Device and method for QoS based cell capacity dimensioning

• US 20080205290A1
• Filed: 04/22/2008
• Published: 08/28/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Solutions and Networks US LLC (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Wille, Volker, Browne, Simon, Pickering, Phil
• Granted Patent: US 9,137,677 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0289 Congestion control load shedding arrangements in network planning H04W16/08; performing reselection for handling the traffic H04W36/22; wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/24 Negotiating SLA [Service Level Agreement]; Negotiating QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/26 Resource reservation

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and system for monitoring QoS criteria of Traffic classes of at least one cell in a telecommunication system, comprising means for setting thresholds, means for monitoring the traffic with regard to the thresholds for the at least two different traffic classes, and means for adapting the traffic handling capacity of the monitored cell depending on the monitoring result. The monitored traffic classes preferably include circuit-switched traffic and packet-switched traffic, and/or realtime and non-realtime packet-switched traffic. Thresholds are preferably set and monitored for rate of call attempt blocking, and/or data throughput, and/or service blocking.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing a forecasting functionality to estimate a time of next hardware upgrade,

wherein the forecasting functionality is based on monitoring traffic or traffic growth in a monitored cell.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

configuring the forecasting functionality to indicate when an additional transmitter or base transceiver station or additional processing component is required due to traffic growth in the monitored cell.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

performing an evaluation of time changes or time behaviour of parameters indicating traffic or traffic growth to estimate a time point to perform an upgrade of a hardware capacity for handling the traffic to ensure sufficient future traffic handling capacity.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving quality of service target values successively detected, by a processor performing the forecasting functionality; and

processing a time behaviour of the detected quality of service values to estimate a time when traffic handling capacity of a network reaches an upper limit.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

signalling or displaying an estimated time of reaching an upper limit or necessary hardware update to an operator so as to inform the operator on an estimated update time point.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving by the forecasting functionality at least one of

an actual blocking rate,

deviations of the actual blocking rate from an allowable blocking rate,

actual throughput rate, and

deviations of the actual throughput rate from an allowable throughput rate.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting at least one of a time behaviour of rates or deviations, and rate of change of the rates or deviations; and

deducing from the detection an estimated time point of lowering a provided quality of service to a minimum acceptable value.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring quality of service criteria of at least two different traffic classes in the monitored cell and outputting a monitoring result indicative thereof;

setting and monitoring thresholds of the monitored cell; and

reallocating traffic handling capacity between the at least two different traffic classes of the monitored cell depending on the monitoring result so as to avoid violation of the thresholds.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

increasing the transceiver capacity of the monitored cell when the reallocation of the traffic handling capacity between the at least two traffic classes is unable to avoid violation of at least one of the thresholds.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein the at least two different traffic classes comprise circuit-switched traffic and packet-switched traffic, or realtime and non-realtime packet-switched traffic.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein quality of service criteria thresholds are set for each traffic class and monitored automatically.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein the setting and the monitoring of the thresholds and the reallocation are performed by a network management system (NMS).

13. A computer program embodied on a computer readable medium, the computer program being configured to control a processor to perform:

providing a forecasting functionality to estimate a time of next hardware upgrade,

wherein the forecasting functionality is based on monitoring traffic or traffic growth in a monitored cell.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor configured to provide a forecasting functionality to estimate a time of next hardware upgrade,

wherein the forecasting functionality is based on monitoring traffic or traffic growth in a monitored cell.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the forecasting functionality indicates when an additional transmitter or base transceiver station or additional processing component is required due to traffic growth in the monitored cell.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to perform an evaluation of time changes or time behaviour of parameters indicating traffic or traffic growth to estimate a time point to perform an upgrade of a hardware capacity for handling the traffic to ensure sufficient future traffic handling capacity.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to receive quality of service target values successively detected, and to process a time behaviour of the detected quality of service values to estimate a time when traffic handling capacity of a network reaches an upper limit.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to signal or display an estimated time of reaching an upper limit or necessary hardware update to an operator so as to inform the operator on an estimated update time point.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to receive at least one of

an actual blocking rate,

deviations of the actual blocking rate from an allowable blocking rate,

actual throughput rate, and

deviations of the actual throughput rate from an allowable throughput rate.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to detect at least one of a time behaviour of rates or deviations, and rate of change of the rates or deviations, and to deduce from the detection an estimated time point to lower a provided quality of service to a minimum acceptable value.

21. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to monitor quality of service criteria of at least two different traffic classes in the monitored cell and outputting a monitoring result indicative thereof, to set and monitor thresholds of the monitored cell, and to reallocate traffic handling capacity between the at least two different traffic classes of the monitored cell depending on the monitoring result so as to avoid violation of the thresholds.

22. The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the at least two different traffic classes comprise circuit-switched traffic and packet-switched traffic, or realtime and non-realtime packet-switched traffic.

23. The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein quality of service criteria thresholds are set for each traffic class and monitored automatically.

24. An apparatus, comprising:

providing means for providing a forecasting functionality to estimate a time of next hardware upgrade,

wherein the forecasting functionality is based on monitoring traffic or traffic growth in a monitored cell; and

indicating means for indicating, through the forecasting functionality, when an additional transmitter or base transceiver station or additional processing component is required due to traffic growth in the monitored cell.