SON Concepts Heighten Performance Capability   

Besides the bandwidth and high throughput improvements in the 4G LTE network, it postulates an innovative and powerful approach to improved network performance. These innovations are collectively termed “Self Organizing Networks”. The Self Organization concept enables or provides the capability for the (/a set of) network elements automatically adjust its (/their) parameters (according to the actual network situation) in order to achieve maximum performance.

The SON philosophy refers to entities ability, in the network, to take autonomous action in response to an extant condition or trigger. Autonomous action is generally accepted to be some form of automation based on a set, or sets, of constraints defined by the user (i.e., organization).   

The current OSS systems in the mobile network (2G, 3G) are not designed to handle such autonomic behavior of the network elements as these networks do not have “automation” or “self organization” at their core. So, if the future network elements are able to perform such “automation” then the following question arises. As a 4G network operator: Is it necessary to control the automation? And if so, how to control them?

For example, it is already technologically possible today for the SON-enabled eNodeB (enhanced Node B) to detect the inter-cell interference between two base stations. The SON’s objective of this use case is to provide the possibility for the network elements (base stations) not only detect the cell interference but also automatically adjust the base station parameters to achieve optimum performance.

Technically, the ability of the base stations to achieve the optimum network performance sounds exciting and promising. However, individual network elements do not have the overarching network knowledge and, tuning the network parameters without such “global’ network knowledge may not be preferable and may result in chaotic network behavior.

In order to govern such autonomic behavior, rules have to be carefully designed and be enforced. These rules are not only based on the pure technical measurements but also subject to environmental conditions.    

For example, it may be technically possible that a base station is allowed to maximize its transmitter power, environmental conditions (regulation) may not permit it. These regulations may also be dynamic and changes according to the environmental conditions, for example transmit power may be limited between the hours of 08:00 and 18:00 due to the close proximity of a kindergarten (certainly this is NOT a technical limitation however it may be a politically expedient ‘rule’). So the rules have to be designed and enforced according to the local context (current situation of the base station) and subsequently, fitting to the global context (current organizational policies). As a consequence, for the network operator, it is extremely important that the automation be handled in a controlled manner.