2015 · 159 citations · 19 references
EngineeringElectrical EngineeringInformation TechnologyMobile ComputingMobile SystemsWireless CommunicationsInterference ManagementMobile NetworksSpectrum AllocationSpectrum ManagementWireless Channel ModelingWireless NetworksChannel AllocationCoverage OverlapsFair Resource AllocationHeterogeneous Cellular NetworksHeterogeneous NetworksLicensed SpectrumRadio Resource AllocationUnlicensed Spectrum
The unlicensed spectrum is increasingly used by LTE networks (LTE‑U or LAA‑LTE) to meet traffic demands, but coexistence with WiFi can cause starvation due to LTE's TDMA/OFDMA scheduling. This study proposes a novel proportional‑fair allocation scheme to achieve fair coexistence between LTE‑U and WiFi. The scheme derives a proportional‑fair allocation that relies on limited network parameter knowledge and does not require message‑passing between heterogeneous networks. The resulting allocation differs qualitatively from WiFi‑only settings and is potentially easy to implement in practice.
The use of the unlicensed spectrum by LTE networks (LTE-U or LAA-LTE) is being considered by mobile operators in order to satisfy increasing traffic demands and to make better use of the licensed spectrum. However, coexistence issues arise when LTE-U coverage overlaps with other technologies currently operating in unlicensed bands, in particular WiFi. Since LTE uses a TDMA/OFDMA scheduled approach, coexisting WiFi networks may face starvation if the channel is fully occupied by LTE-U transmissions. In this paper we derive a novel proportional fair allocation scheme that ensures fair coexistence between LTE-U and WiFi. Importantly, we find that the proportional fair allocation is qualitatively different from previously considered WiFi-only settings and that since the resulting allocation requires only quite limited knowledge of network parameters it is potentially easy to implement in practice, without the need for message-passing between heterogeneous networks.
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