Spectrum Load Balancing via Intermediary Database
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wireless network service providers face challenges in efficiently managing network load across licensed, unlicensed, and shared frequency bands, leading to suboptimal user device distribution and performance due to lack of effective load balancing techniques.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a load balancer system that determines network load across various frequency bands and makes handover decisions based on access permissions, device type, and traffic type, using carrier aggregation and handover techniques to distribute user devices across available bands, thereby optimizing network performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If user devices are distributed across multiple frequency bands, then network load balancing improves, but the complexity of managing multiple bands increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a spectrum database as an intermediary component that centralizes the management of spectrum allocation information. This database stores and manages data about licensed, shared, and unlicensed bands, providing a single point of control that reduces management complexity while enabling effective load balancing across multiple frequency bands. The intermediary handles the complexity of multi-band management internally, presenting a simplified interface to user devices.
2Productivity
If load balancing is implemented across licensed, unlicensed, and shared bands, then network throughput improves, but the difficulty of detecting and measuring network load increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal load measurement mechanism that works across all three types of frequency bands (licensed, shared, and unlicensed). The system uses a consistent approach to detect and measure network load regardless of band type, utilizing metrics such as available capacity, interference levels, and connection counts. This multi-functional measurement system simplifies the complexity of monitoring diverse band types by applying unified principles across all spectrum resources.
3Reliability
If handover decisions are made based on multiple factors (access permissions, device type, traffic type), then user device performance improves, but the complexity of decision-making increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-establishing access permissions for different device types and traffic types before handover decisions are needed. The system configures which devices can access which frequency bands in advance, based on device capabilities and service requirements. This preconfiguration reduces the complexity of real-time decision-making, as the system only needs to match current conditions against pre-determined rules rather than evaluating all possible combinations of factors from scratch.
Data Source
AI summary
A wireless telecommunications system may be configured to provide wireless service via unlicensed, licensed, and/or shared frequency bands (e.g., frequency bands that are shared with other telecommunications systems, and for which access is regulated by an external entity). A load balancing technique, described herein, may provide load balancing between licensed and shared frequency bands based on relative load of the licensed and shared networks, and/or other factors (e.g., a priority access license (“PAL”) of a base station to which the user device is attached). Techniques described herein may be useful in carrier aggregation, in which a user device may simultaneously attach to multiple carriers (e.g., a licensed carrier, along with a shared carrier and/or an unlicensed carrier).