A Joint Optimization Approach for Power-Efficient Heterogeneous OFDMA Radio Access Networks

• DOI: 10.17863/cam.115029
• Publication Date: 2024-11-01
• Authors: Gabriel O. Ferreira; André Felipe Zanella; Stefanos Bakirtzis; Chiara Ravazzi; Fabrizio Dabbene; Giuseppe C. Calaf...; Ian Wassell; Jie Zhang; Marco Fiore
• Keywords: Optimization, Resource management, Throughput, Heterogeneous networks; 02 engineering and technology; 4613 Theory Of Computation; 46 Information and Computing Sciences; 4606 Distributed Computing and Systems Software; 0203 mechanical engineering; Optimization and Control (math.OC); FOS: Mathematics; 7 Affordable and Clean Energy; Mathematics - Optimization and Control; 12 Responsible Consumption and Production; 4006 Communications Engineering; 40 Engineering

Heterogeneous networks have emerged as a popular solution for accommodating the growing number of connected devices and increasing traffic demands in cellular networks. While offering broader coverage, higher capacity, and lower latency, the escalating energy consumption poses sustainability challenges. In this paper a novel optimization approach for OFDMA heterogeneous networks is proposed to minimize transmission power while respecting individual users throughput constraints. The problem is formulated as a mixed integer geometric program, and optimizes at once multiple system variables such as user association, working bandwidth, and base stations transmission powers. Crucially, the proposed approach becomes a convex optimization problem when user-base station associations are provided. Evaluations in multiple realistic scenarios from the production mobile network of a major European operator and based on precise channel gains and throughput requirements from measured data validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. Overall, our original solution paves the road for greener connectivity by reducing the energy footprint of heterogeneous mobile networks, hence fostering more sustainable communication systems.