Modelling virtual radio resource management in full heterogeneous networks

Abstract

Virtual radio access networks (RANs) is the candidate solution for 5G access networks, the concept of virtualised radio resources completing the virtual RAN paradigm. This paper proposes a new analytical model for the management of virtual radio resources in full heterogeneous networks. The estimation of network capacity and data rate allocation are the model’s two main components. Based on the probability distribution of the signal-to-interference-plus-noise-ratio observed at the user terminal, the model leads to the probability distribution for the total network data rate. It considers different approaches for the estimation of the total network data rate, based on different channel qualities, i.e., optimistic, realistic and pessimistic. The second component uses the outcome of the first one in order to maximise the weighted data rate subject to the total network capacity, the SLAs (service level agreements) of Virtual Network Operators (VNOs), and fairness. The weights for services in the objective function of the resource allocation component enable the model to have prioritisation among services. The performance of the proposed model is evaluated in a practical heterogeneous access network. Results show an increase of 2.5 times in network capacity by implementing an access point at the centre of each cell of a cellular network. It is shown that the cellular network capacity itself can vary from 0.9 Gbps in the pessimistic approach up to 5.5 Gbps in the optimistic one. Finally, the isolation of service classes and VNOs by means of virtualisation of radio resources is clearly demonstrated.