Applying emergent self-organizing behavior for the coordination of 4G networks using complexity metrics

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Abstract
Future fourth-generation (4G) wireless networks are expected to have an ad hoc, dynamic structure with cheap, ubiquitous, low-powered nodes that are autoconfigurable and flexible. Controlling such a network means coping with uncertainty, not only of traffic demand, but also in the network structure. Because of this, a new approach to the control and coordination of 4G networks will be needed, one that replaces centralized with highly decentralized control. One promising approach is to view networks as self-organizing systems comprising simple interacting nodes that rely on emergent behavior to provide network-wide coordination. However, such networks are often difficult to predict or manipulate, due to their distributed nature. This paper describes the use of an entropy-based complexity metric to investigate and manipulate the behavior of such self-organizing systems in mobile networks. We introduce a self-organizing algorithm for cell dimensioning, and apply the complexity metric to extract information on network-wide behavior. We then introduce a framework for using the metric to manipulate emergent self-organizing behavior in 4G networks. © 2003 Lucent Technologies Inc.

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