High-performance 4G LTE networks
From the early analogue mobile generation (1G) to the more recently deployed 3G and 4G communications network systems, connectivity becomes more noticeable in our everyday life. However, despite the growing popularity of mobile internet, research into LTE Advanced is still in its infancy. EU-funded research within LTE BE-IT (Investigation of LTE-Advanced for network behaviour, energy and intelligent transportation systems) laid the groundwork for managing LTE Advanced evolution. By conducting real traffic measurements, researchers identified potential performance bottlenecks causing delay and quality degradation of a service. Research on how to better accommodate traffic load will lead to new protocol versions that should enable higher speeds and quality of service and experience to end users. For accommodating the very high rates and wide bandwidths in LTE Advanced, substantial improvements in energy-efficient operation mechanisms are necessary. Researchers successfully developed models to thoroughly study various sleep modes of the discontinuous reception (DRX) mechanism for power saving in LTE systems. Based on these powerful models, the team successfully demonstrated a trade-off relationship between the power-saving and wake-up delay performance. This work should help optimise LTE DRX parameters to ultimately maximise power saving. LTE Advanced will see intensive use in road safety applications, radically changing the way drivers interact with their own vehicles and with others on the road. Technologies for communicating with infrastructure elements or broadcasting a vehicle position, speed or other data can help improve traffic flow and boost fuel efficiency. However, such technologies should be able to accommodate frequent network topology changes according to vehicle mobility and density of neighbouring vehicles. To this end, researchers successfully identified the optimal quality indicators that describe whether network resources are sufficient to provide high-quality services. Modernising the transport industry, LTE Advanced is poised to turbocharge 4G networks. Research results should help further unleash its potential and enable the technology to be successfully rolled out across many countries. The technology is also expected to generate economic growth and better services for all.
Keywords
LTE Advanced, communications network, intelligent transportation, traffic measurements, road safety
