2010 IEEE 21st International Symposium on Personal Indoor and Mobile Radio Communications

Battery Life Idle Parameter Optimization of UE in Self Organizing Network

Tomasz Mach, Rahim Tafazolli Centre for Communication Systems Research, University of Surrey, U.K.
t.mach@surrey.ac.uk, r.tafazolli@surrey.ac.uk

Abstract This paper presents a novel mechanism which increases mobile terminal battery performance. It supports a cell reselection algorithm which decides on which cell, user equipment (UE) is camped on when in idle mode (there is no active radio connection with a mobile network). Study is based on real 3G UTRA network measurements. Authors propose a technique to reduce UE current consumption in idle mode based on dynamic Sintrasearch neighbour cell measurements threshold optimization. System analysis covers both UTRA and E-UTRA - Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology. Index Terms Energy-Efficient Protocols, Cell Reselection, Land Mobile Radio Cellular Systems, SON, LTE, UE power consumption, idle mode measurements

I.

INTRODUCTION

he design of cellular mobile communication systems has traditionally been based on conventional radio network planning. One of the main problems, which can be found in any cellular wireless system, is achieving a good radio network configuration and optimization. In currently deployed 3G networks (based on 3GPP UTRAN technology), a mobile operator needs to put significant amount of effort to optimize parameters controlling its radio access network performance. This process can be very expensive and time consuming as it may require human input rather than dynamic automated procedures (high OPEX). Increasing complexity of network configuration resulted in new trends introduced by network operators to simplify and automate those procedures. This could be achieved by new automated self-optimization mechanisms and algorithms available in the mobile network. As a part of ongoing cellular mobile network evolution, 3GPP organization specified some features for future 3.9G Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks to support Self Organizing / Optimizing Network (SON) concept in Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) specification [1, 2]. In addition to that, another industry organization Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance (NGMN) further developed proposed 3GPP SON use cases providing technical view of the mobile operator community on the problem of network planning, deployment, optimization and maintenance [6, 7]. Another example of the continuous selforganization vision in wireless networks was developed and described as a result of research project SOCRATES [9, 10]. Current state of the art in SON research refers mainly to

improvements in network algorithms (e.g. main driver for energy savings use case is OPEX decrease achieved by reduced energy consumption in the network e.g. cell switch on/off [1]). In addition it would be desirable to study application of SON algorithms to UE performance improvements. Currently less research focus has been given to self-optimization mechanisms dedicated to increase UE energy efficiency. From commercial point of view, main driver for mobile terminal development is increased data throughput. A serious disadvantage of higher quality of service provided by new multimedia services is significantly increased current consumption in a mobile terminal. To overcome this problem, in parallel to increasing data transfer speeds, consideration should be given to new system level methods to optimize UE battery efficiency. Current research activities in SON mainly relate to UE active mode (there is a dedicated radio connection established with RAN and cell mobility is controlled by handovers triggered by the network). There has been less work focused on idle mode (no dedicated RAN connection) and on minimising UE battery consumption. In this paper, we present an idea to support lower UE battery consumption without compromising general idle mode performance.
II. IDLE MODE UE BATTERY PERFORMANCE FACTORS IN THE 3GPP 3G UTRAN TECHNOLOGY

In idle mode of operation, UE periodically (using discontinuous reception - DRX) monitors performance of current serving cell and neighbour cells to maintain service continuity for the user. Based on relative cell quality or power, UE triggers cell reselection procedure when there is better cell available from a radio point of view. Interfrequency and inter-RAT reselections may also be prioritized depending on eg the level of service offered on each carrier. These procedures allow the UE to camp on the most appropriate cell. To facilitate reselections, the UE shall attempt to detect, synchronise, and monitor intra-frequency, inter-frequency and inter-RAT cells indicated in the measurement control system information of the serving cell. UE measurement activity is controlled by measurement rules, allowing the UE to limit its measurement activity and thus save power if certain conditions are fulfilled [8]. The reselection procedure is controlled by UE and is using configuration parameters broadcasted by RAN on a per cell basis in system information messages (SIB messages). From mobility point of view, idle mode cell reselection is similar

978-1-4244-8016-6/10/$26.00 2010 IEEE

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to active mode hard handover except that the evaluation of the need for reselections is performed autonomously by the UE, rather than under network control. As a result of detailed 3GPP UTRAN system analysis, authors identified an interesting problem related to the optimisation of neighbour cell measurement threshold (Sintrasearch) in idle mode. Sintrasearch is an optional parameter provided by network in SIB data and specifies the threshold (in dB) below which intrafrequency measurements should be performed. According to the 3GPP Release 8 specification TS 25.304 [3] section 5.2.6.1.1, neighbour cell measurements rules are defined as follows:

argument would be applicable to E-UTRAN (LTE) technology. To support further analysis, How serious is the UE battery performance problem? study was done based on real Ec/No measurements taken from UE in four different commercial 3G mobile networks. This will be further described in next section.

If Squal > Sintrasearch, UE may choose to not perform intra-frequency measurements If Squal <= Sintrasearch, perform intra-frequency measurements If Sintrasearch, is not sent for serving cell, perform intrafrequency measurements
Fig. 1. Neighbour cell measurements parameters in idle mode

Where: Squal [dB] = Qqualmeas Qqualmin Qqualmeas Measured cell quality value. The quality of the received signal expressed in CPICH (Common Pilot Channel) Ec/No [dB], see [5] for detailed definition Qqualmin Minimum required quality level in the cell [dB] Detailed requirements for intra-frequency measurements and filtering in UE are defined in [8]. Fig. 1 graphically presents idle mode neighbour cell measurements parameters described above used during cell reselection process in UE. As it can be seen on the Fig. 1, Sintrasearch setting in SIB could make UE battery life worse in idle mode if set too high. This would happen due to additional UE effort required for measuring adjacent cells performance before cell reselection happens. The higher the Sintrasearch threshold value, the sooner UE starts neighbour cell measurements before expected cell reselection to better quality cell. Current commercial 3G networks appear to typically define Sintrasearch as a static parameter on a per cell basis. Such a solution includes the following disadvantages: When cell conditions change (Ec/No) due to traffic load change, static Sintrasearch could be suboptimal Finding the optimal parameter value taking into account scattered and varying cell coverage could be difficult and costly for mobile operator When Sintrasearch is set too high there could be many UEs in the cell which measure neighbour cells unnecessarily Considering those factors it was identified that current solution based on static network setting could be suboptimal with possible space for some UE battery performance improvement with development and support of new dedicated Sintrasearch optimisation algorithm. An identical

III. HOW SERIOUS IS THE UE BATTERY PERFORMANCE PROBLEM IN REAL 3G NETWORKS ? Based on real-time logs gathered by UMTS user terminal in four commercial wireless networks, a study was done on how much intrafrequency Sintrasearch threshold setting could be optimised. All measurements are based on outdoor mobility scenario between many macro cells (user in a car). Based on the logs provided, analysis of the time spent above and below the threshold shows how much UE idle mode battery consumption could be decreased by optimising Sintrasearch value in the network (without failing to perform any of the reselections that were seen in the mobility scenario captured in the logs). Table 1 presents logs characteristics for the four networks analysed: A, B, C, D. Figures 2, 3, 4 and 5 present UE measured Ec/No values with related Sintrasearch parameter set by the network operator.
Parameter Network A Network B Network C Network D

Log length [s]

940

640

640

710

Number of intrafrequency cell reselections Sintrasearch[dB]

11

14

14

-6

-4

-7

-2

Table 1. Detailed log data (length, number of idle mode cell reselections, and Sintrasearch value) for analysed networks A, B, C and D

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940[s]

-5

IV. ANALYSIS DETAILS AND THRESHOLD OPTIMISATION METHOD IN SON

-10

-15

-20

Ec/No[dB] Sintrasearch
-25

Fig. 2. UE measured Ec/No values in network A with Sintrasearch threshold

0
640[s]

-5

-10

Based on the logs from real networks, it can be seen that in all cases UE spent significant amount of time below Sintrasearch threshold. As a result of high value of this threshold set in networks B and D, measured Ec/No value stays below configured Sintrasearch almost all the time. From UE implementation point of view, this requires continuous attempts (based on DRX cycle) to search and measure new neighbour cells on this frequency despite high serving cell signal quality. As a result, some idle mode battery life improvement could be achieved by Sintrasearch threshold optimisation but the process should not compromise idle UE mobility. It could be achieved by introducing new automated dynamic measurement threshold adjustment mechanism (per cell) supported by SON algorithms. The following algorithm could implement this mechanism in every cell: 1. Set initial Sintrasearch threshold value in the cell (Current Sintrasearch on Fig.6) During every cell reselection, UE(s) measures Sintrasearch delta parameter ( defined as a difference between Current Sintrasearch and Ec/No during cell reselection event - see Fig. 6 for details) and report it to the network. Based on statistical analysis of reported parameters from many UEs, network could adapt Sintrasearch value accordingly (Optimised Sintrasearch on Fig.6) .

-15

-20

Ec/No [dB] Sintrasearch

-25

2.

Fig. 3. UE measured Ec/No values in network B with Sintrasearch threshold

0
640[s]

3.
-5

-10

-15

-20

Ec/No[dB] Sintrasearch
-25

Fig. 4. UE measured Ec/No values in network C with Sintrasearch threshold

0
710[s]

More detailed analysis of gathered logs shows how much UE idle mode battery consumption could be decreased by optimising Sintrasearch value in the network. To quantify expected savings a method was proposed to find optimal value of intrafrequency Sintrasearch measurement threshold in UE based on Sintrasearch delta parameter calculation in idle mode. The method with definition of the Sintrasearch delta parameter is illustrated on Figure 6.

-5

-10

-15

-20

Ec/No[dB] Sintrasearch
-25

Fig. 5. UE measured Ec/No values in network D with Sintrasearch threshold

Fig. 6. Method of finding optimal value of intrafrequency Sintrasearch measurement threshold in UE based on Sintrasearch delta calculation during idle mode cell reselection (Treselection shown is a SIB parameter (timer) after which reselection to the neighbour cell is triggered in UE). Parameter Sintrasearch delta is defined as a difference between Current Sintrasearch and Ec/No during cell reselection event. Optimised Sintrasearch parameter is Current Sintrasearch reduced by Sintrasearch delta

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The following assumptions were used in the evaluation of the proposed method: Based on a Ec/No values in the logs, Sintrasearch delta was calculated during every cell reselection. Gathered Sintrasearch delta values were averaged on a per log basis to find Optimised Sintrasearch threshold value based on a formula: Optimised Sintrasearch = Current Sintrasearch + Sintrasearch delta averaged Based on calculated Optimised Sintrasearch value, potential UE battery saving in the log was estimated assuming 10% and 20% higher battery consumption when measured Ec/No was below optimised measurement threshold (due to additional UE processing effort required for searching and measuring neighbour intrafrequency cells). Table 2 shows as an example Ec/No values with related Sintrasearch delta values measured during cell reselections in network D.
Ec/No during reselection [dB] -10 -9 -11 -7.2 -10.4 -11.6 -14 -14 -15.5 -12 -7.5 -12 -11.5 -11.3 Sintrasearch delta[dB] -8 -7 -9 -5.2 -8.4 -9.6 -12 -12 -13.5 -10 -5.5 -10 -9.5 -9.3

Parameter

Network A

Network B

Network C

Network D

Log length [s]

940

640

640

710

Number of intrafrequency cell reselections in log 11 7 14 14

Sintrasearch[dB] Optimised Sintrasearch [dB] Estimated UE battery saving based on Optimised Sintrasearch (assuming 10% higher battery consumption below Sintrasearch) Estimated UE battery saving based on Optimised Sintrasearch (assuming 20% higher battery consumption below Sintrasearch)

-6

-4

-7

-2

-8.3

-10.17

-9.28

-11.21

2.88%

8.11%

1.83%

8.22%

6.07%

16.36%

3.94%

16.43%

Table 3. Calculated Optimised Sintrasearch values derived from Sintrasearch delta averaged with estimated UE battery saving figures for networks A, B, C and D

Table 2. Measured Ec/No values with related Sintrasearch delta values during cell reselections in network D

V. SUMMARY OF RESULTS Table 3 below shows estimated UE battery saving figures for all analysed networks based on Optimised Sintrasearch threshold. It could be observed from the table that estimated UE battery saving values are between 2 - 8% (assuming 10% increase in battery consumption below Sintrasearch) or 4 - 16% (assuming 20% increase in battery consumption below Sintrasearch). Those numbers are directly related to the terminal standby time in idle mode.

The following conclusions were drawn from the analysis performed in previous sections: Current UTRAN Sintrasearch scheme seems to be typically based on static setting provided by a network which is ineffective in terms of UE battery consumption Sintrasearch setting is a balance between UE battery efficiency and camping cell quality which could be optimised with minimal compromise of idle mobility performance Studied commercial networks were observed to use the same constant Sintrasearch value across many cells in their network, as a result there is still space for Sintrasearch threshold optimisation on a per cell basis Problem of suboptimal static Sintrasearch threshold exists both for UTRAN and E-UTRAN (LTE) Existing mechanism is proposed to be improved by novel automated dynamic Sintrasearch threshold adaptation mechanism supported by new SON algorithms Estimated idle mode battery savings are different between analysed networks but based on the logs provided and assuming 20% higher UE battery consumption below Sintrasearch threshold, possible averaged savings could be between 4 - 16%. Assuming 10 days average mobile terminal idle standby time, possible increase in standby time would be between 0.5 1.5 days

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Battery saving results would be higher if Sintrasearch separately adjusted on a per cell basis instead of a fixed value for the area evaluated in the log Similar solutions could be applied to interfrequency (Sintersearch parameter) and interRAT (SinterRAT parameter) neighbour cell measurement thresholds to support further battery savings.

REFERENCES

[1]

3GPP TS 36.902 Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN); Self-configuring and self-optimizing network (SON) use cases and solutions, 2009 [2] 3GPP TS 32.521 Telecommunication management; Self-Organizing Networks (SON); Self-optimization; Concepts and requirements, 2009 [3] 3GPP TS 25.304 User Equipment (UE) procedures in idle mode and procedures for cell reselection in connected mode, 2009 [4] 3GPP TR 36.805 Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (EUTRA); Study on minimization of drive-tests in next generation networks, 2009 [5] 3GPP TS 25.215 Physical layer Measurements (FDD), 2009 [6] NGMN Alliance Next Generation Mobile Networks Use Cases related to Self Organising Network, Overall Description, 2008 [7] NGMN Alliance Next Generation Mobile Networks Informative List of SON Use Cases, 2007 [8] 3GPP TS 25.133 Requirements for support of radio resource management (FDD), 2009 [9] SOCRATES (Self-Optimisation and self-ConfiguRATion in wirelEss networkS) research project, www.fp7-socrates.eu, 2009 [10] INFSO-ICT-216284 SOCRATES D2.2 Requirements for SelfOrganising Networks, www.fp7socrates.eu/files/Deliverables/SOCRATES_D2.2%20Requirements% 20for%20self-organising%20networks.pdf, 2009

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