Method and apparatus for automated uplink interference mitigation for mission critical services

Abstract

According to an aspect, there is provided a computer- implemented method comprising the following Initially, number of terminal devices per cell for one or more cells is monitored. In response to detecting that the number of terminal devices within a cell is larger than a pre-defined threshold for a pre-defined amount of time, the following is performed. One or more neighboring cells of the cell are detected. One or more first terminal devices operating in any non-mission-critical operating mode in the cell or its neighboring cells are determined. A first set of values for radio transmission power control parameters for the one or more first terminal devices is determined. The first set of values is associated with lower terminal device transmit power compared to current default values. Configuration of the one or more first terminal devices to use the first set of values is caused.

Description

AUTOMATED UPLINK INTERFERENCE MITIGATION FOR MISSION CRITICAL SERVICES TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] Various example embodiments relate to wireless communication.BACKGROUND

[0002] Physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) is used for transferring user datafrom a terminal device to a radio network (i.e., to an access node thereof). The transferreddata needs to be on a certain power for reaching to the destination. Terminal devices fartherfrom the access node need to employ higher transmit power compared to terminal devicescloser to the access node. High transmit power may cause interference and fast battery drainfor the terminal device. On the other hand, low transmit power may result in failure to deliverdata successfully to the network. Thus, transmit power of terminal devices needs to becontrolled for all the terminal devices connected to the access node.

[0003] Uplink interference is typically an issue in mobile networks when several usersare transmitting in an area where many cells are overlapping. An access node typically tries to control transmit power of terminal devices so that received signal level is above certain signal-to-interference-plus-noise (SINR) level. When the interference level rises, the transmit power used by the terminal devices also needs to be higher. In some cases, it mayoccur that all terminal devices are transmitting with maximum power, but the interferencelevel is still too high to maintain good uplink (UL) signal quality level (e.g., sufficiently high SINR). This leads to a drop in service quality or even to a total interruption of services. Typical environments where such high traffic events may occur include stadiums, transportation hubs and shopping malls (especially during peak shopping seasons or event). SUMMARY

[0004] According to some aspects, there is provided the subject-matter of theindependent claims. Some embodiments are defined in the dependent claims. The scope ofprotection sought for various embodiments of the invention is set out by the independent claims. The embodiments, examples and features, if any, described in this specification that do not fall under the scope of the independent claims are to be interpreted as examples useful for understanding various embodiments of the invention.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided acomputer-implemented method comprising: monitoring number of terminal devices per cell for one or more cells; in response to detecting, based on the monitoring, that the number of terminal devices within a cell is larger than a pre-defined threshold for a pre-defined amount of time, performing the following: -detecting one or more neighboring cells of the cell;- determining one or more first terminal devices operating in any of one or more non-mission-critical operating modes in any of the cell and the one or more neighboring cells; -determining a first set of values for radio transmission power control parameters for theone or more first terminal devices, wherein the first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters is associated with lower terminal device transmit power compared to current default values for the radio transmission power control parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells; -causing configuring the one or more first terminal devices to use the first set of valuesfor the radio transmission power control parameters.

[0006] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided anapparatus comprising means for performing the computer-implemented method accordingto the first aspect.

[0007] In an embodiment of the second aspect, the means comprise at least oneprocessor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the performance of the apparatus.

[0008] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided acomputer program which, when the computer program is executed by a computing device, causes the computing device to carry out the computer-implemented method according to the first aspect.

[0009] According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium program comprising program instructions that, whenexecuted by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to carry out the computer-implemented method according to the first aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates a system according to some embodiments;

[0011] FIGs. 2 to 4 illustrate processes according to some embodiments;

[0012] FIGs. 5 & 6 illustrate cumulative distribution functions for uplink throughputof terminal devices operating, respectively, in mission-critical and non-mission-criticaloperating modes relating to an exemplary LTE measurement campaign conducted during amass event; and

[0013] FIG. 7 illustrates an apparatus according to some embodiments.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

[0014] The following embodiments are only presented as examples. Although thespecification may refer to “an”, “one”, or “some” embodiment(s) and / or example(s) in several locations of the text, this does not necessarily mean that each reference is made to the same embodiment(s) or example(s), or that a particular feature only applies to a singleembodiment and / or example. The verbs “to comprise” and “to include” are used in thisdocument as open limitations that neither exclude nor require the existence of also un-recited features. Single features of different embodiments and / or examples may also be combined to provide other embodiments and / or examples.

[0015] As used herein, “at least one of the following: <a list of two or moreelements>” and “at least one of ” and similar wording, where the list of two or more elements are joined by “and” or “or”, mean at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all the elements.

[0016] In the following, different exemplifying embodiments will be described using,as an example of an access architecture to which the embodiments may be applied, a radio access architecture based on long term evolution advanced (LTE Advanced, LTE-A) or new radio (NR, 5G), without restricting the embodiments to such an architecture, however. It isobvious for a person skilled in the art that the embodiments may also be applied to other kinds of communications networks having suitable means by adjusting parameters and procedures appropriately. Some examples of other options for suitable systems are the universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) radio access network (UTRAN or E- UTRAN), long term evolution (LTE, the same as E-UTRA), wireless local area network (WLAN or WiFi), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), Bluetooth®, personal communications services (PCS), ZigBee®, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), systems using ultra-wideband (UWB) technology, sensor networks, mobile ad- hoc networks (MANETs), Internet Protocol multimedia subsystems (IMS), rebel SIM (R- SIM) for code division multiple access (CDMA) technologies such as 1x and 1x evolution data optimized (1xEV-DO), global system for mobile communications (GSM), open radio access network (O-RAN) or any combination thereof

[0017] A general architecture of a communication system 100 to which embodimentsmay be applied is illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 illustrates a simplified system architectureonly showing some elements and functional entities, all being logical units whoseimplementation may differ from what is shown. The connections shown in FIG.1 are logicalconnections; the actual physical connections may be different. It is apparent to a personskilled in the art that the system may also comprise other functions and structures. Thecommunication system 100 may be, for example, a long term evolution (LTE), a long termevolution advanced (LTE Advanced, LTE-A), fifth generation new radio (5G NR) or sixth generation (6G) communication system.

[0018] The communication system 100 of FIG. 1 comprises a random access network(RAN) 140 and a core network 130. In the illustrated simplistic example, the RAN 140 comprises at least first and second access nodes 101, 103 serving, respectively, first andsecond cells 102, 104. In general, the RAN 140 may comprise a plurality of access nodes,each of which is serving one or more cells (or one or more sectors of one or more cells). Thefirst and second access nodes 101, 103 are communicatively connected to the core network130. The access nodes 101, 103 may be equally called base stations or access points. Eachof the first and second access nodes may be, for example, an eNodeB (eNB) and / or a gNodeB (gNB). While FIG.1 depicts the first and second access nodes 101, 103 as non-distributed access nodes, one or both of the first and second access nodes 101, 103 may be, alternatively,distributed access nodes comprising, each, at least one radio unit (RU), at least onedistributed unit (DU) connected (via a fronthaul link) to the at least one RU and a centralunit (CU) connected to the at least one DU.

[0019] The core network 130 may comprise one or more network functions (NFs) forestablishing, configuring, and controlling data communication within the RAN 140 comprising at least the first and second access nodes 101, 103 and the terminal devices 105, 106, 121 to 214 served by them. The one or more NFs may comprise, for example, at least one of a mobility management entity (MME), a serving gateway (SGW), a packet data network (PDN) gateway (PGW), a home subscriber server (HSS), a policy and chargingrules function (PCRF), an authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) server, anaccess and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), apolicy control function (PCF), an authentication server function (AUSF), a unified datamanagement (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), or network slice selectionfunction (NSSF) and / or any functions or entities implementing corresponding functionalitiesto any of the listed functions or entities. The data communication sessions of terminaldevices may carry data traffic, for example, application data associated with one or moreapplications running on the terminal devices 105, 106, 121 to 124.

[0020] The communication system 100 may further comprise a network controller(NC) 131, which may be responsible of configuring various operations of the RAN 120and / or the core network 130. The network controller 131 may serve to orchestrate thenetwork function(s). The network controller 131 may be a part of the core network 130 orexternal to it (the latter option is shown in FIG.1). Network controller 131 may be configuredto directly communicate with the access nodes 101, 103 of the RAN 140.

[0021] The communication system 100 may comprise a network management system(NMS) 132 configured to process and store performance management (PM) data of thecommunication system 100 (or at least the RAN 140 thereof). The PM data may comprisevarious types of information collected from different network elements, for example, accessnodes 101, 103 of RAN 140. The PM data may comprise, for example, layer-3 signallingdata. The NMS 132 may be configured to operate as a centralized data management system (e.g., a server), which processes the collected data and provides it for network managementfunctions, for example, for adjusting transmit power of terminal devices. The NMS 132 maybe a part of the core network 130 or external to it (the latter option is shown in FIG. 1).Alternatively, similar functionality may be provided at an operations support system (OSS) of the communication network 100.

[0022] The RAN 140 of the communication system 100 further comprises a set ofterminal devices 105, 106, 121 to 124 which are being served by the first and second access nodes 101, 103 via the first and second cells 102, 104. In general, a terminal device 105, 106, 121 to 214 as shown in FIG. 1 and as discussed in further embodiments may be a (typically portable) computing device comprising a subscriber identification module (SIM) and being capable of wireless communication in one or more wireless communication networks. A terminal device may be, for example, a mobile station (mobile phone), asmartphone, a laptop, a tablet computer, a mobile hotspot, an Internet of Things device, asmartwatch or a wearable device. The terminal device may also be called a user device, auser terminal or user equipment (UE). The terminal devices 105, 106, 121 to 124 areconfigured to operate using the same cellular communication standard, or standards, as the access nodes 101, 103, to enable interoperability.

[0023] The terminal devices 105, 106, 121 to 124 of the cellular communicationnetwork 100 (being, e.g., an LTE cellular communication network) may be able to operate using a plurality of different quality of service (QoS) classes. QoS classes are categories or levels of service differentiation used in the cellular communication system 100 to prioritize and manage traffic based on specific quality parameters and requirements. Quality of Service (QoS) classes and associated QoS class identifiers (QCIs) may be used for differentiating between different subscriber services employed by terminal devices. The QoS classes andassociated QCIs may be specifically LTE QoS classes and associated LTE QCIs (though, inother embodiments, 5G QoS classes and associated 5G QoS identifiers, 5QIs, may beemployed instead). Each QoS class is associated with a certain QCI. QoS classes are dividedinto guaranteed bitrate (GBR) and non-GBR resource types. An example of different QoSclasses, their identifiers and other attributes are presented in the below Table. Especially theQoS classes highlighted in bold (or at least some of them) may be employed by terminal devices in embodiments to be described below. QCI Resource Priority PacketPacket Example Services Type Delay Error Budget Loss [ms] RateGBR 2 100 10-2 Conversational voiceGBR 4 150 10-3 Conversational video (live streaming)GBR 3 50 10-3 Real time gaming, vehicle-to-everything(V2X) messages GBR 5 300 10-6 Non-conversational video (bufferedstreaming) GBR 0.7 75 10-2 Mission critical user plane push-to-talkvoice (e.g., mission critical push-to-talk, MCPTT) GBR 2 100 10-2 Non-mission-critical user plane push-to-talk voice GBR 1.5 100 10-3 Mission critical video user planeGBR 2.5 50 10-2 V2X messagenon-GBR 1 100 10-6 Internet protocol multimedia system(IMS) signalingnon-GBR 6 300 10-6 Video (buffered streaming)transmission control protocol (TCP)- based (e.g., World Wide Web, email, chat, file transfer protocol, FTP, & peer-to-peer, P2P)non-GBR 7 100 10-3 Voice, video (live streaming)interactive gamingnon-GBR 8 300 10-6 Video (buffered streaming) TCP-based (e.g., World Wide Web, email, chat, FTP & P2P)non-GBR 9 300 10-6 Video (buffered streaming) TCP-based (e.g., World Wide Web, email, chat, FTP & P2P), typically default carriernon-GBR 0.5 60 10-6 Mission critical delay sensitive signaling(e.g., mission critical push-to-talk, MC- PTT, signaling)70 non-GBR 5.5 200 10-6 Mission critical data (e.g., see QCI6 / 8 / 9) 79 non-GBR 6.5 50 10-2 V2X messages80 non-GBR 6.8 10 10-6 Low latency enhanced mobilebroadband (eMBB) applications (TCP / UDP-based), augmented reality 82 GBR 1.9 10 10-4 Discrete automation (small packets)83 GBR 2.2 10 10-4 Discrete automation (big packets)84 GBR 2.4 30 10-5 Intelligent transport systems85 GBR 2.1 5 10-5 Electricity distribution – high voltage

[0024] Specifically, in the exemplary communication scenario illustrated in FIG. 1, afirst plurality of terminal devices 105, 121 to 124 (depicted in black) are being served by the first access node 101 via the first cell 102 while a second plurality of terminal device 106 (depicted in white) are being served by the second access node 103 via the second cell 104.Dashed lines are used in FIG. 1 for illustrating uplink transmissions (e.g., via PUSCH) ofthe terminal devices 105, 106, 121 to 124 with thickness of a given dashed line indicating a transmit power level (a thick line being associated with a higher transmit power compared to a thin line). The terminal devices that are farther from the serving access node aretransmitting with higher transmit power so that received signal from different terminals areapproximately at the same level at the base station. Notably, some 121 to 124 of the terminaldevices are within a coverage area of both of the first and second cells 102, 104 and, thus,their uplink transmissions are received at both the first and second access nodes 101, 103 even though only the first access node 101 is serving these terminal devices 121 to 124).This may result in serious uplink interference problems at the second access node 103,especially considering the fact the terminal devices 121 to 124 may need to employ relativelyhigh transmit power to ensure successful reception at the first access node 101. Theinterference at the second access node 103 may lead to drop in service quality or even to atotal interruption of services for the terminal devices 106 in the second cell 104. These uplinkinterference issues may be especially detrimental in cases where a very large number ofterminal devices exist in the overlapping area of adjacent cells. This may occur, for example,during mass events (e.g., concerts, festivals, sports events, parades, political rallies, holiday celebrations or promotional sales such as Black Friday sales).

[0025] The embodiments to be discussed below seek to overcome or at least alleviatethe aforementioned problem by providing means for reducing transmit power of certainselected terminal devices when a mass event is detected in a given cell.

[0026] FIG. 2 illustrates a process according to some embodiments for reducinginterference at an access node during a mass event. The process of FIG. 2 may be carried outby a core network node or an apparatus connected to a core network. For example, theprocess of FIG. 2 may be carried out by an NMS such as the NMS 132 of FIG. 1. In the following, the entity performing the process is called simply an apparatus.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 2, the apparatus monitors, in block 201, number of terminaldevices per cell for one or more cells (of a cellular communication network). The monitoringmay be, for example, based on layer-3 (L3) signaling data (e.g., routing data). Layer 3, alsoknown as the network layer, is an open systems interconnection (OSI) layer responsible forrouting and forwarding data packets between different networks. The layer-3 signaling datamay be monitored at one or more frequency bands (e.g., one or more LTE frequency bands). During the operation of the cellular communication network, the layer-3 signaling data maybe stored, periodically or regularly or continuously, to one or more nodes or functions of acore network (e.g., SGW, PGW, AMF and / or SMF), to a software-defined networking(SDN) controller and / or to one or more routers, gateways and / or network devices. The layer-3 signaling data (e.g., number of users or terminal devices) may be stored in a database. Theapparatus may monitor the layer-3 signaling data stored in one or more of said devices.

[0028] The apparatus determines, in block 202, based on the monitoring of block 201,whether the number of terminal devices within a cell is larger than a pre-defined thresholdfor a pre-defined amount of time. If this criterion is satisfied, a mass (or special) event maybe assumed to be on-going in the cell and, thus, the cell may likely be suffering from networkcongestion. Thus, actions are needed for mitigating any possible uplink interference issuesas described in connection with FIG. 1. The check of block 202 may be carried outcontinuously, periodically or regularly.

[0029] In some embodiments, the pre-defined threshold for the number of terminaldevices per cell may be equal to or larger than 200. Additionally or alternatively, the pre-defined amount of time may be equal to or larger than 5 minutes or equal to or larger than10 minutes. The pre-defined amount of time may be, for example, 15 minutes.

[0030] If the apparatus determines, in block 202, based on the monitoring of block201, that the number of terminal devices within a cell is not larger than the pre-definedthreshold for the pre-defined amount of time, the apparatus may not (necessarily) take anyaction in regard to (re)configuring of any terminal devices. Instead, the apparatus may simply continue the monitoring of block 201.

[0031] In response to determining, in block 202, based on the monitoring of block201, that the number of terminal devices within a cell is larger than the pre-defined thresholdfor the pre-defined amount of time, the apparatus performs at least actions pertaining to blocks 203 to 206.

[0032] First, the apparatus detects (or determines), in block 203, one or moreneighboring cells of the cell (that is, of the cell determined in block 202 to be suffering froma mass event). Any known neighbor cell detection (or equally neighbor cell discovery orneighbor cell identification) scheme may be employed here. The determination of block 203may be based, e.g., on distances between the cell and other cells of the cellularcommunication network and / or antenna bearings of the cell and said other cells. Thedistances between the cell and the other cells of the cellular communication network may be determined, e.g., based on coordinates of the cell and the other cells or they may be pre- defined.

[0033] For example, the neighboring cell detection (or discovery) may be carried outusing a cell pair evaluation method described in US 10972918 B2. Accordingly, theapparatus may calculate a weight factor for each of a plurality of cell pairs, where each cellpair consists of the cell (i.e., the cell detected in block 202 to be suffering from a mass event)and one other cell of the cellular communication network. The weight factor for cell pair may be calculated based on the coordinates of the cells in the cell pair and antenna directions (i.e., antenna bearings) of the cells in the cell pair. The cells of a cell pair having a value of the weight factor which exceeds a pre-defined threshold may be considered neighbors.

[0034] More specifically, in order to determine the neighboring cell(s), the apparatusmay determine a distance factor (being, e.g., equal to a physical distance) between the cellsin the cell pair based on the coordinates of the cells, determine an angle factor (e.g., an angular difference) based on antenna directions of the cells and determine a weight factorfor the cell pair based on the distance factor and the angle factor (e.g., using a function suchas an exponential function dependent at least on the distance and angle factors). The distancefactor ^ (e.g., the distance between cells) may be calculated, for example, using:^ = cos^^(sin(^^^^) sin(^^^^) + cos(^^^^) cos(^^^^) cos(^^^^ − ^^^^)) ∗ ^,where ^^^^, ^^^^, ^^^^ and ^^^^ are latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates at the cells 1 &2 of the cell pair and ^ is the radius of the Earth. For calculating the angle factor, theapparatus may first calculate longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates of points a and b using:where ^^^^, ^^^^ , ^^^^ and ^^^^ are latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates at points a & band ^^^^ and ^^^^ are antenna bearings (i.e., antenna directions) at the two cells of the cellpair. The angle factor ^ may, then, be calculated, for example, using:^ = cos (sinThe function (being a so-called cost function) for calculating the weight factor may have theform: cost = ^^ ^^ ^^^^^ .where ^ & ^ are model coefficients determining how much weight is placed on distance andhow weight is placed on the antenna directions. As mentioned above, the weight factorscalculated using the above cost function may be used to determine one or more neighboringcells.

[0035] The apparatus determines, in block 204, one or more first terminal devicesoperating in any of one or more non-mission-critical operating modes in any of the cell and the one or more neighboring cells. In other words, the apparatus identifies all or at least someterminal devices operating in a non-mission critical operating mode in the cell (i.e., the cellwhere the number of terminal devices was detected to be too high) and its neighboring cells.

[0036] Mission critical operations of a terminal device may be defined as operationsassociated with services that are deemed essential, e.g., for maintaining safety, security,productivity, or continuity of operations. Mission critical operations typically require highreliability, availability, and performance to ensure that they can function effectively underall conditions. Examples of mission critical operations may comprise any of public safetyand emergency services (e.g., communication services used by police, fire, and emergency medical services for coordinating responses to emergencies and ensuring public safety),utilities and infrastructure (e.g., communication services used by various utilities such aselectricity, water & gas for monitoring and controlling critical infrastructure, such as powergrids, pipelines, and water treatment facilities), transportation and logistics (e.g.,communication services used in transportation and logistics operations for tracking vehicles,managing fleets, and coordinating logistics operations, such as shipping and freighttransportation) or healthcare (e.g., communication services used in healthcare settings fortransmitting patient data, monitoring medical equipment, and facilitating communication between healthcare professionals).

[0037] Conversely, non-mission-critical operations may be any operations which arenot mission critical. Examples of non-mission-critical operations may comprise any ofcommercial telecommunications services (e.g., mobile voice and data services provided toconsumers and businesses for general communication purposes, such as making phone calls,sending messages, and accessing the internet), entertainment and media (e.g., wirelessentertainment services, such as streaming video, music, and gaming, that are used for leisureand entertainment purposes) or personal and social communication (e.g., social mediaplatforms, messaging apps, and other communication tools used for personal and social interaction, networking, and collaboration).

[0038] The one or more non-mission-critical operating modes may be associated withrespective one or more first QCIs defined for non-mission-critical data transmission. Theone or more first QCIs may correspond to non-GBR QoS classes. The one or more first QCIs defined for non-mission-critical data transmission may comprise QCI6, QCI7, QCI8 andQCI9 or at least one of QCI6, QCI7, QCI8 or QCI9. The QCI6, QCI7, QCI8 and QCI9 maybe defined as indicated in the Table above. Thus, the apparatus may determine, in block 204,the one or more first terminal devices associated with any of QCI6, QCI7, QCI8 and QCI9in any of the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

[0039] The apparatus determines, in block 205, a first set of values for radiotransmission power control parameters for the one or more first terminal devices. The first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters is associated with lowerterminal device transmit power (or specifically lower highest allowable terminal devicetransmit power) compared to current values for the radio transmission power controlparameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells. The current values for the radiotransmission power control parameters may correspond here to default values for the radiotransmission power control parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.Radio transmission power control parameters are parameters whose values define how (i.e., to which extent) the terminal device is able to adjust its own transmit power. In other words,a given terminal device may be able to adjust its own transmit power within limits definedby the values of the radio transmission power control parameters. The radio transmissionpower control parameters may be or comprise uplink radio transmission power controlparameters or, more specifically, PUSCH radio transmission power control parameters.

[0040] The determination of the first set of values for the radio transmission powercontrol parameters for the one or more first terminal devices in block 205 may be based, forexample, on the number of terminal devices in the cell and / or SINR level in the cell. Here,a higher number of terminal devices in the cell and / or a lower SINR level in the cell maylead to first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters which areassociated with more reduced transmit power levels. In some embodiments, the determination of the first set of values for the radio transmission power control parametersfor the one or more first terminal devices may be further based, for example, on the numberof terminal devices in the one or more neighboring cells and / or SINR level in the one ormore neighboring cells. The determination of block 205 may be based on a pre-definedmapping between the numbers of terminal devices and / or SINR levels in the cell (andoptionally in the one or more neighboring cells) and the first sets of values for the radiotransmission power control parameters. The pre-defined mapping may be provided in a first mapping table.

[0041] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in block 205) comprise all or at least one of:- a lower threshold for a targeted UL SINR,- an upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR,- a lower threshold for a targeted UL received signal strength indicator (RSSI), or- an upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI.Here, both the targeted UL SINR and the targeted UL RSSI refer to quantities measured atthe access node based on signal(s) transmitted by a particular terminal device. The lower andupper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR and the lower and upper thresholds for thetargeted UL RSSI may be called “ulpcLowqualSch”, “ulpcUpqualSch”, “ulpcLowlevSch”and “ulpcUplevSch”, respectively. The lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINRand the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI may define a targeted UL SINR window and a targeted UL RSSI window, respectively.

[0042] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in block 205) comprise at least the upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR. In such embodiments, a value of the upper threshold for the targeted ULSINR in the first set may be lower than a current default value of the upper threshold for thetargeted UL SINR.

[0043] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in block 205) comprise at least the lower threshold for the targeted UL SINR and the upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR. In such embodiments,values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the first set may bothbe lower than respective current default values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR.

[0044] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in block 205) comprise at least the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI. In such embodiments, a value of the upper threshold for the targeted ULRSSI in the first set may be lower than a current default value of the upper threshold for thetargeted UL RSSI.

[0045] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in block 205) comprise at least the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI and the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI. In such embodiments, values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set may belower than respective current default values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI.

[0046] The apparatus causes (or triggers), in block 206, configuring the one or morefirst terminal devices to use the first set of values for the radio transmission power controlparameters. In other words, a plan defining the first set of values for the radio transmissionpower control parameters of the one or more first terminal devices is provisioned to thecellular communication network. As the first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters is associated with lower terminal device transmit power compared to current default values for the radio transmission power control parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells, the configuration of the one or more first terminal devices in block 206 results in reduction of the interference level at least at the access node providingthe cell. Specifically, this enables any terminal device operating in a mission criticaloperating mode in the cell or its neighboring cell(s) to communicate more successfully inthe uplink direction. The causing (or triggering) of the configuration in block 206 may comprise transmitting at least one (configuration) message to one or more access nodesserving the cell and its one or more neighboring cells directly or via one or more corenetwork nodes.

[0047] FIG. 3 illustrates a process according to some embodiments for reducinginterference at an access node during a mass event. The process of FIG. 3 may be carried outby a core network node or an apparatus connected to a core network. For example, the process of FIG. 3 may be carried out by an NMS such as the NMS 132 of FIG. 1. In the following, the entity performing the process is called simply an apparatus.

[0048] The initial blocks 301 to 304 of the process of FIG. 3 may correspond fully toblocks 201 to 204 of FIG.2 and are, thus, not discussed here for brevity.

[0049] In addition to determining, in block 304, one or more first terminal devicesoperating in any of one or more non-mission-critical operating modes in any of the cell and its one or more neighboring cells, the apparatus further determines, in block 305, one ormore second terminal devices operating in any of one or more mission critical operatingmodes in any of the cell and its one or more neighboring cells.

[0050] The one or more mission critical operating modes may be associated withrespective one or more second QCIs defined for mission critical data transmission. The oneor more second QCIs may correspond to non-GBR QoS classes. The one or more secondQCIs defined for mission critical data transmission may comprise at least QCI70, as definedin the Table above. Thus, the apparatus may determine, in block 305, the one or more secondterminal devices associated with QCI70 in any of the cell and the one or more neighboringcells.

[0051] Then, the apparatus determines, in block 306, a first set of values for radiotransmission power control parameters for the one or more first terminal devices, similar to block 205 of FIG.2. Also here, the first set of values for the radio transmission power controlparameters is associated with lower terminal device transmit power compared to currentdefault values for the radio transmission power control parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

[0052] Moreover, the apparatus determines, in block 307, a second set of values forthe radio transmission power control parameters for the one or more second terminal devices. Here, the second set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters is associated with lower or equal terminal device transmit power compared to the respective current default values but higher terminal device transmit power compared to the first set of values. In other words, second set of values is defined so that the transmit power of terminaldevice operating in a mission critical operating modes is lowered (to reduce interference)but not as much as the transmit power of the terminal devices operating in a non-mission- critical operating mode.

[0053] The determination of the second set of values for the radio transmission powercontrol parameters for the one or more second terminal devices in block 307 may be based,for example, on the number of terminal devices in the cell and / or SINR level in the cell.Here, a higher number of terminal devices in the cell and / or a lower SINR level in the cellmay lead to a second set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters whichare associated with more reduced transmit power levels. In some embodiments, thedetermination of the second set of values for the radio transmission power control parametersfor the one or more second terminal devices may be further based, for example, on thenumber of terminal devices in the one or more neighboring cells and / or SINR level in theone or more neighboring cells. The determination of block 307 may be based on a pre-defined mapping between the numbers of terminal devices and / or SINR levels in the cell(and optionally in the one or more neighboring cells) and the second sets of values for theradio transmission power control parameters. The pre-defined mapping may be provided ina second mapping table.

[0054] The (UL) radio transmission power control parameters (whose values aredetermined in blocks 306, 307) may be defined as described in connection with block 205 of FIG. 2, that is, the radio transmission power control parameters may comprise all or at least one of: a lower threshold for a targeted UL SINR, an upper threshold for the targetedUL SINR, a lower threshold for a targeted UL RSSI, or an upper threshold for the targetedUL RSSI.

[0055] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in blocks 306, 307) comprise at least the upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR. In such embodiments, a value of the upper threshold for the targetedUL SINR in the first set may be lower than a value of the upper threshold for the targetedUL SINR in the second set. The value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR in the second set may be lower than or equal to the current value of the targeted UL SINR in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

[0056] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in blocks 306, 307) comprise at least the lower threshold for the targeted UL SINR and the upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR. In such embodiments, values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the first set are lower than values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in thesecond set. Moreover, values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR inthe first set may be lower than respective current default values of the lower and upperthresholds for the targeted UL SINR used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells,and values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the second set may be lower than or equal to respective current default values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

[0057] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in blocks 306, 307) comprise at least the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI. In such embodiments, a value of the upper threshold for the targetedUL RSSI in the first set may be lower than a value of the upper threshold for the targetedUL RSSI in the second set. The value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in thesecond set may be lower than or equal to the current value of the targeted UL RSSI in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells

[0058] In some embodiments, the radio transmission power control parameters(whose values are determined in block 205) comprise at least the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI and the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI. In such embodiments,a value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set may be lower than orequal to a value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set and / or avalue of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set may be lower than avalue of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set. Moreover, the valuesof the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set may be lower than respective current default values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells. Additionally or alternatively, thevalue of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set may be lower thanor equal to the current default value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells. Additionally or alternatively, the value of theupper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set may be lower than or equal to thecurrent default value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

[0059] The apparatus causes (or triggers), in block 308, configuring the one or morefirst terminal devices to use the first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters and the one or more second terminal devices to use the second set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters. In other words, a plan defining the first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters of the one or more first terminal devices and the second set of values for the radio transmission power controlparameters of the one or more second terminal device is provisioned to the cellularcommunication network.

[0060] The table below provides one example of how the (UL) radio transmissionpower control parameters may be defined and configured in practice for terminal devicesoutside of a mass event and terminal devices operating in non-mission-critical and mission critical operating modes during a mass event (i.e., when the condition of block 302 is triggered).Non-mission Default settings critical user in Mission critical user in network mass event in mass event ulpcLowqualSch Low SINR [dB] 20 3 16High SINR ulpcUpqualSch[dB] 24 7 20Max RSSI ulpcLowlevSch[dBm] -80 -98 -80Min RRSI ulpcUplevSch[dBm] -103 -120 -120

[0061] FIG. 4 illustrates a process according to some embodiments for reducinginterference at an access node during a mass event by reconfiguring transmit powers of terminal devices and, subsequently, reverting back to default radio transmission power control parameters when the mass event is over. The process of FIG. 4 may be carried out by a core network node or an apparatus connected to a core network. For example, the process of FIG. 4 may be carried out by an NMS such as the NMS 132 of FIG. 1. In the following, the entity performing the process is called simply an apparatus.

[0062] Referring to FIG. 4, the process proceeds initially as described in connectionwith FIG. 2 or FIG. 3. Namely, the apparatus monitors, in block 401, number of terminaldevices per cell for one or more cells. This monitoring may continue throughout the processof FIG. 4. Then, in response to detecting, based on the monitoring of block 401, that thenumber of terminal devices within a cell is larger than a first pre-defined threshold for a firstpre-defined amount of time in block 402, the apparatus performs, in block 403, actions described above in connection with blocks 203 to 206 of FIG.2 or blocks 303 to 308 of FIG.3. The first pre-defined threshold and the first pre-defined amount of time may correspondfully to the pre-defined threshold and the pre-defined amount of time described in connection with previous embodiments.

[0063] After the causing of (re)configuration of terminal devices as described inconnection with block 206 of FIG. 2 or block 308 of FIG. 3, the apparatus still continues monitoring the number of terminal devices per cell for the one or more cells. Moreover, the apparatus determines, in block 404, based on the monitoring, whether the number of terminal devices within the cell is larger than a second pre-defined threshold for a second pre-definedamount of time in block 402. In other words, the apparatus may monitor whether the detectedmass event is still on-going. The determining in block 404 may be carried out continuously,regularly or periodically. Here, the second pre-defined threshold and the second pre-definedamount of time may be the same as the first pre-defined threshold and the first pre-defined amount of time, respectively. Alternatively, the second pre-defined threshold may be smaller than the first pre-defined threshold and / or the second pre-defined amount of time may beshorter than the first pre-defined amount of time so as to avoid unnecessarily rapid “ping-ponging” between different configurations of terminal devices.

[0064] In response to detecting, based on the monitoring, that the number of terminaldevices within the cell is larger than the second pre-defined threshold for the second pre-defined amount of time in block 404, the apparatus may not (necessarily) take any action inregard to configuration of terminal devices in the cell and its one or more neighboring cells.

[0065] In response to detecting, based on the monitoring, that the number of terminaldevices within the cell is not larger than the second pre-defined threshold for the second pre-defined amount of time in block 404, the apparatus causes configuring the one or more firstterminal devices (and the one or more second terminal devices if they were configured in block 403 according to block 308) to use default values for the radio transmission powercontrol parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells. In other words, theapparatus carries out rollback for the radio transmission power control parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

[0066] The blocks, related functions, and information exchanges described above bymeans of FIGs. 2 to 4 are in no absolute chronological order, and some of them may beperformed simultaneously or in an order differing from the given one. Other functions can also be executed between them or within them, and other information may be sent, and / or other rules applied. Some of the blocks or part of the blocks or one or more pieces of information can also be left out or replaced by a corresponding block or part of the block or one or more pieces of information.

[0067] The embodiments provide at least the following technical advantages:1) Much lower UL interference level during mass events,2) Higher UL throughput for mission critical services, and3) Higher UL throughput for all subscribers.

[0068] The technical advantage 2) mentioned above is demonstrated in FIG. 5 whichdepicts results of a particular LTE measurement campaign. Namely, FIG. 5 illustrates acumulative distribution function (CDF) of a QCI70 mission-critical-service UL throughputin kbps in a mass event with and without power control adjustment according to embodiments. The UL throughput shown in FIG.5 is a measurement result acquired duringa sold-out Rammstein concert in Helsinki Olympic Stadium (having a capacity ofapproximately 50000 people). Dashed line shows the UL throughput distribution withdefault (i.e., non-mass-event) radio transmission power control parameters while the solidline shows the UL throughput distribution with special radio transmission power control parameters according to an embodiment. Specifically, the values of the UL radio transmission power control parameters in these two cases correspond to the ones shown inthe table discussed above in connection with FIG. 3. In the former case, 91% of the measuredUL throughput values were below 1 Mbps and 92% below 2 Mbps with the medianthroughput being only 40 kbps. When the special power control parameters were applied as described in connection with embodiments, the results were much improved. Namely, 26%and 55% of the measured UL throughput samples were below 1 Mbps and 2 Mbps,respectively, in this case. The median throughput was 1.9 Mbps.

[0069] The technical advantage 3) mentioned above is demonstrated in FIG. 6 whichdepicts further results of the LTE measurement campaign discussed in connection with FIG.5. Specifically, FIG. 6 illustrates a CDF of a QCI6 non-mission-critical-service ULthroughput in kbps in a mass event with and without power control adjustment according toembodiments. Similar to FIG. 5, dashed line in FIG. 6 shows the UL throughput distributionwith default (i.e., non-mass-event) radio transmission power control parameters while the solid line shows the UL throughput distribution with special radio transmission power control parameters according to an embodiment, where the values of the UL radio transmission power control parameters in these two cases correspond to the ones shown inthe table discussed above in connection with FIG. 3. As may be observed from FIG. 6, eventhough the transmit power of the QCI6 terminal devices was reduced, the UL throughput was improved compared to the default radio transmission power control parameters. Thus, it may be discerned that interference mitigation was more important, in this particular case, compared to absolute transmit power. Without transmit power control adjustments, 99%samples were below 1 Mbps and 100% below 2 Mbps. However, corresponding results withthe new power control parameters were 42% and 57%, respectively.

[0070] FIG. 7 provides an apparatus 701 according to some embodiments.Specifically, FIG. 7 may illustrate an apparatus configured to carry out at least the functionsdescribed above in connection with detecting a mass event and (re)configuring UL transmitpower control parameters of affected terminal devices accordingly. The apparatus 701 maybe an NMS (such as the NMS 132 of FIG. 1) or a part thereof or another apparatus or nodeconnected to or comprised in a core network (such as the core network 130 of FIG.1).

[0071] The apparatus 701 may comprise one or more control circuitry 720, such as atleast one processor, and at least one memory 730, including one or more algorithms 731, such as a computer program code (software) wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code (software) are configured, with the at least one processor, to causethe apparatus to carry out any one of the exemplified functionalities of the apparatus (e.g.,the NMS) described above. Said at least one memory 730 may also comprise at least onedatabase 732.

[0072] When the one or more control circuitry 720 comprises more than oneprocessor, the apparatus 701 may be a distributed device wherein processing of tasks takesplace in more than one physical unit. Each of the at least one processor may comprise oneor more processor cores. A processing core may comprise, for example, a Cortex-A8processing core manufactured by ARM Holdings or a Zen processing core designed by Advanced Micro Devices Corporation. The one or more control circuitry 720 may comprise at least one Qualcomm Snapdragon and / or Intel Atom processor. The one or more control circuitry 720 may comprise at least one application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The one or more control circuitry 720 may comprise at least one field-programmable gate array (FPGA).

[0073] Referring to FIG. 7, the one or more control circuitry 720 of the apparatus 701is configured to carry out functionalities described above by means of any of elements ofFIGs. 2 to 4 using one or more individual circuitries. It is also feasible to use specificintegrated circuits, such as ASIC or other components and devices for implementing the functionalities in accordance with different embodiments.

[0074] Referring to FIG. 7, the apparatus 701 may further comprise differentinterfaces (I / F) 710 such as one or more communication interfaces comprising hardwareand / or software for realizing communication connectivity according to one or more communication protocols. Specifically, the one or more communication interfaces 710 maycomprise, for example, one or more interfaces providing connection(s) to a core network (ifthe apparatus 701 is not a part of the core network) or within a core network (if the apparatus701 forms a part of the core network. In some embodiments, the one or more communicationinterfaces 710 may comprise one or more interfaces providing (direct) connection(s) to oneor more access nodes. In some embodiments, the apparatus 701 may comprise at least oneuser interface (UI).

[0075] Referring to FIG. 7, the memory 730 may be implemented using any suitabledata storage technology, such as semiconductor based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory.

[0076] As used in this application, the term ‘circuitry’ may refer to one or more or allof the following: (a) hardware-only circuit implementations, such as implementations in only analog and / or digital circuitry, and (b) combinations of hardware circuits and software (and / or firmware), such as (as applicable): (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) with software / firmware and (ii) any portions of hardware processor(s) with software, including digital signal processor(s), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a terminal device or an access node, to perform various functions, and (c) hardware circuit(s) and processor(s), such as a microprocessor(s) or a portion of a microprocessor(s), that requires software (e.g. firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation. This definition of ‘circuitry’ applies to all uses of this term in this application, including any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term ‘circuitry’ also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware.

[0077] In an embodiment, at least some of the processes described in connection withFIGs.2 to 4 may be carried out by an apparatus comprising corresponding means for carryingout at least some of the described processes. Some example means for carrying out theprocesses may include at least one of the following: detector, processor (including dual-coreand multiple-core processors), digital signal processor, controller, receiver, transmitter, encoder, decoder, memory, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), software, firmware, display, user interface, display circuitry, user interface circuitry, user interface software, display software, circuit, filter (low-pass, high-pass, bandpass and / or bandstop), sensor, circuitry, inverter, capacitor, inductor, resistor, operational amplifier,diode and transistor. In an embodiment, the at least one processor, the memory, and the computer program code form processing means or comprises one or more computer program code portions for carrying out one or more operations according to any one of theembodiments of FIGs. 2 to 4 or operations thereof. In some embodiments, at least some ofthe processes may be implemented using discrete components.

[0078] Embodiments as described may also be carried out, fully or at least in part, inthe form of a computer process defined by a computer program or portions thereof.Embodiments of the methods described in connection with FIGs. 2 to 4 may be carried outby executing at least one portion of a computer program comprising corresponding instructions. The computer program may be provided as a computer readable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon or as a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon. The computer program may be in source code form, object code form, or in some intermediate form, and it may be stored in some sort of carrier, which may be any entity or device capable of carrying the program. For example, the computer program may be stored on a computer program distribution medium readable by a computer or a processor. The computer program medium may be, for example but not limited to, a record medium, computer memory, read-only memory, electrical carrier signal, telecommunications signal, and software distribution package, for example. The computer program medium may be a non-transitory medium. Coding of software for carrying out the embodiments as shown and described is well within the scope of a person of ordinary skill in the art.

[0079] The term “non-transitory”, as used herein, is a limitation of the medium itself(that is, tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (forexample, RAM, vs. ROM).

[0080] Reference throughout this specification to one embodiment or an embodimentmeans that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

[0081] As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositionalelements, and / or materials may be presented in a common list for convenience. However, these lists should be construed as though each member of the list is individually identifiedas a separate and unique member. Thus, no individual member of such list should be construed as a de facto equivalent of any other member of the same list solely based on their presentation in a common group without indications to the contrary. In addition, various embodiments and example of the present invention may be referred to herein along with alternatives for the various components thereof. It is understood that such embodiments, examples, and alternatives are not to be construed as de facto equivalents of one another, but are to be considered as separate and autonomous representations of the present invention.

[0082] Even though embodiments have been described above with reference toexamples according to the accompanying drawings, it is clear that the embodiments are not restricted thereto but can be modified in several ways within the scope of the appended claims. Therefore, all words and expressions should be interpreted broadly and they are intended to illustrate, not to restrict, the embodiment. It will be obvious to a person skilled in the art that, as technology advances, the inventive concept can be implemented in various ways. Further, it is clear to a person skilled in the art that the described embodiments may, but are not required to, be combined with other embodiments in various ways. INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

[0083] At least some embodiments of the present invention find industrialapplication in wireless communications.

Claims

1. CLAIMS 1. A computer-implemented method comprising: monitoring number of terminal devices per cell for one or more cells; in response to detecting, based on the monitoring, that the number of terminal devices within a cell is larger than a pre-defined threshold for a pre-defined amount of time, performing the following: -detecting one or more neighboring cells of the cell;- determining one or more first terminal devices operating in any of one ormore non-mission-critical operating modes in any of the cell and the one or more neighboring cells; -determining a first set of values for radio transmission power controlparameters for the one or more first terminal devices, wherein the first set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters is associated with lower terminal device transmit power compared to current default values for the radio transmission power control parameters in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells; -causing configuring the one or more first terminal devices to use the first setof values for the radio transmission power control parameters.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the radiotransmission power control parameters comprise all or at least one of: a lower threshold for a targeted uplink, UL, signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio, SINR, an upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR, a lower threshold for a targeted UL received signal strength indicator, RSSI, or an upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the determiningof the first set of values for radio transmission power control parameters for the one or morefirst terminal devices is based at least on the number of terminal devices in the cell and / orSINR level in the cell.

4. The computer-implemented method according to any preceding claim,further comprising: in response to the detecting, based on the monitoring, that the number of terminal devices within the cell is larger than the pre-defined threshold for the pre-defined amount of time, further performing the following: -determining one or more second terminal devices operating in any of one ormore mission critical operating modes in any of the cell and the one or more neighboringcells; -determining a second set of values for the radio transmission power controlparameters for the one or more second terminal devices, wherein the second set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters is associated with lower or equal terminal device transmit power compared to the current default values but higher terminal device transmit power compared to the first set of values; and -causing configuring the one or more second terminal devices to use thesecond set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the determining ofthe second set of values for the radio transmission power control parameters for the one ormore second terminal devices is based at least on the number of terminal devices in the celland / or SINR level in the cell.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 4 or 5, wherein the radio transmission power control parameters comprise at least a lower threshold for a targeted UL SINR and an upper threshold for the targeted UL SINR, and values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the first set are lower than respective values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the second set.

7. The computer-implemented method according to any of claims 4 to 6,wherein the radio transmission power control parameters comprise at least a lower threshold for a targeted UL SINR and an upper threshold for a targeted UL SINR, andvalues of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the first set are lower than respective current default values of the lower and upper thresholds for thetargeted UL SINR used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells, andvalues of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL SINR in the second set are lower than or equal to respective current default values of the lower and upperthresholds for the targeted UL SINR used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

8. The computer-implemented method according to any of claims 4 to 7,wherein the radio transmission power control parameters comprise at least a lower threshold for a targeted UL RSSI and an upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI, a value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set is lower than or equal to a value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set, and a value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set is lower than a value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set.

9. The computer-implemented method according to any of claims 4 to 8,wherein the radio transmission power control parameters comprise at least the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI and the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI, values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI in the first set are lower than respective current default values of the lower and upper thresholds for the targeted UL RSSI used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells, a value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set is lower than or equal to the current default value of the lower threshold for the targeted UL RSSI used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells, and a value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI in the second set is lower than or equal to the current default value of the upper threshold for the targeted UL RSSI used in the cell and the one or more neighboring cells.

10. The computer-implemented method according to any of claims 4 to 9,wherein the one or more non-mission-critical operating modes are associated with respective one or more first quality of service, QoS, class identifiers, QCIs, defined for non- mission-critical data transmission, and / orthe one or more mission critical operating modes comprise a mission criticaloperating mode associated with a second QCI defined for mission critical data transmission.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the one or more first QCIs and the second QCI correspond to non-guaranteed bit rate, non-GBR, QoS classes.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 10 or 11, wherein the one ormore first QCIs comprise QCI6, QCI7, QCI8 and QCI9 or at least one of QCI6, QCI7, QCI8or QCI9, and the second QCI is QCI70.

13. The computer-implemented method according to any preceding claim,wherein the monitoring of the number of terminal devices per cell for the plurality of cellsis based on monitoring of layer-3 signaling data for the plurality of cells.

14. The computer-implemented method according to any preceding claim, wherein the detecting of the one or more neighboring cells of the cell comprises: identifying the one or more neighboring cells based on distances between the cell and potential neighboring cells and antenna bearings of potential neighboring cells relative to the cell.

15. The computer-implemented method according to any preceding claim, wherein the radio transmission power control parameters are physical uplink shared channel, PUSCH, radio transmission power control parameters.

16. The computer-implemented method according to any preceding claim,wherein the pre-defined threshold for the number of terminal device per cell is equal to orlarger than 200 and / or the pre-defined amount of time is equal to or larger than 5 minutes.

17. An apparatus comprising means for performing the computer-implemented method according to any preceding claim.

18. A computer program which, when the computer program is executed by a computing device, causes the computing device to carry out the computer-implemented method of any of claims 1 to 16.

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