A Hierarchical and Modular Radio Resource Management Architecture for 5G and Beyond

TL;DR

This paper proposes a hierarchical and modular radio resource management architecture for 5G and beyond, aiming to handle the complexity and diversity of modern heterogeneous networks through a flexible, layered framework.

Contribution

It introduces a novel hierarchical and modular framework that generalizes radio resource management across different network layers and use cases in 5G and beyond.

Findings

Supports dynamic and efficient resource allocation in heterogeneous networks

Enables easy integration of new solutions via plugins

Addresses complexity with a layered, adaptable architecture

Abstract

The evolution of mobile wireless systems into Heterogeneous Networks, along with the introduction of the 5th Generation (5G) systems, significantly increased the complexity of radio resource management. The current mobile networks consist of a multitude of spectrum bands, use cases, system features, licensing schemes, radio technologies, and network layers. Additionally, the traffic demand is uneven in terms of spatial and temporal domains, calling for a dynamic approach to radio resource allocation. To cope with these complexities, a generic and adaptive scheme is required for the efficient operation of Heterogeneous Networks. This article proposes to use a hierarchical and modular framework as an approach to cover the mentioned challenges and to generalize this scheme to different network layers. The proposed management solution is based on three main components: specialized solutions for individual requirements, exposed to the coordination layer, through abstraction middleware. In this approach, new items can be added as plugins.