Handover Triggering in Discontinuous Coverage Networks
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Solution Overview
Problem
In discontinuous coverage networks, the traditional handover mechanism, such as 'break before make' hard handovers, leads to temporary disconnections and capacity loss, especially in pico cell networks with small cell sizes and short distances between transfer zones, resulting in frequent handovers that significantly decrease network capacity.
Innovation Solution
A method that transfers a data volume to a mobile station's cache during a transfer zone, allowing service provision for a specified period, and triggers handover only after the mobile station has moved to the next transfer zone, reducing the number of handovers and optimizing network capacity by eliminating 'ping pong' handovers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional handover mechanism is used in discontinuous coverage networks, then mobile station can maintain connection with network, but frequent handovers occur in pico cell networks leading to capacity loss and temporary disconnections
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by transferring a data volume to the mobile station's cache storage before the mobile station actually needs to hand over to the next transfer zone. This advance data preparation allows the mobile station to autonomously serve the user during the handover process and in no-transfer zones, eliminating the need for frequent handovers and temporary disconnections, thereby maintaining connection continuity while preserving network capacity.
2Reliability
If handover is triggered immediately when mobile station enters next transfer zone, then service continuity is maintained, but number of handovers increases significantly in networks with short distances between transfer zones
Solution Approach 1:
Data is transferred to the mobile station's cache in advance, before the mobile station actually needs to hand over. This preliminary data preparation creates a time buffer that allows the system to delay handover triggering until necessary, reducing handover frequency while maintaining service continuity through the mobile station's autonomous cache-based service provision.
Solution Approach 2:
The mobile station is empowered to autonomously serve the user by utilizing the cached data volume during handover periods and in no-transfer zones. This self-service capability reduces dependency on continuous network connection and frequent handovers, thereby reducing handover frequency while maintaining service continuity.
3Reliability
If data is transferred continuously to mobile station, then service quality is maintained, but network capacity is reduced due to frequent handovers and resource allocation overhead
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of continuous data transfer, the system performs preliminary data transfer by sending a data volume to the mobile station's cache before handover is needed. This advance preparation maintains service quality by ensuring data availability during handover and in no-transfer zones, while improving network capacity efficiency by eliminating the need for continuous resource allocation and frequent handover management.
Solution Approach 2:
The mobile station autonomously serves the user by utilizing cached data, reducing the need for continuous network resource allocation. This self-service approach maintains service quality while freeing up network capacity for other users, thereby improving overall network capacity efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided a method of triggering a handover of a mobile station in a discontinuous coverage radio network, wherein the method comprises the steps: transferring at a point in time a data volume via a first transfer zone of the discontinuous coverage radio network to a cache storage of the mobile station, wherein the data volume permits the provision of a service to the mobile station for at least the duration of a period of time, wherein the first transfer zone is the serving transfer zone of the mobile station; triggering the handover of the mobile station from the first transfer zone to a second transfer zone of the discontinuous coverage radio network only after the period of time has been spent with respect to the point in time, wherein the mobile station has been moved in the mean time from the first transfer zone to the second transfer zone.