Radio access network design with software-defined mobility management

Abstract

The softwarization of wireless networks has necessitated an overhaul of existing mobility management strategies. Specifically, mobility management is no longer constrained to function within the boundaries of a pre-existing radio access network. Softwarization of the network infrastructure allows resource configurations and associations to be changed on-demand, in a manner so as to support a least cost mobility management framework. To this end, this paper presents an optimal radio access network design framework augmented with user-specific clusters from the perspective of mobility management. The proposed framework is supported by a detailed mathematical model that characterizes user mobility, system traffic, and signaling costs. Performance evaluation is based on a cost comparison with conventional LTE/NR networks, and reinforces the fact that the framework proposed herein results in significant cost reduction, even in the face of changing network scenarios.