Vertical Handover Necessity Estimation Based on a New Dwell Time Prediction Model for Minimizing Unnecessary Handovers to a WLAN Cell

Abstract

In this work, we devise a vertical handover necessity estimation (HNE) method to minimize unnecessary handovers for a mobile node (MN) entering a WLAN cell. The method relies on a new model for prediction of dwell time and computation of certain threshold values. By comparing the predicted dwell time with those thresholds, a MN is able to make decision whether it should perform handover to a WLAN cell, while keeping the probability of handover failure and probability of unnecessary handover within bounds. Simulation results obtained from Monte-Carlo experiments prove validity of the proposed model. We also compare this model with existing models for minimizing unnecessary handovers. We further enhance the analytical model by incorporating the throughput gain in HNE and show that this can further optimize handover decision in heterogenous networks.