Signalling analysis in integrated 4G networks

Abstract

AbstractScarce radio resources and the ambition to increase the number of mobile customers with a guarantee of service are pushing mobile communication systems from homogeneous non‐service convergent 2G and convergent‐service 2.5G and 3G wireless systems to heterogeneous integrated and convergent service 4G networks. This evolution has had several consequences from network design, control and service management points of view. In the emerging integrated 4G networks one of the issues is the signalling of information related to different control purposes such as QoS, mobility and security signalling. In fact, some questions such as which are the candidate signalling protocols, and which approach of integrated signalling to be adopted (unified versus non‐unified) need to be considered in the context of the emerging 4G integrated network. This is precisely the scope of this paper. We first identify the requirements related to mobility, security/AAA and QoS signalling, then we consider candidate signalling protocols and we propose possible approaches in the integration of signalling in the context of 4G networks. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.