Method and system for adaptive modification of cell boundary

• US 7,817,996 B2
• Filed: 08/31/2006
• Issued: 10/19/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xylon LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Durham Logistics LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Brunner, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Phu; Sanh D
• Application Number:
  US11/469,000
• Publication Number:
  US 20080057932A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,510 Days
• Field of Search: 455/422.1, 455/522, 455/436, 455/442, 455/453
• US Class Current: 455/422.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/06 Hybrid resource partitioning, e.g. channel borrowing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/08 Load shedding arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/20 for optimising the interference level
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/22 for handling the traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/143 Downlink power control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/241 taking into account channel quality metrics, e.g. SIR, SNR, CIR, Eb/lo
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/243 taking into account interferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/283 Power depending on the position of the mobile
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/325 Power control of control or pilot channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/343 taking into account loading or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/40 during macro-diversity or soft handoff

Abstract

A method and system for reducing interference in a cellular radio communications network. At least one parameter affecting user terminals within a cell is adjusted such that the cell boundary is modified, such that interference in the network is reduced. In alternative embodiments the at least one parameter is adjusted adaptively.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving an indication of an increase in an inter-cell interference between a first user terminal, being served by a first cell, and a second user terminal, being served by a second cell; and

adaptively adjusting a pilot power of one or both of the first cell and the second cell to modify a cell boundary of one or both of the first cell and the second cell such that the first user terminal and the second user terminal are served by a same one of the first cell or the second cell to thereby reduce interference in a cellular communications network.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

adaptively adjusting an antenna parameter of one or both of the first cell and the second cell to further modify a cell boundary of one or both of the first cell and the second cell.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the antenna parameter is selected from the group consisting of an antenna downtilt, an antenna azimuth, an antenna pattern, an antenna height, or an antenna location.

4. A method, comprising:

measuring at least one performance metric associated with a first terminal served by a first cell or a second terminal served by a second cell;

adjusting at least one parameter configured to affect a cell boundary of the first or second cells responsive to the measuring such that the first terminal and the second terminal are served by a same one of the first cell or the second cell; and

repeating the measuring and adjusting until the performance metric meets or exceeds a performance threshold.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

adaptively adjusting a pilot power of the first or second cells.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein adaptively adjusting the pilot power and adjusting the at least one parameter occurs responsive to the performance metric.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein measuring the performance metric includes obtaining the performance metric from a report from the first or the second terminals.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the performance metric includes a pilot power, a ratio of pilot power to interference for an active set, or a ratio of pilot power to interference for a neighboring set.

9. A network, comprising:

means for measuring at least one performance metric associated with a first terminal served by a first cell or a second terminal served by a second cell; and

means for adjusting at least one parameter configured to affect the cell boundary of the first or second cells responsive to the measuring such that the first terminal and the second terminal are served by a same one of the first cell or the second cell; and

means for repeating the measuring and adjusting until the performance metric meets or exceeds a performance threshold.

10. The network of claim 9,

wherein the means for adjusting includes means for adaptively adjusting a pilot power of the first or second cells responsive to the performance metric.

11. The network of claim 9,

wherein the performance metric includes a pilot power, a ratio of pilot power to interference for an active set, or a ratio of pilot power to interference for a neighboring set.

12. A network, comprising:

a mobile switching center;

at least one base station controller configured to communicate with the mobile switching center; and

at least one base station coupled to the at least one base station controller, the at least one base station configured to provide a first cell to serve a first terminal and a second cell to serve a second terminal;

wherein the mobile switching center or the at least one base station controller are configured to;

measure a performance metric associated with the first terminal or the second terminal; and

adaptively adjust at least one antenna parameter to modify a cell boundary of the first cell or the second cell such that the first user terminal and the second user terminal are served by a same one of the first cell or the second cell until the measured performance metric meets or exceeds a performance threshold.

13. The cellular radio communications network of claim 12, wherein the mobile switching center or the at least one base station controller are configured to adaptively adjust pilot power of the first cell or the second cell to further modify the cell boundary.

14. The cellular radio communications network of claim 12, further comprising redistributing a load on the first cell or the second cell.

15. A machine-readable medium having one or more executable instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by a computing device, caused the computing device to perform operations comprising:

measuring at least one performance metric associated with a first terminal served by a first cell or a second terminal served by a second cell;

adjusting at least one parameter configured to affect the cell boundary of the first or second cells responsive to the measuring such that the first terminal and the second terminal are served by a same one of the first cell or the second cell; and

repeating the measuring and adjusting until the performance metric meets or exceeds a performance threshold.

16. The machine-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

adaptively adjusting a pilot power of the first or second cells.

17. The machine-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise:

adaptively adjusting the pilot power and the at least one antenna parameter responsive to the performance metric.

18. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

obtaining the performance metric from a report from the first or the second terminals.

19. The machine-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the performance metric includes a pilot power, a ratio of pilot power to interference for an active set, or a ratio of-pilot power to interference for a neighboring set.