Tracking area reconfiguration based on sector load

In a wireless communication system in which a plurality of sectors of a radio access network (RAN) are organized into a plurality of tracking areas, wherein each given tracking area of the plurality of tracking areas includes (i) one or more border sectors that border at least one other tracking area, and (ii) at least one user equipment (UE) operating therein, a method comprising:

• making a decision to reconfigure a given tracking area by the RAN entity;
• in response to the RAN entity making the decision to reconfigure the given tracking area, evaluating by the RAN entity load at each border sector of the given tracking area;
• based on the evaluating, identifying a particular border sector has at least a threshold level of load by the RAN entity;
• and
• reconfiguring by the RAN entity of the given tracking area such that the identified border sector does not border any other tracking area.

In a wireless communication system in which a plurality of sectors are shared by a first radio access network (RAN) and a second RAN, wherein each sector of the plurality of sectors is included in a respective tracking area of the first RAN and a respective tracking area of the second RAN, and wherein each tracking area of the first RAN and each tracking area of the second RAN includes (i) one or more border sectors that border at least one other tracking area, and (ii) at least one user equipment (UE) operating therein, a method comprising:

• making a decision to reconfigure a given tracking area of the first RAN by a RAN entity;
• in response to the RAN entity making the decision to reconfigure the given tracking area of the first RAN, identifying by the RAN entity a particular border sector in the given tracking area that is also a border sector in a tracking area of the second RAN;
• and
• reconfiguring by the RAN entity of the given tracking area such that the identified border sector does not border any tracking area of the first RAN.