A microcell/macrocell cellular architecture for low- and high-mobility wireless users

The use of a wireless network having a two-tier architecture to serve both conventional mobile subscribers and quasi-stationary (e.g. PCN) subscribers is explored. The latter are served by microcells which are embedded within macrocells that serve the mobile users. Four approaches to sharing the spectrum between the two tiers, using per-cell capacity as a measure, are evaluated. The best approach in terms of maximizing network capacity is apportioning a different part of the spectrum to each tier. It also has the merit of facilitating the incorporation of new systems with existing ones