Dynamic backhaul sensitive network selection scheme in LTE-WiFi wireless HetNet

Small-cell deployment within a wireless Heterogeneous Network (HetNet) presents backhauling challenges that differ from those of conventional macro-cells. Due to the lack of availability of fixed-lined backhaul at desired locations and due to cost saving reasons, operators may deploy a variety of backhaul technologies in a given network, combining available technologies such as fiber, xDSL, wireless backhaul and multi-hop mesh networks to backhaul small-cells. As a consequence, small-cells capacity may be non-uniform in the HetNet. Furthermore, some small-cells backhaul capacity may fluctuate if wireless backhaul is chosen. With such concerns in mind, a new network selection strategy considering small-cell backhaul capacity is proposed to ensure that users enjoy the best possible user experience especially in terms of connection throughput and fairness. The study compares performance of several common Network Selection Schemes (NSSs) such as WiFi First (WF) and Physical Data Rate (PDR) with the proposed Dynamic Backhaul Capacity Sensitive (DyBaCS) NSS in LTE-WiFi HetNets. The downlink performance of HetNet is evaluated in terms of average throughput per user and fairness among users. The effects of varying WiFi backhaul capacity form the focus for the evaluation. Results show that the DyBaCS scheme generally provides superior performance in terms of fairness and average throughput per user across the range of backhaul capacities considered.