein are presented as teaching examples and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. The present disclosure should in no way be limited to the illustrative implementations, drawings, and techniques illustrated below, including the exemplary design and implementation illustrated and described herein, but may be modified, omitted, or expanded upon without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0022] The following description contains specific information pertaining to embodiments in the present disclosure. The detailed description uses the phrases “in some embodiments” or “some implementations” which may each refer to one or more or all of the same or different embodiments or implementations. The term “some” as used herein is defined as “one, or more than one, or all.” Accordingly, the terms “one,” “more than one,” “more than one, but not all” or “all” would all fall under the definition of “some.” In view of the same, the terms, for example, “in an embodiment” or “in an implementation” refers to one embodiment or one implementation and the term, for example, “in one or more embodiments” refers to “at least one embodiment, or more than one embodiment, or all embodiments.”. Further, the term, for example, “in one or more implementations” refers to “at least one implementation, or more than one implementation, or all implementations.

[0023] The term “comprising,” when utilized, means “including, but not necessarily limited to;” it specifically indicates open-ended inclusion in the so- described one or more listed features, elements in a combination, unless otherwise stated with limiting language. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “includes,” “has,” “have,” “contains,” and other similar words are used in either the detaileddescription, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising.”

[0024] In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, various specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, that embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. Several features described hereafter can each be used independently of one another or with any combination of other features.

[0025] The description provided herein discloses exemplary embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the present disclosure. Rather, the foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing any of the exemplary embodiments. Specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it may be understood by one of the ordinary skilled in the art that the embodiments disclosed herein may be practiced without these specific details.

[0026] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. As used herein the description, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" include plural forms unless the context of the invention indicates otherwise.

[0027] The terminology and structure employed herein are for describing, teaching, and illuminating some embodiments and their specific features and elements and do not limit, restrict, or reduce the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, unless otherwise defined, all terms, and especially any technical and / or scientific terms, used herein may be taken to have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having ordinary skill in the art.

[0028] Various aspects of the present disclosure illustrate a system and a method for mitigating cell interference in a communication network. The followingdescription provides specific details of certain aspects of the disclosure illustrated in the drawings to provide a thorough understanding of those aspects. It should be recognized, however, that the present disclosure can be reflected in additional aspects and the disclosure may be practiced without some of the details in the following description.

[0029] An aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a system and a method capable of identifying aggressor cells in the communication network where an antenna tilt execution to shrink a cell coverage area is failed, identifying other aggressor cells in the communication network where no improvement is observed after the antenna tilt execution, identifying remaining aggressor cells where an increase in a number of User Equipment’s (UEs) affected by the interference is observed after the antenna tilt execution. Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide mechanism for mitigating the cell interference at one of more of the identified aggressor cells by a performing one or more power attenuation operations to restrict or shrink the cell coverage area.

[0030] In the disclosure, various embodiments are described using terms used in some communication standards (e.g., 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), Extensible Radio Access Network (xRAN), and Open-Radio Access Network (O- RAN)), but these are merely examples for description. Various embodiments of the disclosure may also be easily modified and applied to other communication systems.

[0031] In order to facilitate an understanding of the disclosed invention, a number of terms are defined below.

[0032] The term “antenna tilt adjustment operation” refers to an operation in which a vertical orientation of a radiation pattern of a cell’s antenna is modified electrically to change a coverage footprint of the cell’s antenna. The tilt adjustment may be executed to optimize a Radio Frequency RF coverage, reduce inter-cell interference, and improve overall network performance.

[0033] The term “electrical tilt” refers to an alteration in a phase of antenna elements related to the cells in the communication network.

[0034] The term “interference” refers to any unwanted signal energy from one or more transmitting cells that degrades a signal quality or a reception of a desired signal at a receiving device, such as a User Equipment (UE). The interference may arise from intra-cell, inter-cell, or inter-frequency sources and include co-channel interference and adjacent-channel interference that adversely affects Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

[0035] “Neighboring cells” refers to those cells that are adjacent to source cells, forming a ring of potential compensators. The neighboring cells share geographical boundaries with the source cells and are pre-configured as neighbors via manual planning or Automatic Neighbor relations (ANR). During an outage the neighboring cells must maintain Physical Cell Identity (PCI) uniqueness to avoid conflicts and adjust coverage (example, via power adjustments or antenna tilt) to extend service into the outage zone.

[0036] The term “power attenuation” refers to a reduction in a transmission power level of cell’s radio transmitters, performed to limit excessive signal propagation and mitigate the interference with neighboring cells in the communication network.

[0037] The term “aggressor cells” refers to one or more cells in the communication network whose transmissions are determined to be primary source of the interference to the neighboring cells or the UEs in the communication network.

[0038] Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 through FIG. 4, discussed below, and the one or more embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosure are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged system or devices.

[0039] FIG. 1 illustrates an example communication environment 100 (interchangeably referred to as “communication network 100”), in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment of the communication environment 100 shown in FIG. 1 is provided by way of example only, and other configurations may be implemented without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. It should be noted that the terms “communication involvement 100” and “communication network 100” may be used interchangeably herein without implying any deviation in meaning.

[0040] As shown in FIG. 1, the communication environment 100 includes a plurality of gNodeBs (gNBs) 102-106 (hereinafter also referred to as “cells 102- 106”). The gNB 102 communicates with the gNB 104 and the gNB 106. The gNB 102 also communicates with a network 120, such as the Internet, a proprietary Internet Protocol (IP) network, or other data network. The gNBs 102-106 also communicates with a server 130 in the communication environment 100. The server 130 is communicatively coupled to a distributed file system 140 and a database 150 to store and fetch data including performance metrics data comprising KPIs of the cells 102-106 in the communication environment 100.

[0041] The gNB 102 provides wireless broadband access to the network 120 for a first plurality of UEs within a coverage area of the gNB 102. Each UE among the first plurality of UEs may correspond to, but not limited to, a mobile device, a cell phone, a wireless laptop, a wireless PDA, or the like. In a non-limiting example, the first plurality of UEs includes a UE 108 and a UE 110. Similarly, the gNBs 104 and 106 provide wireless broadband access to the network 120 for a second and third plurality of UEs within a coverage area of the gNB 104. The second plurality of UEs includes the UE 112 and the UE 114 and the third plurality of UEs includes a UE 116 and a UE 118. In some embodiments, the gNBs 102-106 may communicate with each other and with the UEs 108-118 using a communication technique, such as a 5th Generation 5G / NR, Long Term Evolution (LTE), Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE- A), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), or other wireless communication techniques.

[0042] The term “base station” may refer to any component (or collection of components) configured to provide wireless access to a network, such as Transmit Point (TP), Transmit-Receive Point (TRP), an Evolved Base Station (eNodeB or eNB), a 5thGeneration / New Radio (5G / NR) base station (gNB), a macrocell, a femtocell, a Wi-Fi Access Point (AP), or other wirelessly enabled devices. The base stations may provide wireless access in accordance with wireless communication protocols, e.g., 5G / NR 3GPPNew Radio interface / access (NR), LTE, LTE-A, High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Wi-Fi 802.11a / b / g / n / ac, etc. For the sake of convenience, the terms “base station” “cells” and “gNBs” are used interchangeably in the present disclosure to refer to network infrastructure components that provide wireless access to remote terminals. Further, depending on the network type, the term “user equipment” or “UE” may refer to any component such as “mobile station,” “subscriber station,” “remote terminal,” “wireless terminal,” “receive point,”. For the sake of convenience, the terms “user equipment” and “UE” are used in this disclosure to refer to remote wireless equipment that wirelessly accesses the base station.

[0043] The server 130 is configured to acquire performance metrics data comprising the KPIs of all the cells in the communication environment 100.

[0044] Further, the server 130 is configured to identify, based on the performance metrics data, a set of aggressor cells (first set) in the communication environment 100 at which tilt execution associated with the antenna tilt adjustment operation has failed, another set (second set) of aggressor cells in the communication environment 100 where no improvement in interference is observed immediately after the antenna tilt adjustment operation is performed, or another set (third set) of aggressor cells in the communication environment 100 where an increase in a number of UEs affected by the interference is observed post performing the antenna tilt adjustment operation.

[0045] Thereafter, the server 130 is configured to execute a power attenuation operation to adjust a transmission power or output power of transmitters of the each of the identified aggressor cells within the communication environment 100.

[0046] The server 130 may manage communications with the cells 102-106, the network 120, or the UEs (e.g., via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, the server 130 may manage the transfer of data communications for the cells and client devices, such as cells 102 through 106 and the UEs 108 through 118.

[0047] The distributed file system 140 may correspond to an external file system or a file system integrated within the server 130 for storing the performance metrics data and other operational data. In one or more embodiments, the distributed file system 140 may be a distributed database.

[0048] The database 150 may be configured to store the values of the KPIs included in the performance metrics data for quick access and retrieval by the server 130 for performing one or more operations for mitigating the cell interference. The database 150 may correspond, but not limited to, a centralized database, a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS), a non-RDBMS, and a Network Database Management System (NDMS).

[0049] Although FIG. 1 illustrates one example of the communication environment 100, various changes may be made to FIG. 1. For example, the communication environment 100 may include any number of gNBs, UEs, servers, and databases in any suitable arrangement. Further, the gNB 102 may communicate directly with any number of UEs and provide those UEs with wireless broadband access to the network 120. Further, the gNBs 102-106 may provide access to other or additional external networks, such as external telephone networks or other types of data networks.

[0050] FIG. 2 illustrates an example diagram of a Topographic Interference Mitigation (TIM) system architecture 200, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The TIM system architecture includes a TIM server 202, anedge node Distributed File System (DFS) client 204, a DFS 206, a zone wise task execution module 208, HBase tables 210, a database manager 212, a Representational State Transfer (REST) service module 214, a microservice(s) 216, a TIM parsing module 218, a distributed streaming platform 220, an execution engine 222, and a Local Subscriber Mobile Routing (LSMR) module 224.

[0051] In an embodiment, the TIM server 202 may act as a central hub for processing the performance metrics data and for decision-making to mitigate the cell interference in the communication network 100. In an embodiment, the TIM server 202 may receive processed data from the execution engine 222. Further, the TIM server 202 may apply specific rules on the processed data to identify the aggressor cells and mitigate the cell interference in the communication network 100 created due to the aggressor cells. In an embodiment, the execution engine 222 may be triggered by the TIM server 202 and further process the performance metrics data, and send the processed data to an Element Management System (EMS). Also, the execution engine 222 may receive the processed data, analyze the processed data, and send the processed data back to the TIM server 202.

[0052] As illustrated in FIG. 2, files stored in the TIM server 202 may be provided to the edge node DFS client 204. Further, the edge node DFS client 204 may process and send the files to the DFS 206 and further to the zone wise task execution module 208. Further, the zone wise task execution module 208 may receive inputs from the HBase tables 210, process the input information, and send the output information to the database manager 212. The database manager 212 may process the information received from the HBase tables 210 and send the processed information to the microservice(s) 216 and the TIM parsing module 218. The microservice(s) 216 and the TIM parsing module 218 may send the processed information to the execution engine 222 to generate the output.

[0053] More particularly, the TIM server 202 may collect, process, and analyze the performance metrics data from all the cells in the communication network 100. The TIM server 202 may acquire the KPIs from the database manager 212 and performoperations to identify the aggressor cells within the communication network 100 based on the analysis of the performance metrics data. The TIM server 202 may communicate and interact with other components as shown in the TIM system architecture 200 via one or more communication interfaces and protocols. The TIM server 202 may further generate performance reports and insights based on the analysis of the performance metrics data. Furthermore, the TIM server 202 and the LSMR module 224 analyze historical and current interference patterns to assess the performance impact on the UEs and determine a level of power adjustments required to mitigate the interference caused by the aggressor cells within the communication network 100. In general, the LSMR module 224 may analyze the historical patterns of interference to predict future trends of the interference within the communication network 100 and may provide statistical basis for recommended actions to enhancing the decision-making process of the TIM server 202.

[0054] The edge node DFS client 204 is an element capable of providing data access and managing data transfer between the TIM server 202 and the DFS 206. The edge node DFS client 204 establishes a secure connection with the TIM server 202 via Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to retrieve the performance metrics data, caches frequently accessed data to reduce latency for subsequent operations, and distributes processing tasks to the DFS 206 to perform data analysis efficiently.

[0055] The zone wise task execution module 208 corresponds to a unified analytics engine for performing real-time analysis on the performance metrics data. The zone wise task execution module 208 may identify patterns and trends across different zones of the communication network 100 and may generate insights that can help a network operator in making inform decisions on antenna tilt adjustments and the power attenuation of the aggressor cells.

[0056] The REST service module 214 is capable of managing communication between the cells and the TIM server 202 through Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) methods and provides Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to access and manipulate interference related data and the network performancerelated data. The TIM server 202 may utilize the REST service module 214 to fetch data associated with current interference level at each of the neighboring cells of the aggressor cells and associated performance metrics.

[0057] In an embodiment, the microservice(s) 216 may comprises one or more microservices where each microservice is capable of handling specific tasks such as data parsing, interference analysis, or triggering the power attenuation operations.

[0058] The distributed streaming platform 220 facilitates and maintains continuous flow of the performance metrics data from the cells within the communication network 100 to the TIM server 202. The distributed streaming platform 220 may be configured to monitor, over a time period following each antenna tilt adjustment operation, interference levels at each of the UEs in the neighboring cells of the aggressor cells to update the TIM server 202 on interference levels.

[0059] The execution engine 222 communicates directly with the transmitters of the aggressor cells to adjust power levels as instructed by the TIM server 202. In particular, the power attenuation operation is executed by controlling the transmitters of the aggressor cells to adjust a transmission power of the transmitters of the aggressor cells. Further, the execution engine 222 may monitor the outcomes of the executed power attenuation operation and may provide feedback to the TIM server 202 for further analysis.

[0060] Although FIG. 2 illustrates one example of the TIM system architecture 200, various changes may be made to FIG. 2. For example, the TIM system architecture 200 may include any number of components in addition to the components shown in FIG. 2. Further, various components in FIG. 2 may be combined, further subdivided, or omitted and additional components may be added according to particular needs.

[0061] FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of a system architecture 300 of the server 130 in the communication environment 100 and the TIM system architecture 200,in accordance with an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment of the server 130 as shown in FIG. 3 is for illustration only. However, the server 130 may come in a wide variety of configurations, and FIG. 3 does not limit the scope of the present disclosure to any particular implementation of the server 130.

[0062] As shown in FIG. 3, the server 130 includes one or more processors 302 (hereinafter may also be referred to as “processor 302” or “at least one processor 302”), a memory 304, an interface(s) 306, a network communication manager 308, a console host 310, and a processing engine(s) 350, and a database 360.

[0063] The processor 302 may include various processing circuitry and communicates with the memory 304, the network communication manager 308, the console host 310, and the database 360. The processor 302 may be implemented as one or more microprocessors, microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, processing units, or a general-purpose processor, such as, for example, and without limitation, a Central Processing Unit (CPU), an Application Processor (AP), a dedicated processor, a graphics-only processing unit such as a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) or the like, a programmable logic device, or any combination thereof that manipulate data based on operational instructions. Among other capabilities, the processor 302 is configured to fetch and execute computer- readable instructions stored in the memory 304 to perform various processes.

[0064] The memory 304 stores a set of instructions required by the processor 302 of the server 130 for controlling its overall operations. The memory 304 may include non-volatile storage elements. Examples of such non-volatile storage elements may include magnetic hard discs, optical discs, floppy discs, flash memories, or forms of Electrically Programmable Memories (EPROM) or Electrically Erasable and Programmable (EEPROM) memories. In addition, the memory 304 may, in some examples, be considered a non -transitory storage medium. The "non-transitory" storage medium is not embodied in a carrier wave or a propagated signal. However, the term "non-transitory" should not be interpretedas the memory 304 is non-movable. In some examples, the memory 304 may be configured to store larger amounts of information. In certain examples, a non- transitory storage medium may store data that can, over time, change (e.g., in Random Access Memory (RAM) or cache). The memory 304 may be an internal storage unit or an external storage unit of the server 130, cloud storage, or any other type of external storage.

[0065] The Interface 306 may include suitable logic, circuitry, a variety of interfaces, and / or codes that may be configured to receive input(s) and present (or display) output(s) on the server 130. The variety of interfaces may include interfaces for data input and output devices, referred to as I / O devices, storage devices, and the like. For example, the I / O interface may have an input interface and an output interface. The interface 306 may facilitate communication of the server 130 with various devices coupled to it. The interface 306 may also provide a communication pathway for one or more components of the server 130. Examples of such components include, but are not limited to, the processing engine(s) 350 and the database 360.

[0066] The network communication manager 308 may manage communications with the gNBs 102-106 and the UEs 108-118 (e.g., via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, the network communication manager 308 may manage the transfer of data communications for the gNBs 102-106 and the UEs 108-118. The network communication manager 308 may include a communication interface including an electronic circuit specific to a standard that enables wired or wireless communication. The communication interface may be configured for communicating internally between internal hardware components and with external devices via one or more networks.

[0067] The console host 310 may include suitable logic, instructions, and / or codes for executing various operations of one or more computer executable applications to host a console on an external device, by way of which the server 130 can be triggered to identify the aggressor cells causing the interference in thecommunication network 100 and perform control operations to mitigate the interference within the communication network 100.

[0068] In an embodiment, the processing engine(s) 350 may be implemented as a combination of hardware and programming (for example, programmable instructions) to implement one or more functionalities of the processing engine(s) 350. In non-limiting examples, described herein, such combinations of hardware and programming may be implemented in several different ways. For example, the programming for the processing engine(s) 350 may be processor-executable instructions stored on a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium and the hardware for the processor 302 may comprise a processing resource (for example, one or more processors), to execute such instructions. In the present examples, the machine-readable storage medium may store instructions that, when executed by the processing resource, implement the processing engine(s) 350. In such examples, the server 130 may also comprise the machine-readable storage medium storing the instructions and the processing resource to execute the instructions, or the machine- readable storage medium may be separate but accessible to the server 130 and the processing resource. In other examples, the processing engine(s) 350 may be implemented using an electronic circuitry.

[0069] The database 360 is managed by the processor 302 and configured to store the input data including, but not limited to, network status information and performance metrics data of each of the gNBs in the communication network 100. Further, the database 360 may be configured to handle data comprising tables dedicated for storing the KPI values corresponding to the KPIs included in the performance metrics data. Specifically, the database 360 is configured to store the values of the KPIs for quick access and retrieval by the server 130 for performing one or more operations for mitigating the cell interference. The database 360 may correspond, but not limited to, the centralized database, the RDBMS, the nonRDBMS, the NDMS, and the like.

[0070] In an example embodiment, the processing engine(s) 350 may include one or more engines selected from any of an acquisition engine 312, an identification engine 314, an execution engine 316, a monitoring engine 318, a determination engine 320, a configuration engine 322, and other units / engines 324. The other units / engines 324 may include, but are not limited to, a selection engine, an analytics engine, and the like.

[0071] In an embodiment, the processor 302 is configured to acquire, from the database 360 or an external database via the acquisition engine 312, performance metrics data comprising the KPIs of the cells present within the communication environment 100. In a non-limiting example, the performance metrics data may include, but not limited to, information and KPIs related to voice and data traffic Volume, handover success rate, Connection Setup Success Rate (CSSR), radio resource utilization, dropped call rates, packet loss and latency, throughput, Quality of Service (QoS) metrics, cell load, and the like.

[0072] Further, the processor 302, using the execution engine 316, performs the antenna tilt adjustment operation on each cell in the communication network 100 when an interference between one or more cells in the communication network 100 is detected by analyzing the acquired performance metrics data.

[0073] Furthermore, the processor 302, using the monitoring engine 318, monitors an outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation on each cell among the one or more cells of the communication network 100. In particular, following the execution of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, the monitoring engine 318 may monitor network performance indicators over a time period to determine a corresponding change in interference levels within coverage area of the corresponding antenna of the one or more cells. Such indicators may include, but not limited to, variations in Signal -to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) and a Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ). Additionally, metrics such as handover success rate, call drop rate, uplink and downlink throughput, and a number of radio link failures may beanalyzed to evaluate an impact of the antenna tilt adjustment operation on inter-cell interference conditions.

[0074] In an embodiment, the processor 302, using the identification engine 314, identifies, from the cells within the communication environment 100 based on the performance metrics data, a set of aggressor cells at which the antenna tilt adjustment operation has failed, another set of aggressor cells at which a level of the interference remained unchanged immediately post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, and yet another set of aggressor cells where the increase in the number of UEs affected by the interference is observed post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation. The aggressor cells are identified based on the outcome (i.e., change in values of the network performance indicators) of the monitoring operation that is performed to monitor the interference levels at each cell post performing the antenna tilt adjustment operation. The antenna tilt adjustment operation may comprise adjusting an electrical tilt of one or more antennas of the identified sets of aggressor cells to restrict the associated cell coverage area. The cell coverage area of each cell may be restricted by adjusting a radiation pattern of one or more antennas associated with each cell by adjusting the electrical tilt of the one or more antennas using a remote electrical tilt actuator such that a spatial extent of signal propagation is reduced in one or more directions.

[0075] In an embodiment, the processor 302, using the execution engine 316, executes the power attenuation operation to adjust the transmission power of the transmitters of the identified aggressor cells. The transmission power of the antenna may be adjusted by modifying output power level of the transmitters of the identified aggressor cells, such that Effective Radiated Power (ERP) within a corresponding coverage region is either increased or decreased to mitigate the interference levels. The adjustment may be executed by sending a control signal to a power control module (not shown) integrated with the execution engine 316, and may involve altering power amplifier gain, modifying digital signal parameters prior to the amplification, or updating configuration setting of antennas of the identified aggressor cells.

[0076] In one or more embodiments, the processor 302, using the monitoring engine 318, further monitors interference levels at each of the UEs in one or more neighboring cells of the identified aggressor cells, over a predefined time period following each antenna tilt adjustment operation. For example, following the execution of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, the monitoring engine 318 may monitor network performance indicators of the one or more neighboring cells of the identified aggressor cells over the predefined time period (let say, for 5 to 10 minutes) to determine the change in the interference levels at each UE which is being served by the one or more neighboring cells of the identified aggressor cells.

[0077] In one or more embodiments, the processor 302 may determine, using the determination engine 320, a recurring interference pattern indicative of an increase in the interference levels impacting the UEs in the one or more neighboring cells based on the monitored interference levels and further adjusts the transmission power of the transmitters of the identified aggressor cells based on the determined recurring interference pattern. The recurring interference pattern refers to a repeatable or periodically observed set of interference related conditions or metrics that exhibit consistent temporal or spatial characteristics across multiple measurement intervals. The recurring interference pattern may be indicative of a cyclic increase in the interference levels impacting the UEs located within coverage region of the one or more neighboring cells.

[0078] Further, based on historical interference patterns of each aggressor cell among the plurality of cells, the processor 302 may set, using the configuration engine 322, predefined monitoring intervals to assess the interference levels following each antenna tilt adjustment operation. The historical interference pattern refers to previously recorded or accumulated set of interference related data points corresponding to the cells present in the communication network 100 over a predetermined time duration, for example, 7 days, 14 days, 30 days, months, or years. Further, the predefined monitoring intervals are fixed, or configurable duration of time established in advance by the configuration engine 322 for periodically monitoring or assessing interference related metrics after performingthe antenna tilt adjustment operation. In particular, the monitoring intervals may be defined based on the historical interference pattern, network topology, or policy rules, and may include intervals such as 5 minutes, 15 minutes, 1 hour, or 24 hours. For example, if an interference spike is historically observed in the communication network 100 every evening between 7:00 PM and 9:00 PM, the predefined monitoring level may be set to begin at 6:45 PM and end at 9: 15 PM in order to ensure that pre and post interference conditions is accurately captured.

[0079] In some embodiments, the processor 302 may determine, using the determination engine 320, a time interval at which the increase in the number of UEs affected by the aggressor cells (third set of aggressor cells) is observed after completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation at those aggressor cells (i.e., third set of aggressor cells). In particular, the time interval of interference is determined by the determination engine 320 based on a temporal analysis of interference related performance metrics recorded over a period of time for each cell in the communication network 100. This involves identifying a specific window of time during which an increase in the interference levels or in the number of UEs affected by the interference is consistently observed after completion of the execution of the antenna tilt adjustment operation.

[0080] Further, the processor 302 may execute, using the execution engine 316, the power attenuation operation prior to the determined time interval of interference to adjust the transmission power or reduce the output power of transmitters of the aggressor cells where the increase in the number of UEs affected by the interference is observed.

[0081] Although FIG. 3 illustrates one example of the server 130, various changes may be made to FIG. 3. For example, the server 130 may include any number of components in addition to the components shown in FIG. 3. Further, various components in FIG. 3 may be combined, further subdivided, or omitted and additional components may be added according to particular needs.

[0082] FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of a method 400 for mitigating the cell interference in the communication environment 100, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The method 400 comprises a series of operation steps indicated by blocks 402 through 410. The method 400 starts at block 402. The operation steps are described with reference to the components such as the processing engine(s) 350 of the server 130. However, the embodiment of the method 400 can be performed directly by the processor 302 in combination with one or more components of the server 130 without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0083] At the block 402, the acquisition engine 312 acquires, from the distributed file system 140 and the database 150, the performance metrics data comprising the KPIs of each cell in the communication network 100.

[0084] At block 404, the execution engine 316 performs the antenna tilt adjustment operation on each cell in the communication network 100 upon detecting an interference between one or more cells in the communication network 100 based on an analysis of the acquired performance metrics data.

[0085] At block 406, the monitoring engine 318 monitors, at the predefined monitoring intervals, the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation on a corresponding cell among the one or more cells of the communication network 100 following corresponding antenna tilt adjustment operation. For instance, the monitoring engine 318 monitors the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation to check whether any of the antenna tilt adjustment operation has failed or to check whether the interference levels at the corresponding cells have changed.

[0086] At block 408, based on the outcome of the monitoring operation performed at the block 406, the identification engine 314 determines whether an electrical tilt adjustment operation (hereinafter interchangeably referred to as “electrical tilt execution operation) associated with the antenna of the aggressor cells to shrink the coverage area has failed. If a result of the determination at the block 408 is yes, then the identification engine 314 identifies, as the first set of aggressor cells, thoseaggressor cells where the electrical tilt execution operation to shrink the coverage area has failed, and executes (at block 414) the power attenuation operation to reduce the transmission power of transmitters of the first set aggressor cells. If a result of the determination at the block 404 is no, the identification engine 314 takes no action.

[0087] At block 410, based on the outcome of the monitoring operation performed at the block 406, the identification engine 314 determines whether interference on other aggressor cells is reduced after performing the electrical tilt execution operation. If a result of the determination at the block 410 is no, then the identification engine 314 identifies, as the second set of aggressor cells, those aggressor cells where no improvement in the interference is observed immediately after performing the electrical tilt execution operation, and executes (at the block 414) the power attenuation operation to reduce the transmission power of transmitters of the second set aggressor cells. If a result of the determination at the block 410 is yes, then the identification engine 314 takes no action.

[0088] At block 412, based on the outcome of the monitoring operation performed at the block 406, the identification engine 314 determines whether the number of users affected by the interference is increased post performing the electrical tilt execution operation on the aggressor cells. If a result of the determination at the block 412 is yes, then the identification engine 314 identifies, as the third set of aggressor cells, the aggressor cells where a sudden increase in a number of UEs affected by the interference is observed after performing the electrical tilt execution operation, and executes (at the block 414) the power attenuation operation to adjust the transmission power of transmitters or reduce the output power of the transmitters of the third set aggressor cells. If a result of the determination at the block 412 is no, then the identification engine 314 takes no action.

[0089] In another aspect of the disclosure, if the result of the determination at the block 412 is yes, then the determination engine 320 determines the time interval of the interference at which the number of UEs affected by the third set of aggressorcells is increased and then, the execution engine 316 executes the power attenuation operation prior to the time interval of interference in order to reduce the transmission power of transmitters of the third set of aggressor cells.

[0090] Embodiments of the present technology may be described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations of methods and systems according to embodiments of the technology, and / or procedures, algorithms, steps, operations, formulae, or other computational depictions, which may also be implemented as computer program products. In this regard, each block or step of the flowchart, and combinations of blocks (and / or steps) in the flowchart, as well as any procedure, algorithm, step, operation, formula, or computational depiction can be implemented by various means, such as hardware, firmware, and / or software including one or more computer program instructions embodied in computer-readable program code. As will be appreciated, any such computer program instructions may be executed by one or more computer processors, including without limitation a general -purpose computer or special purpose computer, or other programmable processing apparatus to perform a group of operations comprising the operations or blocks described in connection with the disclosed methods.

[0091] Further, these computer program instructions, such as embodied in computer-readable program code, may also be stored in one or more computer- readable memory or memory devices (for example, the memory 304) that can direct a computer processor or other programmable processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory or memory devices produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function specified in the block(s) of the flowchart(s).

[0092] It will further be appreciated that the term “computer program instructions” as used herein refer to one or more instructions that can be executed by the one or more processors (for example, the processor 302) to perform one or more functions as described herein. The instructions may also be stored remotely such as on a server, or all or a portion of the instructions can be stored locally and remotely.

[0093] Now, referring to the technical abilities and advantageous effect of the present disclosure, the one or more embodiments disclosed herein helps in efficiently reducing the interference impact in the communication network by executing the power attenuation operation on those aggressor cells where antenna tilt adjustment operation is failed, when no improvement in interference is observed post performing the antenna tilt adjustment, or when a repetitive pattern of sudden rise of interference is observed in the aggressor cells post performing the antenna tilt adjustment operation on the aggressor cells.

[0094] The reduction of the interference impact in the communication network environment can help in improving the Quality of Service (QoS) of the provided by the telecom operators as well which can further lead to a customer satisfaction.

[0095] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the methodology described herein in the present disclosure may be carried out in other specific ways than those set forth herein in the above disclosed embodiments without departing from essential characteristics and features of the present invention. The above-described embodiments are therefore to be construed in all aspects as illustrative and not restrictive.

[0096] The drawings and the forgoing description give examples of embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of the described elements may well be combined into a single functional element. Alternatively, certain elements may be split into multiple functional elements. Elements from one embodiment may be added to another embodiment. For example, orders of processes described herein may be changed and are not limited to the manner described herein. Any combination of the above features and functionalities may be used in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0097] In the present disclosure, each of the embodiments has been described with reference to numerous specific details which may vary from embodiment to embodiment. The foregoing description of the specific embodiments disclosed herein may reveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others may, byT1 applying current knowledge, readily modify and / or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications are intended to be comprehended within the meaning of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and is not limited in scope.LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

[0098] The following list is provided for convenience and in support of the drawing figures and as part of the text of the specification, which describe innovations by reference to multiple items. Items not listed here may nonetheless be part of a given embodiment. For better legibility of the text, a given reference number is recited near some, but not all, recitations of the referenced item in the text. The same reference number may be used with reference to different examples or different instances of a given item. The list of reference numerals is:100 - Communication environment / communication network102-106 - gNodeBs / cells / nodes / base stations108-118 - User Equipment’s (UEs)120 - Network130 - Server140 - Distributed file system150 - Database200 - Topographic Interference Mitigation (TIM) system architecture202 - TIM server204 - Edge node Distributed File System (DFS) client206 - DFS208 - Zone wise task execution module210 - Hbase tables212 - Database manager214 - Representational State Transfer (REST) service module216 - Microservice(s)218 - TIM parsing module220 - Distributed streaming platform222 - Execution engine224 - Local Subscriber Mobile Routing (LSMR) module300 - System architecture of the server 130302 - Processor(s)304 -Memory306 - Interface(s)308 - Network communication manager310 - Console host312 - Acquisition engine314 - Identification engine316 - Execution engine318 - Monitoring engine320 - Determination engine322 - Configuration engine324 - other units / engines350 - Processing engine(s)360 - Database400 - Method for mitigating the cell interference

Claims

We Claim:

1. A method (400) for mitigating cell interference in a communication network (100), the method (400) comprising: acquiring, by an acquisition engine (312) from a database (140, 150), performance metrics data comprising Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of a plurality of cells in the communication network (100); monitoring, by a monitoring engine (318) based on the performance metrics data, an outcome of an antenna tilt adjustment operation performed at each cell among the plurality of cells; and executing, by an execution engine (316) upon monitoring the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, a power attenuation operation to adjust a transmission power of transmitters of one or more cells among the plurality of cells.

2. The method (400) as claimed in claim 1, wherein, for executing the power attenuation operation, the method comprises: identifying, by an identification engine (314) from the plurality of cells based on the monitoring, at least one of a first set of aggressor cells at which the antenna tilt adjustment operation has failed, a second set of aggressor cells at which a level of interference remained unchanged immediately post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, or a third set of aggressor cells where an increase in a number of User Equipment’s (UEs) affected by the interference is observed post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation; and executing, by the execution engine (316), the power attenuation operation to adjust the transmission power of the transmitters of one or more cells among the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells.

3. The method (400) as claimed in claim 2, wherein, in executing the power attenuation operation, the method comprises:monitoring, by the monitoring engine (318) over a time period following each antenna tilt adjustment operation, interference levels at each UE in one or more neighboring cells of the at least one of the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells; determining, by a determination engine (320) based on the monitored interference levels, a recurring interference pattern indicative of an increase in the interference levels impacting the UEs in the one or more neighboring cells; and adjusting, by the execution engine (316) based on the determined recurring interference pattern, the transmission power of the transmitters of the at least one of the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells.

4. The method (400) as claimed in claim 3, further comprising setting, by a configuration engine (322) based on historical interference patterns of each aggressor cell among the plurality of cells, predefined monitoring intervals to assess the interference levels following each antenna tilt adjustment operation.

5. The method (400) as claimed in claim 2, further comprising: determining, by a determination engine (320), a time interval of interference at which the increase in the number of UEs affected by the third set of aggressor cells is observed after completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation at the third set of aggressor cells; and executing, by the execution engine (316) prior to the time interval of interference, the power attenuation operation to reduce an output power of transmitters of the third set of aggressor cells.

6. The method (400) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna tilt adjustment operation comprises adjusting, by the execution engine (316), an electrical tilt of one or more antennas of each cell among the plurality of cells to restrict a cell coverage area of each cell among the plurality of cells.

7. A system (300) for mitigating cell interference in a communication network (100), the system (300) comprising: an acquisition engine (312) configured to acquire, from a database (140, 150), performance metrics data comprising Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of a plurality of cells in the communication network (100); a monitoring engine (318) configured to monitor, based on the performance metrics data, an outcome of an antenna tilt adjustment operation performed at each cell among the plurality of cells; and an execution engine (316) configured to execute, upon monitoring the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, a power attenuation operation to adjust a transmission power of transmitters of one or more cells among the plurality of cells.

8. The system (300) as claimed in claim 7, wherein, to execute the power attenuation operation, the system (300) comprises: an identification engine (314) configured to identify, from the plurality of cells based on the monitoring, at least one of a first set of aggressor cells at which the antenna tilt adjustment operation has failed, a second set of aggressor cells at which a level of interference remained unchanged immediately post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, or a third set of aggressor cells where an increase in a number of User Equipment’s (UEs) affected by the interference is observed post completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, wherein the execution engine (316) is configured to execute the power attenuation operation to adjust the transmission power of the transmitters of one or more cells among the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells.

9. The system (300) as claimed in claim 8, wherein, to execute the power attenuation operation, the system comprises a determination engine (320), wherein: the monitoring engine (318) is configured to monitor, over a time period following each antenna tilt adjustment operation, interference levels at each UE inone or more neighboring cells of the at least one of the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells; and the determination engine (320) is configured to determine, based on the monitored interference levels, a recurring interference pattern indicative of an increase in the interference levels impacting the UEs in the one or more neighboring cells, and the execution engine is configured to adjust, based on the recurring interference pattern, the transmission power of the transmitters of the at least one of the first set of aggressor cells, the second set of aggressor cells, or the third set of aggressor cells.

10. The system (300) as claimed in claim 9, comprising a configuration engine (322) configured to set, based on historical interference patterns of each aggressor cell among the plurality of cells, predefined monitoring intervals to assess the interference levels following each antenna tilt adjustment operation.

11. The system (300) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the determination engine (320) is further configured to determine a time interval of interference at which the increase in the number of UEs affected by the third set of aggressor cells is observed after completion of the antenna tilt adjustment operation at the third set of aggressor cells, and wherein the execution engine (316) is further configured to execute, prior to the time interval of interference, the power attenuation operation to reduce an output power of transmitters of the third set of aggressor cells.

12. The system (300) as claimed in claim 7, wherein, to perform the antenna tilt adjustment operation, the execution engine (316) is further configured to adjust an electrical tilt of one or more antennas of each cell among the plurality of cells to restrict a cell coverage area of each cell among the plurality of cells.

13. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions that are stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium and that, when executed by at least one processor performs operations comprising:acquiring, from a database, performance metrics data comprising Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of a plurality of cells in a communication network; monitoring, by a monitoring engine based on the performance metrics data, an outcome of an antenna tilt adjustment operation performed at each cell among the plurality of cells; and executing, upon monitoring the outcome of the antenna tilt adjustment operation, a power attenuation operation to adjust a transmission power of transmitters of one or more cells among the plurality of cells.

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