We consider spectrum sharing between a limited set of operators having similar rights for accessing spectrum. A coordination protocol acting on the level of the Radio Access Network (RAN) is designed. The protocol is non-cooperative, but assumes an agreement to a set of negotiation rules. The signaling overhead is low, and knowledge of competitor's channel state information is not assumed. No monetary transactions are involved; instead, spectrum sharing is based on a RAN-internal virtual currency. The protocol is applicable in a scenario of mutual renting and when the operators form a spectrum pool. The protocol is reactive to variations in interference and load of the operators, and shows gains in a simulated small cell scenario compared to not using any coordination protocol.
@article{arxiv.1505.01823,
title = {Coordination protocol for inter-operator spectrum sharing in co-primary 5G small cell networks},
author = {Bikramjit Singh and Sofonias Hailu and Konstantinos Koufos and Alexis A. Dowhuszko and Olav Tirkkonen and Riku Jäntti and Randall Berry},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1505.01823},
year = {2016}
}
Comments
To be published in IEEE Communications Magazine, Jul. 2015