Method and apparatus for dynamically modifying cell reselection and/or handover parameters

• US 8,948,767 B2
• Filed: 01/25/2012
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Sridhar, Kamakshi, Favichia, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): TAYLOR, NATHAN SCOTT
• Application Number:
  US13/357,849
• Publication Number:
  US 20130189996A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,105 Days
• Field of Search: 455/423, 455/436, 455/437, 455/444, 455/458, 455/525, 370/332
• US Class Current: 455/444
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/00835 Determination of neighbour cell lists
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/00837 Determination of triggering parameters for hand-off
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0085 Hand-off measurements

Abstract

Embodiments of the claimed subject matter provide embodiments of a method and apparatus for dynamically modifying cell reselection parameters and/or handover parameters. One embodiment of the method includes providing a request for a cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in response to a small cell determining that a number of cell reselections or a number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell exceeds at least one threshold. In this embodiment, the cell reselection parameter or handover parameter is stored in the small cell.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining, at a small cell, at least one of a number of cell reselections for idle access terminals and a number of handovers for active access terminals,

providing, from the small cell, a request for at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in response to the at least one of the number of cell reselections or the number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell exceeding at least one threshold; and

storing said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in the small cell.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising comparing the number of cell reselections or the number of handovers to said at least one threshold.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein counting the number of cell reselections or the number of handovers comprises counting the number of cell reselections using at least one counter allocated for idle access terminals and counting the number of handovers using at least one counter allocated for active access terminals.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising receiving, at the small cell, information indicating said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in response to providing the request.

5. The method of claim 4, comprising providing said information indicating said at least one cell reselection parameter to at least one access terminal, wherein said information is usable for reconfiguring said at least one access terminal.

6. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a first server from a small cell, a first request for at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in response to the small cell determining that at least one of a number of cell reselections by at least one idle access terminal exceeds at least one cell reselection threshold or a number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell by at least one active access terminal exceeds at least one handover threshold; and

providing, from the first server, said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter to the small cell.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein providing said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter comprises providing a second request to a second server in response to receiving the first request, receiving said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter generated by the second server in response to the second request, and providing said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter generated by the second server to the small cell.

8. The method of claim 6, comprising storing information received in the first request in a database and generating statistical representations of cell reselections or handovers based on information stored in the database.

9. The method of claim 6, comprising generating said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter based on information received from the small cell in the first request.

10. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a second server from a first server, a request for at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in response to a small cell determining that at least one of a number of cell reselections by at least one idle access terminal exceeds at least one cell reselection threshold or a number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell by at least one active access terminal exceeds at least one handover threshold; and

providing, from the second server to the first server, said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter for transmission from the first server to the small cell.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising generating said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter based on information received from the small cell in the first request.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein generating said at least one cell reselection parameter comprises modifying at least one cell reselection parameter used by at least one access terminal when in an idle mode in response to at least one counter associated with said at least one access terminal exceeding the at least one cell reselection threshold.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein generating said at least one handover parameter comprises modifying at least one handover parameter used by the small cell in response to at least one counter associated with active access terminals exceeding the at least one handover threshold.

14. A small cell, comprising:

at least one counter for counting at least one of a number of cell reselections or a number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell, wherein said at least one counter comprises a plurality of counters for counting cell reselections of idle access terminals and handovers of active access terminals; and

a comparator for determining whether said at least one of the number of cell reselections or the number of handovers exceeds at least one threshold.

15. The small cell of claim 14, wherein said at least one threshold comprises a plurality of thresholds associated with idle access terminals or active access terminals, and wherein the comparator is configured to determine whether at least one value of at least one of the plurality of counters exceeds a corresponding one of the plurality of thresholds.

16. The small cell of claim 14, wherein the small cell is configured to provide a request for at least one of a cell reselection parameter or a handover parameter in response to the comparator determining that said at least one of the number of cell reselections or the number of handovers exceeds said at least one threshold.

17. The small cell of claim 16, wherein the small cell is configured to provide said at least one requested cell reselection parameter to at least one access terminal.

18. The small cell of claim 16, wherein the small cell is configured to determine whether to request handover of at least one access terminal based on said at least one requested handover parameter.

19. The small cell of claim 16, comprising a database for storing cell reselection parameters and handover parameters.

20. A management server, comprising:

a database for storing information indicating at least one of a number of cell reselections or a number of handovers between a small cell and at least one macrocell, wherein said information is received from the small cell in response to said at least one of the number of cell reselections by at least one idle access terminal exceeding at least one cell reselection threshold or the number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell by at least one active access terminal exceeding at least one handover threshold; and

a processing element configured to generate a request to modify at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter used by the small cell, wherein said request is generated based on said information stored in the database.

21. The management server of claim 20, wherein the processing element is configured to generate the request in response to receiving a notification from the small cell in response to said at least one of the number of cell reselections by the at least one idle access terminal exceeding at least one cell reselection threshold or the number of handovers by the at least one active access terminal exceeding said at least one handover threshold.

22. The management server of claim 20, wherein the management server is configured to receive at least one modified cell reselection parameter or modified handover parameter in response to the request.

23. The management server of claim 22, wherein the management server is configured to provide said at least one modified cell reselection parameter or modified handover parameter to the small cell.

24. The management server of claim 20, wherein the management server is configured to function as a self-organizing network (SON) management server.

25. A network server, comprising:

a processing element configured to generate at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter in response to a small cell determining that at least one of a number of cell reselections by at least one idle access terminal exceeds at least one cell reselection threshold or a number of handovers between the small cell and at least one macrocell by at least one active access terminal exceeds at least one handover threshold.

26. The network server of claim 25, wherein the network server is configured to receive a request to generate said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter from at least one of the small cell or another server.

27. The network server of claim 26, wherein the network server is configured to provide said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter to said at least one of the small cell or another server.

28. The network server of claim 26, wherein the processing element is configured to generate said at least one cell reselection parameter or handover parameter based on information received from the small cell in the request.

29. The network server of claim 28, wherein the processing element is configured to generate said at least one cell reselection parameter used by at least one access terminal when in an idle mode in response to at least one counter associated with said at least one access terminal exceeding the at least one cell reselection threshold.

30. The network server of claim 28, wherein the processing element is configured to generate said at least one handover parameter used by the small cell in response to at least one counter associated with active access terminals exceeding the at least one handover threshold.

31. The network server of claim 25, wherein the network server is configured to function as a self-organizing network (SON) server.