Weighted Load Measure for Network Elements
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Solution Overview
Problem
In LTE networks, there is a lack of effective load measurement methods that distinguish between essential and non-essential traffic, making it difficult for network elements to optimize handovers, UE camping, and network performance monitoring without a central entity to monitor load situations across neighboring eNBs.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for determining a load measure by weighing or summing the usage of physical resource blocks based on the ratio of digital bits used for pre-selected essential information traffic versus total digital bits, allowing for the calculation of available traffic resources, which can be transmitted to neighboring network elements for optimization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional load measurement methods (total received power or number of occupied frequency channels) are used, then the measurement process is simple, but the measurement precision is insufficient to distinguish between essential and non-essential traffic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments traffic into essential and non-essential categories, and segments the load measurement into weighted components. The load measure is calculated by weighting the number of resource blocks used for essential traffic (guaranteed bit rate bearers, RRC messages, MAC-c PDUs) differently from non-essential traffic, thereby achieving precise differentiation without requiring complex centralized monitoring infrastructure.
2Measurement precision
If a centralized entity is used to monitor load situations across neighboring eNBs, then the measurement precision is improved, but the device complexity and system overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
Each eNB autonomously calculates its own load measure using the standardized weighted algorithm based on its local resource block usage statistics. The load measure is then reported to neighboring eNBs directly, enabling distributed self-service load monitoring without requiring a centralized entity to collect and process load information from multiple eNBs.
3Productivity
If all user equipment traffic is treated equally in load measurement, then the ease of operation is maintained, but the productivity of resource allocation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different weighting factors to different types of traffic based on their quality and importance. Essential traffic (guaranteed bit rate bearers, control messages) receives higher weight in the load calculation, while non-essential traffic receives lower weight. This local differentiation of traffic quality enables efficient resource allocation decisions while maintaining operational simplicity through a standardized weighted formula.
Data Source
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AI summary
The specification and drawings present a new method, system, apparatus and software product for determining (e.g., calculating) a load measure by a network element (e.g., Node B or any other network element) for optimizing information traffic in communication networks (e.g., wireless communication systems). This load measure can represent the amount of available/excess traffic that a given network element can carry and is a relative measure, which would take into account the total amount of resources available in the system and the amount of resources that are free for carrying only "important" or "essential" traffic, using a weighed method described herein.