Method for managing neighbor base station list based on terminal location for efficient cell selection and handoff in macrocell environments with femtocell

A method of managing a neighbor list of neighboring base stations based on the location of a terminal in a macrocell with femtocell deployments, the method comprising:

• demarcating, by a base station, the macrocell into a plurality of concentric circles in accordance with a predetermined standard of demarcation;
• generating, by the base station, a mobile neighbor advertisement message and transmitting the generated message to the terminal in a cyclic manner, the mobile neighbor advertisement message containing information regarding macrocells neighboring the macrocell and information regarding the femtocells deployed within the respective demarcated concentric circles;
• sectoring, by the base station, the macrocell with the plurality of demarcated concentric circles into a plurality of sectors to establish reuse areas such that the reuse areas do not interfere with each other;
• and
• reusing, by the base station, the frequency and preamble used by the femtocells deployed within the outermost circle of the plurality of concentric circles in the reuse areas,
• wherein the terminal identifies a current location in the macrocell of the terminal upon receipt of pilot signals periodically transmitted from the base station of the macrocell.

A base station of a macrocell with femtocell deployments, the base station operable to manage a list of neighboring base stations based on a location of a terminal that transmits/receives data to/from the base station, the base station configured to:

• divide the macrocell in accordance with a predetermined standard of division;
• and
• generate a mobile neighbor advertisement message and periodically transmit the generated message to the terminal, the mobile neighbor advertisement message containing information regarding macrocells neighboring the macrocell and information regarding the femtocells deployed within the respective divided areas of the macrocell,
• wherein the terminal identifies a current location thereof in the macrocell upon receipt of pilot signals periodically transmitted from the base station, and obtains information regarding the location of the terminal from the information regarding the femtocells deployed within the respective divided areas and information regarding the neighbor macrocells by using the mobile neighbor advertisement message to perform a scanning.

A base station of a macrocell with femtocell deployments, the base station operable to manage a neighbor list of neighboring base stations based on a location of a terminal in the macrocell, the base station configured to:

• demarcate the macrocell into a plurality of concentric circles in accordance with a predetermined standard of demarcation;
• generate a mobile neighbor advertisement message and transmit the generated message to the terminal in a cyclic manner, the mobile neighbor advertisement message containing information regarding macrocells neighboring the macrocell and information regarding the femtocells deployed within the respective demarcated concentric circles;
• sector the macrocell with the plurality of demarcated concentric circles into a plurality of sectors to establish reuse areas such that the reuse areas do not interfere with each other;
• and
• reuse the frequency and preamble used by the femtocells deployed within the outermost circle of the plurality of concentric circles in the reuse areas,
• wherein the terminal identifies a current location in the macrocell of the terminal upon receipt of pilot signals periodically transmitted from the base station of the macrocell.