Optimal location management algorithms for mobile networks

Abstract

An important issue in the design of future Per-sonal Communication Services (PCS) networks is the efficient management of location information. In this paper, we consider a distributed database architecture for location management in which update and query loads of the individual databases are balanced. We obtain lower bounds to the worst-case delay in locating a mobile user, to the average delay, and to the call blocking probability. We also propose a location management algorithm that meets these lower bounds. The optimality of this algorithm with respect to these three performance measures, as well as simplicity, make it an appealing candidate for distributed location management in PCS networks.