Automated up- and downlink capacity balancing in WCDMA networks

Dynamic optimization of UMTS systems has been gaining a growing interest by the research community. In this context, the current paper concentrates on dynamic automated tuning of RRM parameters to detect whether the uplink or the downlink is the limiting link and force a reconfiguration to balance both and maximize capacity. Modifications of the soft handover algorithm are revealed as a feasible solution to achieve this objective. A three blocks based functional architecture is described to adapt parameters to service mix dynamics and overcome capacity problems. Conducted tests show the feasibility of the approach. Effective adaptation to changes in traffic patterns and significant capacity gains are obtained.