US 6,212,386 B1 · Automated tool method for frequency plan revision within a cellular telephone system

Abstract

Interference and bit error rate measurements are made on the uplink and downlink to determine communications quality. Mobile station mobile assisted hand-off (MAHO) functionality is utilized to make the downlink measurements. Following filtering, the measurements are evaluated to identify potential candidates for reallocation. In one type of evaluation, when measured downlink bit error rate on a selected frequency is lower than a threshold and is worse than measured uplink bit error rate, then a better quality candidate is chosen to replace the selected frequency. In another type of evaluation, when a best available candidate has better interference than a worst quality one of the selected frequencies, that best candidate is chosen to replace the selected frequency.

Claims39

Dependent claims

A method for automated and autonomous planning of a revision to a frequency plan assignment within a cellular communications system in response to a situation wherein a certain transceiver within a certain cell has been maintenance blocked as not operable, comprising the steps of:

marking, due to the maintenance block, of a certain frequency assigned to that certain transceiver in the certain cell;
evaluating communications quality within the cellular communications system;
selecting based on the evaluated communications quality a revision to the frequency plan assignment, wherein the step of selecting further includes the steps of:
checking for marked frequencies;
and
preventing another cell of the system proximate to the certain cell from being reallocated use of the marked certain frequency assigned to that certain transceiver in the certain cell.

3 more elements

A method for automated and autonomous planning of a revision to a frequency plan assignment within a cellular communications system in a situation wherein a new transceiver has been added to a cell of the cellular communications system, comprising the steps of:

evaluating communications quality within the cellular communications system with respect to sub-frequency groups currently allocated within the cellular communications system;
selecting based on the evaluated communications quality a revision to the frequency plan assignment, wherein the step of selecting further includes the steps of:
identifying candidate ones of the sub-frequency groups;
evaluating the candidate sub-frequency groups to identify a best candidate sub-frequency group;
validating the identified best candidate sub-frequency group;
and
assigning frequencies within the validated best candidate sub-frequency group to the new transceiver.

4 more elements

A method for automated and autonomous planning of a revision to a frequency plan assignment within a cellular communications system, comprising the steps of:

determining whether a frequency set of a certain cell contains at least one frequency tagged for use as a digital control channel;
if yes, separately evaluating communications quality within the cellular communications system with respect to digital voice channel and digital control channel sub-frequency groups currently allocated within the cellular communications system in order to identify a potential best candidate digital voice channel and digital control channel sub-frequency group having frequencies suitable for assignment to transceivers within the certain cell in order to replace the frequencies of a digital voice channel and digital control channel, respectively, sub-frequency group currently associated with the certain cell;
and
if no, evaluating communications quality within the cellular communications system with respect to digital voice channel sub-frequency groups currently allocated within the cellular communications system to identify a best candidate digital voice channel sub-frequency group having frequencies suitable for assignment to transceivers within the certain cell in order to replace the frequencies of a digital voice channel sub-frequency group currently associated with the certain cell.

1 more element

A method for automated and autonomous planning of a revision to a frequency plan assignment within a cellular communications system for a certain cell, comprising the steps of:

identifying a first list of sub-frequency groups characterized as being highly interfered on either an uplink or downlink;
identifying a second list of sub-frequency groups characterized as being currently assigned to a neighbor cell of the certain cell;
identifying a third list of sub-frequency groups characterized as being potential candidate sub-frequency groups for assignment to the certain cell in a revision to the frequency plan, provided that the third list does not include any of the sub-frequency groups contained in the first and second lists;
ordering mobile stations operating within the certain cell to make downlink interference measurements on frequencies comprising the sub-frequency groups contained in the third list;
selecting based on the uplink and downlink communications quality a best candidate sub-frequency group from the third list;
validating the best candidate digital voice channel sub-frequency group;
and
assigning frequencies of the validated best candidate sub-frequency group to each transceiver within the certain cell.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Automated tool method for frequency plan revision within a cellular telephone system

Life of this patent

Automated tool method for frequency plan revision within a cellular telephone system

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims39