Optimal Handover Decision Algorithm for Throughput Enhancement in Cooperative Cellular Networks

In fourth generation wireless communication standards, the throughput enhancement for cell edge users is a main issue so that various inter-cell interference (ICI) coordination techniques have been suggested. Since the coordination between different cells requires the resources of cooperating cell, its use should be determined carefully. In this paper, we consider two basic handover schemes (Fast Cell Selection and Soft Handover) for the ICI coordination and propose a new handover decision algorithm from a viewpoint of the improvement of cell edge throughput. For the proposed algorithm, a new measurement parameter named Interference to other-Interferences-plus-Noise Ratio (IINR) is defined and some practical issues are addressed in the OFDMA-based cellular system. Compared to the legacy SINR-based decision algorithm, the proposed IINR-based decision algorithm improves the cell edge throughput with reduced feedback overhead, because it optimally selects mobile stations that have cooperation gains more than cooperation costs.