Background
In future networks, due to coexistence of different networks, the networks will become more complex, a large amount of wireless parameters and data will greatly increase workload of network optimization personnel, and operators hope to reduce operation cost and manual intervention. In this context, the SON (self-organizing network) characteristic of the EUTRAN (evolved universal terrestrial radio access network) system is considered as an important research direction of the 3 GPP. The main idea of SON is to realize some autonomous functions of the wireless network, reduce human participation, and reduce operation cost.
The research contents of SON include ANR (automatic neighbor relation), PCI (physical cell ID) selection, MRO (mobility robustness optimization), MLB (mobility load balancing), and the like.
The PCI is a very important parameter in an LTE (long term evolution) cell, and both the scrambling sequence and the pilot position of a physical channel in the cell are related to the PCI. There are a maximum of 504 PCIs, thus inevitably leading to reuse of the PCIs. When a new base station is introduced into the area, the PCI needs to be selected for the cell, and the allocation of the PCI follows the following principle: 1. no conflict: the PCI within the cell coverage area is unique; 2. not to be confused: the PCIs between the neighbors of a cell are different.
Following the above principles, currently, for PCI selection, several schemes are proposed:
the method A comprises the following steps: and (4) randomly distributing.
I.e. randomly choosing PCI from 504 PCIs to be allocated to the newly introduced base station.
The method B comprises the following steps: the base station is pre-scanned with the receiver.
That is, the base station scans the surrounding environment before running, and can find the neighboring areas with the same frequency through scanning, thereby avoiding the conflict of PCI selection.
The method C comprises the following steps: and UE auxiliary detection.
Namely, a range of a temporary PCI is divided from 504 PCIs, the temporary PCI is also called t _ Phy _ ID, and can be defined in the standard or configured by OM (operation and maintenance), and each base station in the network knows the ID range that can be used as the t _ Phy _ ID. When a base station is newly built, a temporary PCI is randomly selected for each of its cells, and the temporary PCI is used to operate the cell for a period of time (referred to as a configuration phase). The newly-built base station makes the UE report the PCI of the adjacent cell to the UE through the ANR request, and further reports the GCI (Global cell ID) of the adjacent cell, the newly-built base station obtains the address of the adjacent base station through the GCI of the adjacent cell, and communicates with the adjacent base station through establishing an X2 interface, so as to obtain the adjacent cell information of the adjacent base station.
After the configuration stage is finished, the newly-built base station redistributes the PCI by referring to the obtained neighbor cell information so as to avoid the conflict and confusion of the PCI. The base station then restarts the cell with the newly selected PCI and updates this information to the neighboring base stations.
The method D comprises the following steps: and judging through geographic information.
That is, the base station obtains the position information through GPS (global positioning system) or other methods. And at a certain central entity, distance calculation is carried out, and the optimized PCI is automatically generated to the base station.
The method E comprises the following steps: and (4) software aided planning.
I.e. distributed by the planning software, also requires knowledge of geographical information.
Among them, the UE-assisted detection method is the most commonly used method, and as shown in fig. 1, it is assumed that PCIs of two cells Cell _ a1 and Cell _ a2 of a base station a are 3 and 4, respectively. The PCIs of two cells Cell _ B1, Cell _ B2 of base station B are 1 and 2, respectively. The newly-built base station C has two cells Cell _ C1 and Cell _ C2. Then, referring to fig. 2, the PCI selection method using UE-assisted detection is as follows:
step 1: base station C selects t _ Ph _ IDa and t _ Ph _ IDb from the temporary PCI for the newly created cell C1, cell C2, and starts base station C.
Step 2: and the UE governed by the base station C or the UE governed by the base station A discovers the adjacent cell and obtains the GCI of the adjacent cell through an ANR process.
That is, the UE governed by the base station C reports the GCI of the neighboring cell (governed by the base station a) to the base station C, or the UE governed by the base station a reports the GCI of the neighboring cell (governed by the base station C) to the base station a.
And step 3: and the UE governed by the base station C or the UE governed by the base station B discovers the adjacent cell and obtains the GCI of the adjacent cell through an ANR process.
That is, the UE governed by the base station C reports the GCI of the neighboring cell (governed by the base station B) to the base station C, or the UE governed by the base station B reports the GCI of the neighboring cell (governed by the base station C) to the base station B.
And 4, step 4: and the base station C or the base station A acquires the address of the adjacent base station through the acquired GCI and establishes an X2 interface connection.
In step 2, the base station C or the base station a obtains the GCI of only one neighboring cell, but since the neighboring base station may manage a plurality of cells, the base station C or the base station a needs to obtain the PCIs of all cells governed by the neighboring base station, which is also referred to as neighboring cell information of the neighboring base station, after the X interface is established.
And 5: and the base station C or the base station B acquires the address of the adjacent base station through the acquired GCI and establishes an X2 interface connection.
In step 3, the base station C or the base station B obtains the GCI of only one neighboring cell, but since the neighboring base station may manage a plurality of cells, after the X interface is established, the base station C or the base station B needs to obtain the PCIs of all cells governed by the neighboring base station, which is also called neighboring cell information of the neighboring base station.
Step 6: and the base station C selects PCIs for the cell C1 and the cell C2 respectively through the obtained adjacent cell information (including the own adjacent cell information and the adjacent cell information of the adjacent base station), so that the newly selected PCIs do not conflict with or are not confused with the PCIs of the adjacent cells, and the base station C is restarted.
And 7: base station C informs base station a of the new PCI through the X2 configuration update procedure.
Base station C needs to inform base station a of the newly allocated PCIs of all cells under jurisdiction.
And 8: base station C informs base station B of the new PCI through the X2 configuration update procedure.
Base station C needs to inform base station B of the newly allocated PCIs of all cells under jurisdiction.
However, the existing UE-assisted detection method is only suitable for the case where one base station is newly established, and if a plurality of base stations are newly established at the same time, the two newly established base stations may select the same PCI by using the existing UE-assisted detection method.
For example, referring to fig. 3, assuming that base station C and base station D are newly established at the same time, the method using UE-assisted detection includes the following steps:
the method comprises the following steps: and the base station C and the base station D respectively select t _ Ph _ ID from the temporary PCI for the newly-built cells C1, C2, D1 and D2, and start the base station C.
Step two: and after the UE of each base station discovers the adjacent cell, the GCI of the adjacent cell is obtained through an ANR process.
Step three: the base station C and the base station D respectively acquire the addresses of other base stations by acquiring GCI and establish an X2 interface.
Step four: and the base station C and the base station D reselect the PCI for the cell of the base station through the obtained adjacent cell information respectively.
In the above flow, although the base station C and the base station D can respectively select the non-confused and non-conflicted PCIs for the cells managed by themselves, since the base station C and the base station D simultaneously perform PCI selection and do not know the selection condition of the other party, the same PCI may be selected, and thus, the collision and confusion of the PCI of the cells still occur in the system, thereby affecting the normal performance of the system.
Detailed Description
In practical application, two situations are divided into two when two base stations are newly built at the same time: 1. two base stations have adjacent cells, and 2 two base stations have no adjacent cells. The following embodiments all describe solutions for the first case, while the second case requires detection using other techniques.
In the embodiment of the present invention, when two or more base stations are newly built at the same time, the base stations may select the same PCI because the configuration stages of the base stations overlap and PCI selection is performed almost at the same time, and therefore, in order to effectively solve this problem, in the embodiment of the present invention, the timing for selecting the PCI by each base station is staggered.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to fig. 4, in the embodiment of the present invention, when at least two base stations are newly established, taking a newly established base station as an example, a detailed flow for selecting a PCI for a cell under jurisdiction by the newly established base station is described as follows:
step 400: and the newly-built base station establishes X2 interface connection with at least one adjacent base station and acquires the adjacent area information of the at least one adjacent base station.
In this embodiment, the newly-built base station may discover the neighboring cell through UE-assisted detection, and receive, by using an ANR request process, the PCI and the GCI of the neighboring cell reported by the UE, where the GCI records an address of the neighboring base station corresponding to the neighboring cell, and the newly-built base station may establish an X2 interface connection with the corresponding neighboring base station by using the address. On the other hand, in this embodiment, the neighboring cell information of the neighboring base station at least includes PCIs of all cells managed by the neighboring base station.
In practical applications, the newly-built base station can detect a plurality of neighboring cells by the above method, and in this embodiment, for convenience of description, only one neighboring cell is detected as an example.
Step 410: and when the newly-built base station determines that the at least one neighbor base station is the newly-built base station according to the obtained neighbor cell information of the at least one neighbor base station, obtaining the GlobaleNBID of the at least one neighbor base station.
In this embodiment, after the newly-built base station acquires the neighboring cell information of one neighboring base station through the X2 interface connection, if the PCI of each cell governed by the neighboring base station is determined to be the temporary PCI, it is determined that the neighboring base station is also the newly-built base station.
Step 420: and the newly-built base station compares the local GloblaeNBID with the GloblaeNBID of the at least one adjacent base station, determines the priority relationship, and determines the execution sequence of the PCI selection process according to the priority relationship.
When determining the priority relationship according to the globalembid comparison result of the two base stations, the newly-built base station can adopt, but is not limited to, the following modes:
firstly, respectively determining the value of local GlobaleNBID and the value of the GlobaleNBID of the at least one adjacent base station;
and secondly, judging that the higher the value of the GlobaleNBID is, the higher the priority is, namely, the newly-built base station and at least one adjacent base station execute the PCI selection process in turn according to the sequence of the GlobaleNBID value from large to small.
For example: comparing the GlobaleNBID of the two base stations, the base station with the larger GlobaleNBID selects the PCI first, and the base station with the smaller GlobaleNBID selects the PCI later.
Or,
judging that the smaller the value of the GlobaleNBID is, the higher the priority is, namely, sequentially executing a PCI selection process by the newly-built base station and at least one adjacent base station according to the sequence of the GlobaleNBID value from small to large;
for example: comparing the GlobaleNBID of the two base stations, the base station with the smaller GlobaleNBID selects the PCI first, and the base station with the larger GlobaleNBID selects the PCI later.
Or,
and determining the priority of each GlobaleNBID according to the preset GlobaleNBID sequence configuration information, namely, the newly-built base station and at least one adjacent base station need to sequentially execute the PCI selection process according to the preset GlobaleNBID sequence.
For example, a globalembid order table is preset, wherein the PCI is selected by the base station before the globalembid, and the PCI is selected by the base station after the globalembid.
In this embodiment, the GlobaleNBID is a global unique identifier of the base station, and is composed of a plmn identity (public land mobile network identity) and an eNBID (base station), where information content included in the plmn identity is shown in table 1:
TABLE 1
The globalembid, consisting of PLMNIdentity and eNBID, then contains the information content as shown in table 2:
TABLE 2
In this embodiment, when comparing the values of globalembid of the two base stations, the following method may be adopted, but not limited to:
comparing PLMNIdentity parts contained in the GlobaleNBIDs according to the byte size, and if the PLMNIdentity parts are the same, determining the value size of the corresponding eNBID according to the base station type of each base station; and if the base station types of the base stations are the same, comparing the eNBID parts contained in the GlobaleNBIDs according to the byte size.
For example, if one base station is a macro base station and the other is a home base station, the GlobaleNBID of the macro base station is considered to be greater than that of the home base station.
Of course, if the types of the two base stations are the same, the comparing result is obtained by comparing the macro enb id or the homeenb id in bytes, referring to the above method.
On the other hand, when the newly-built base station determines the execution sequence of the PCI selection process according to the priority relationship, the specific steps are as follows:
if the priority of the newly-built base station is higher than that of all the adjacent base stations, the newly-built base station firstly executes the PCI selection process by referring to the adjacent area information obtained in the configuration stage, and informs each adjacent base station of the PCI selection result, so that each adjacent base station can refer to the PCI selection results of other previous base stations when executing the PCI selection process of the adjacent base station, and PCI conflict and confusion are avoided;
if the priority of the newly-built base station is lower than that of the first part of adjacent base stations and higher than that of the second part of adjacent base stations, the newly-built base station executes the PCI selection process by referring to the adjacent area information obtained in the configuration stage and the PCI selection result of the first part of adjacent base stations after waiting for the first part of adjacent base stations to execute the PCI selection process, and sends the PCI selection result to the second part of adjacent base stations for reference in the subsequent execution of the PCI selection process.
If the priority of the newly-built base station is lower than that of all the adjacent base stations, the newly-built base station refers to the adjacent area information obtained in the configuration stage and the PCI selection results of all the adjacent base stations to execute the PCI selection process of the newly-built base station after waiting for the PCI selection process of all the adjacent base stations to be finished, so that the PCI conflict and confusion phenomena are avoided.
For example, taking an adjacent base station around the newly-built base station as an example, through the X2 establishment process, the newly-built base station obtains the adjacent cell information of the adjacent base station, and determines that the PCI of the cell administered by the adjacent base station belongs to the range of the temporary PCI according to the adjacent cell information, it can be inferred that the adjacent base station is also the newly-built base station, then GlobaleNBID of the adjacent base station and the base station is compared, the base station with larger GlobaleNBID immediately reselects the PCI after the configuration phase timer is overtime, while the base station with smaller GlobaleNBID cannot immediately reselect the PCI after the configuration phase timer is overtime, but continues to be in the configuration phase, and after receiving the X2 configuration update message of the opposite-end base station, PCI selection is performed according to the adjacent cell information (including the adjacent cell information of the base station and the adjacent cell information of each adjacent base station) collected in the configuration phase and the PCI selection result carried in the X2 configuration update.
Based on the above embodiments, the following description will be made in further detail by taking the application scenario shown in fig. 3 as an example.
As shown in fig. 3, assuming that base station C and base station D are newly built at the same time, and GlobaleNBID of base station C is greater than that of base station D, the flow is shown in fig. 5:
step 501: the base station C assisted by the UE to discover the cell of the base station D.
The method specifically comprises the following steps: in the base station CANR procedure, the UE detects the cell of the base station D and obtains the PCI and GCI of the cell of the base station D, where the address of the base station D is recorded.
Step 502: base station C sends an X2 setup request to base station D.
Step 503: base station D replies with an X2 setup response to base station C.
Both base stations can deduce that the opposite terminal is the newly-built base station from the PCI of the source cell carried in the X2 setup request message and the X2 setup response message, and determine the execution sequence of the PCI selection procedure by comparing globalembid.
Step 504: the configuration phase timer of base station C times out, and since the globalembid of base station C is large, the configuration phase ends and the PCI is reselected.
Step 505: the timer of the configuration phase of the base station D is overtime, and the configuration phase is extended because the globalembid of the base station D is small, and PCI reselection is not performed for a while.
Step 506: base station C sends an X2 configuration update to base station D, carrying the newly selected PCI.
Step 507: and after the configuration stage of the base station D is finished, reselecting the PCI according to the PCI notified by the base station C in the neighbor cell information collected in the configuration stage and the X2 configuration updating message.
Step 508: base station D sends an X2 configuration update response to base station C.
Step 509: base station D sends an X2 configuration update to base station C, carrying the newly selected PCI.
Step 510: base station C sends an X2 configuration update response to base station D.
In the above embodiment, the timer duration of the middle configuration stage may be determined by simulation. The judgment criterion of whether to reselect the PCI first can be configured by OM configuring the base station or adding related message in signaling.
On the other hand, referring to fig. 6, if the X2 establishes message concurrency between two base stations, the technical solution described in the embodiment of the present invention is also applicable: i.e., the base station receiving the X2 setup request has sent an X2 setup request to the same base station, which is typically the case because two base stations have simultaneously discovered their cells,
on the other hand, the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the invention is further suitable for a scene in which a plurality of base stations are newly built at the same time, and since the globalembid is the global identifier of the base stations, the sequence of the reselected PCIs can be uniquely determined according to the globalembid no matter the sequence established by the X2.
Based on the above-mentioned embodiment, referring to fig. 7, in the embodiment of the present invention, the base station includes a communication unit 70 and a processing unit 71, wherein,
a communication unit 70, configured to establish an X2 interface connection with at least one neighboring base station, and obtain neighboring cell information of the at least one neighboring base station, and when determining that the at least one neighboring base station is a new base station according to the obtained neighboring cell information, obtain GlobaleNBID of the at least one neighboring base station;
the processing unit 71 is configured to compare the local globlaeNBID with the globaleNBID of the at least one neighboring base station, determine a priority relationship, and determine an execution sequence of the PCI selection procedure according to the priority relationship.
In summary, in the embodiment of the present invention, when more than two base stations are newly built in a system at the same time, each newly built base station determines the execution sequence of a PCI selection procedure according to the GloblaeNBID size of the newly built base station, the newly built base station that executes the PCI selection procedure first reselects a PCI immediately after a configuration phase is finished, and then the newly built base station that executes the PCI selection procedure cannot reselect the PCI immediately after the configuration phase is finished, and after receiving a configuration update message of an opposite base station, reselect the PCI according to neighboring cell information collected in the configuration phase and a received X2 configuration update message, so that two newly built base stations can be prevented from performing PCI selection at the same time, thereby effectively avoiding PCI collision or confusion, and further ensuring correct operation of the system.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalents, the present invention is also intended to include such modifications and variations.