JP2011124945A - Service state management server and radio communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manage a service state in an area common to each communication system and further select a communication system that has the high possibility of allowing the service state to be optimal by using the management data, thereby the optimal service state being notified to a user in a heterogenous radio. <P>SOLUTION: A service state management server includes: a service state number storage unit where numbers which indicate the service state of a mobile station in any of unit region and unit time are acquired from the mobile station device or a base station device and the acquired numbers are stored; a service state calculation unit 213 which allows the service state to be quantified by state provability for indicating the provability that the mobile station device becomes the predetermined communication state and by provability density of the predetermined communication state of the mobile station device in any of the unit region and unit time on the basis of the numbers that indicate the state of the mobile station device; and a service state management database 215 for storing the quantified service state. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a service state of a mobile communication system for effectively coordinating and selecting one system from a plurality of radio systems in a heterogeneous radio environment in which a plurality of different mobile radio systems operate simultaneously. The present invention relates to a service state management server and a wireless communication system using the management method and managed data.

  In recent years, it has been proposed to use a plurality of different wireless systems (heterogenous wireless) to supplement a service area, effectively use a frequency spectrum, and improve reliability. Usually, in a single wireless system, transmission quality parameters unique to each system are measured, and switching of time and frequency slots in the system is performed to improve the utilization efficiency of the system. For example, an RSSI value in a wireless LAN and a CINR value in WiMAX correspond to these transmission quality parameters. When selecting one system from multiple systems for heterogeneous wireless systems, manage the parameters of these systems on the network side, and which communication system to use depending on the location or user usage It is necessary to control whether the frequency is good and to improve the effective use of the frequency and the reliability.

  In the conventional system selection method using heterogeneous radio, a control method based on location registration unique to each system has been proposed. For example, the invention of Patent Document 1 is a system that performs system selection control for a plurality of wireless systems. Further, the invention of Patent Document 2 is a method for performing handoff control to different wireless systems when a moving speed of a terminal becomes larger than a threshold for a plurality of wireless systems, and improving throughput. It is an object. In both of the inventions of Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, the terrain service area that is important when selecting a system is unique to each wireless system.

JP 2004-312589 A JP 2008-270990 A

  When the heterogeneous radio system as described above is adopted, it is important to advise or control the radio system with respect to the optimum communication system for the user. Assuming an application used by the user, it is possible to effectively use time and frequency by selecting a radio system suitable for the application. For example, it is preferable to select a system with a small delay in the case of VoIP and a system with a large throughput in the case of downloading a large amount of data. Further, in order to make the network load as uniform as possible, it is desirable for a telecommunications carrier to select a system with low traffic, that is, a low congestion level.

  Also, from the viewpoint of power saving, not all wireless systems are activated, but only the necessary parts are activated, for example, some functions of the system provided in the terminal are set to sleep, Since the base station does not consume unnecessary power, it is conceivable to stop the wave in order to further reduce interference. In addition, when the battery capacity is consumed on the terminal side and the remaining amount is low, it is advantageous to select a wireless system with low transmission power of the terminal and to sleep unnecessary systems and functions.

  However, as described above, in the conventional inventions such as Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, since the service area is unique to each wireless system, fine control is difficult. In addition, a detailed state management method as described above and a method related to a control method of a system using the method have not been proposed.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and in heterogeneous radio, the service state is managed in an area common to each communication system, and there is a possibility that the management data may be optimized. An object of the present invention is to provide a service state management server and a wireless communication system capable of selecting and notifying a high communication method.

  (1) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention takes the following measures. That is, the service status management server of the present invention is applied to a radio communication system in which at least one radio system is selected from a plurality of different radio systems and a mobile station apparatus and a base station apparatus perform radio communication, and a service providing area And a service state management server that divides the provision time into a plurality of unit areas and unit times in which the state of the mobile station apparatus related to communication can be regarded as steady, and manages the service state for each unit area and unit time. Acquiring a numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station apparatus in any one of the unit areas and unit time from the mobile station apparatus or the base station apparatus, and storing the acquired numerical value, and the movement Based on the numerical value indicating the state of the station apparatus, the service state is determined in any one of the unit area and unit time. A state probability indicating a probability that the mobile station device is in a state related to a specific communication, and a service state calculation unit that is quantified according to a probability density of the state related to the specific communication of the mobile station device, and the quantified service state And a service state management database for storing.

  Thus, since the numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station apparatus in any unit area and unit time is acquired and the acquired numerical value is stored, the use location and the usage time zone of the mobile station apparatus are obtained using this information. Accordingly, it is possible to select a communication system to be selected or bundled so as to optimize the service quality and communication line capacity, and to notify the base station apparatus or mobile station apparatus. Further, based on the numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station device, the service state in any unit region and unit time, the state probability indicating the probability that the mobile station device is in a state related to a specific communication, and the mobile station device Since it is quantified by the probability density of the state related to a specific communication, it becomes easy to select one system that seems to be optimal from multiple systems according to the purpose, and when statistical processing is performed by the mobile station device described later Compared with, the configuration of the small zone can be changed flexibly.

  (2) The service state management server of the present invention is applied to a radio communication system in which at least one radio system is selected from a plurality of different radio systems and a mobile station apparatus and a base station apparatus perform radio communication. A service state management server that divides a service provision area and a provision time into a plurality of unit areas and unit times in which the state of the mobile station apparatus related to communication can be regarded as steady, and manages the service state for each unit area and unit time Both of the state probability indicating the probability that the mobile station apparatus is in a state related to specific communication and the probability density of the state related to the specific communication of the mobile station apparatus in any one of the unit areas and unit time Is acquired from the mobile station apparatus or the base station apparatus, and the service state that stores the acquired state probability and probability density Based on the state storage probability and probability density of the mobile station apparatus in any one of the unit areas and unit time, the steady state probability in the unit areas and unit time constituting the service provision area and provision time, and A service state calculation unit that calculates a probability density, and a service state management database that stores a steady state probability and a probability density in each of the calculated unit areas and unit time.

  Thus, since the numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station apparatus in any unit area and unit time is acquired and the acquired numerical value is stored, the use location and the usage time zone of the mobile station apparatus are obtained using this information. Accordingly, it is possible to select a communication system to be selected or bundled so as to optimize service quality and communication line capacity, and to notify the mobile station apparatus. Further, in any unit region and unit time, both the state probability indicating the probability that the mobile station device is in a state related to a specific communication and the probability density of the state related to the specific communication of the mobile station device Since it is acquired from the station apparatus, the statistical processing amount can be reduced.

  (3) In the service state management server of the present invention, the service state calculation unit calculates a probability density for each unit time and for each unit area, and the service state management database stores the calculated unit time. The probability density for each and each unit area is stored.

  Thus, since the service state management database stores the calculated probability density for each unit area, for example, even when the mobile station apparatus straddles between unit areas, the use location and use of the mobile station apparatus According to the time zone, it is possible to select a communication system to be selected or bundled so as to optimize the service quality and the communication line capacity, and to notify the mobile station apparatus.

  (4) Further, in the service state management server of the present invention, the service state calculation unit calculates a steady state probability and probability density in a unit area constituting the service providing area with a certain period as a unit. It is characterized by.

  In this way, the service state calculation unit calculates the steady state probability and probability density in the unit area constituting the service providing area in units of a certain period, so that the service state management database stores them. Therefore, when the communication status changes depending on the time of day, day of the week, weekdays / holidays, etc. A communication system to be selected or bundled can be selected and notified to the mobile station apparatus.

  (5) Moreover, the radio | wireless communications system of this invention is comprised from the service state management server in any one of said (1) to (4), a mobile station apparatus, and a base station apparatus, It is characterized by the above-mentioned. And

  Thus, since the numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station apparatus in any unit area and unit time is acquired and the acquired numerical value is stored, the use location and the usage time zone of the mobile station apparatus are obtained using this information. Accordingly, it is possible to select a communication system to be selected or bundled so as to optimize service quality and communication line capacity, and to notify the mobile station apparatus.

  According to the present invention, the service status of a terminal can be managed probabilistically using location information and time as keys. By using this information, it is possible to control heterogeneous radio for the purpose of effective use of frequency and improvement of line quality, and provide a communication system that seems suitable for users or service providers. can do. Control for power saving and interference reduction can also be performed.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mobile communication system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the mobile communication system which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the mobile communication system which concerns on the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram of the database structure of the service state management system of the mobile communication system of the present invention. It is a conceptual diagram of the database structure of the service state management system of the mobile communication system of the present invention. It is a conceptual diagram explaining this invention. It is an example of the Venn diagram which shows the state of each radio | wireless system in the small zone of this invention. In this invention, it is a figure which shows the example p (x, y) of the joint probability density function when two radio | wireless systems are in the range.

  In the mobile communication system, a fourth generation communication system following the so-called 3.9 generation has been studied. In the fourth and subsequent generations, it may be difficult to develop a new communication system and assign a frequency band to the system due to the tightness of the frequency. On the other hand, the demand for mobile radio is expected to increase further and higher quality is expected. As one of the next-generation promising candidates that can cope with such a situation, it is conceivable to effectively utilize a plurality of different existing radio systems (heterogenous radio) and further enhance them.

  Therefore, the service state management system of the present invention is a system for obtaining basic information for optimal system control when selecting one system from a plurality of radio systems in order to achieve effective use of frequencies and further improve reliability. I will provide a. Specifically, the area of the mobile radio communication system can be regarded as a steady state, and is divided into “small zones” that are common in heterogeneous radio. In this method, the service quality state is managed by a probability density function (occurrence probability) of the quality state.

  Here, fine control is possible when the size of the small zone is narrow. On the other hand, management data becomes enormous, and there is a possibility that control may not follow in consideration of movement of the terminal. The size of the small zone is considered to be about the area (one floor of the building) of the wireless LAN (synonymous with Wi-Fi) with the narrowest area indoors, and about the intersection outside. At such a size, the service state cannot be considered constant, so it becomes necessary to manage the state with probability density (occurrence probability). In addition to the horizontal direction, the small zone can be configured in the vertical direction. Considering the situation where a wireless LAN is arranged in a building, or a wireless LAN installed in an underground shopping center, an indoor base station of a mobile phone, and a repeater, three-dimensional management is also important.

  In addition, the service quality state includes, for each wireless system, in-range / out-of-range, RSSI, CINR, BER, delay amount, throughput, congestion, packet loss rate, packet error rate, base station and access point ID, etc. . Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the present invention. Usually, land mobile communication is divided into wide-area systems (for example, mobile phone (EVDO) 1, PHS3, WiMAX5, etc.) and narrow-area systems (for example, Wi-Fi 7) from the viewpoint of service area. Can do. As shown in FIG. 6, when they partially overlap or only one system is covered, there is a case where one system is not covered. In the present invention, it is divided into areas called “small zones 9” on the terrain, and the service state in each small zone 9 is managed. Furthermore, in order to make it stochastically steady in the small zone 9, it is also divided by the time zone (including days of the week and holidays).

  Each heterogeneous wireless compatible terminal 11 grasps the existing position by means of GPS or the like, and transmits the service state at that point to the service state management server 13 via the wireless system that can be used at that time, and the service state management server 13 Then, the received data is statistically processed. The information from the heterogeneous wireless compatible terminal 11 is transmitted to the service state management server 13 via the access point 15 or the base station 17 by the wireless system that passes through. The base station 17 and the service state management server 13 are connected by a network 19.

  On the other hand, with respect to a method in which the heterogeneous radio compatible terminal 11 controls the radio system using this management data, the service state management server 13 is notified of the position of the heterogeneous radio compatible terminal 11 and the small zone 9 corresponding to the point The service status in the vicinity is known, and the selection of the radio system that is considered to be most suitable for the management data is controlled. “Control considered to be most suitable” is because the management data is probability density and is not deterministic. The service state probability and the probability density in each state will be described below.

FIG. 7 is an example of a Venn diagram showing the state of each wireless system in the small zone 9 of the present invention. For simplification, two types of wireless systems are assumed, namely, a wide-area mobile phone 1 and a narrow-area Wi-Fi 7. Note that this is a Venn diagram, not an area diagram. In FIG. 7, the state where only Wi-Fi 7 is within range is S1, the state where only mobile phone 1 is within range S2, the state where both Wi-Fi 7 and mobile phone 1 are within range S3, Wi-Fi 7 and mobile phone 1 Let S4 be the state where both are out of range. Further, if the probability that Wi-Fi7 is in the range is PF and the probability that the mobile phone 1 is in the range is PL, the probability of each state is
State probability that only Wi-Fi7 is within range (S1): PF-PFxPL
State probability that only mobile phone 1 is within range (S2): PL-PFxPL
-State probability that both mobile phone 1 and Wi-Fi7 are within range (S3): PFxPL
State probability that both mobile phone 1 and Wi-Fi 7 are out of service area (S4):
1- (PF + PL) + PFxPL
It becomes. Eventually, the measured values of PF and PL should be managed.

  Regarding the probability density of the service state in each wireless system, data is managed only for the area within the range. For example, for a system in the area, it is a multi-way simultaneous probability (or coupling probability) such as RSSI, throughput, and congestion. When two or more wireless systems are in a range, a multi-dimensional simultaneous probability with more dimensions is obtained.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example p (x, y) of the joint probability density function when two wireless systems are in a range in the present invention. The simultaneous probability will be described with reference to FIG. When the two wireless systems are both in the service area, assuming that transmission quality (for example, RSSI) is x and y, the joint probability p (x, y) can be expressed as shown in FIG. In the figure, as an example, x is the RSSI value of Wi-Fi 7 and y is the RSSI value of mobile phone 1 in a state where both Wi-Fi 7 and mobile phone 1 are within range. Note that this probability density function need not be limited to two different wireless systems. For example, in the case of Wi-Fi7 alone, x can be RSSI and y can be a delay.

  If a plurality of service states can be managed by the simultaneous probability density function, for example, a wireless system can be selected under the condition that the throughput is a (bit / s) or more (and / or) delay time is b seconds or less. Further, if processing such as correlation is performed without processing each service state independently, there is a possibility that a method for selecting a wireless system by knowing part of the service state may be obtained.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mobile communication system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is assumed that the heterogeneous wireless compatible terminal 11 side measures the service state and notifies the service state management server 13 of it. A heterogeneous device having a plurality of wireless devices 201 (first wireless device 201-1, second wireless device 201-2,..., N-th wireless device 201-n) and position measuring device 203 of a different kind of wireless terminal 11. The wireless compatible terminal 11 notifies the service state measuring unit 205 of the service state in each wireless device 201. The radio selector 207 first selects a communication system with which communication is confirmed, and together with information data generated at the user data terminal 209, the service state is set to the base station 17 (first radio apparatus base corresponding to the radio apparatus 201). Station 17-1, second radio equipment base station 17-2,..., Nth radio equipment base station 17-n). The service status information is further transmitted to the service status management server 13 through the network 19 such as the Internet.

  In the service state management server 13, the service state numerical value storage unit 211 records information transmitted from a number of different types of wireless compatible terminals 11 as it is. The service state calculation unit 213 statistically processes the information from the heterogeneous wireless compatible terminal 11 into a state probability and a probability density (or histogram) in each state for each small zone 9, and the result is stored in the service state management database 215. Record. In this embodiment, the quality parameters that can be measured are low layer information, ie, within / out of range, RSSI, CINR, BER, etc.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mobile communication system according to the second embodiment of the present invention. 2, in addition to the first embodiment, the service state measurement unit 301 (301-1, 301-2,... 301-n) grasps the service state on the base station 17 side, and the service state management server 13 is an embodiment that assumes the case of notifying 13. Also in this embodiment, the quality parameters that can be measured are low layer information, that is, within / out of range, RSSI, CINR, and BER.

[Third Embodiment]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mobile communication system according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows an embodiment in which a service state measuring unit 401 is provided in the user data terminal 209 in order to measure high layer quality parameters such as throughput and transmission delay in an application.

[Fourth Embodiment]
FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of the database structure of the service state management method of the mobile communication system of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows a conceptual diagram of a database structure when the data in the service state numerical value storage unit 211 of FIGS. 1 to 4 is statistically processed by the service state calculation unit 213 and collected in the service state management database 215. . It is assumed that the terminal or base station statistically processes the service state and transmits it to the management server. The service state numerical value storage unit 211 receives the state probability and probability density from the heterogeneous wireless terminal 11 or base station 17. These multiple data are processed to create a steady state probability and probability density. In this case, since the heterogeneous radio compatible terminal 11 and the base station 17 need to know the identification number of the small zone 9, information must be notified from the service state management server 13.

  FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram of the database structure of the service state management method of the mobile communication system of the present invention. In FIG. 5, the heterogeneous radio compatible terminal 11 or the base station 17 sends the service state raw information data to the service state numerical value storage unit 211 together with the time and position signal, statistically processes the service state calculation unit 213, and the service state management database At 215, the service state is managed. In this case, there is an advantage that the configuration of the small zone 9 can be flexibly changed, but the storage capacity of the service state numerical value storage unit 211 and the processing amount of the service state calculation unit 213 are increased. Since the management method according to the present invention is performed based on the probability of statistical processing, the service state measurement interval and the interval of sending raw data in FIG. 5 can be selected within a time that can be regarded as steady.

  The present invention relates to a heterogeneous radio that uses a plurality of different mobile communication systems in combination, and manages a service state based on a probability, thereby selecting a communication system that selects a service quality in a place of use or a time zone close to an optimum. It features the ability to provide advice and control. Such a technique is considered to be indispensable in a so-called fourth generation or later mobile communication system.

  The present invention can be applied to a method for bundling two or more wireless systems in addition to selecting one wireless system from a plurality of systems. Recently, operators have provided services to MVNOs (virtual mobile service providers), and it is considered that the use of mobile communications through MVNOs will increase more and more in the future. Also in MVNO, it seems that not only a single radio but also a heterogeneous radio service can be provided. In such a case, it is necessary for the operator to provide added value to achieve superiority with other companies, and the method described here is considered as one of such added values.

  As described above, the service status management server according to the present embodiment probabilistically manages the service status of a terminal using location information and time as keys. By using this information, it is possible to control heterogeneous radio for the purpose of effective use of frequency and improvement of line quality, and provide a communication system that seems suitable for users or service providers. can do. Control for power saving and interference reduction can also be performed.

The service state management server according to the present embodiment has the following effects.
(1) Selection of radio system suitable for application For example, when downloading a large amount of data, a system with high throughput is selected, and for VoIP requiring low delay, a system with low delay is selected.
(2) Selection of optimal wireless system at handoff Knowing not only the current position of a heterogeneous wireless compatible terminal but also information on a plurality of adjacent small zones, transmission quality fluctuates due to movement of the terminal, etc. If there is a possibility of handoff, the previous state can be predicted and appropriate measures can be taken.
(3) Power saving at the terminal When a plurality of systems can be used at the position where the terminal exists, it is possible to save power by putting some of the wireless systems in the terminal to sleep. In addition, when the battery capacity is low, communication can be ensured to the minimum necessary by selecting a wireless system with low power consumption and causing other systems to sleep.
(4) Power saving at the base station A small zone is covered by multiple radio system base stations (or access points), and it is judged that there is no effect on traffic communication even if some of these functions are stopped. In such a case (for example, before dawn), a part of the base station can be stopped to save power and reduce interference.
(5) Support when turning on the power of the terminal For example, when turning on the power after turning off the power of the terminal for watching a movie, etc., it is advised which wireless system is optimal at that time.
(6) Enhancement of service area Despite having a large amount of traffic, it is possible to grasp a small zone with few available wireless systems. For example, a new Wi-Fi access point is newly established at that location, and traffic Can be distributed.

1 Mobile phone (EVDO)
3 PHS
5 WiMAX
7 Wi-Fi
9 small zone 11 heterogeneous wireless compatible terminal 13 service state management server 15 access point 17 base station 17-1 first wireless device base station 17-2 second wireless device base station 17-n for nth wireless device Base station 19 network 201 wireless device 201-1 first wireless device 201-2 second wireless device 201-n n wireless device 203 position measuring device 205 service state measuring unit 207 wireless selector 209 user data terminal 211 service state Numerical value storage unit 213 Service state calculation unit 215 Service state management database 301 Service state measurement unit 301-1 to 301-n Service state measurement unit 401 Service state measurement unit

Claims (5)

The mobile station apparatus is applied to a radio communication system in which at least one radio system is selected from a plurality of different radio systems and a mobile station apparatus and a base station apparatus perform radio communication, and a service providing area and a providing time are set according to the communication. A service state management server that manages a service state for each unit region and unit time by dividing the state into a plurality of unit regions and unit time that can be regarded as steady,
From the mobile station apparatus or the base station apparatus, obtain a numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station apparatus in any one of the unit area and unit time, and a service state numerical value storage unit that stores the acquired numerical value;
Based on a numerical value indicating the state of the mobile station device, the service state, the state probability indicating the probability that the mobile station device will be in a state related to a specific communication in the unit area and unit time, and the movement A service state calculation unit that digitizes the probability density of the state related to the specific communication of the station device;
And a service state management database for storing the digitized service state. The mobile station apparatus is applied to a radio communication system in which at least one radio system is selected from a plurality of different radio systems and a mobile station apparatus and a base station apparatus perform radio communication, and a service providing area and a providing time are set according to the communication. A service state management server that manages a service state for each unit region and unit time by dividing the state into a plurality of unit regions and unit time that can be regarded as steady,
Both the state probability indicating the probability that the mobile station apparatus is in a state related to specific communication and the probability density of the state related to the specific communication of the mobile station apparatus in any one of the unit area and unit time are the mobile station. A service state value storage unit that stores the state probability and probability density acquired from the device or the base station device;
Based on the state probability and probability density of the mobile station apparatus in any one of the unit regions and unit time, the steady state probability and probability density in the unit regions and unit time constituting the service provision region and provision time are calculated. A service status calculator;
A service state management server, comprising: a service state management database that stores steady state probabilities and probability densities in the calculated unit areas and unit times. The service state calculation unit calculates a probability density for each unit time and for each unit region,
The service state management database according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the service state management database stores the calculated probability density for each unit time and for each unit region.   The said service state calculation part calculates the stationary state probability and probability density in the unit area | region which comprises the said service provision area | region for a fixed period as a unit, Any one of Claim 1 to 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. Service status management server described in 1. The service state management server according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A mobile station device;
And a base station apparatus.