Architecture on mobility management in OpenFlow-based radio access networks

With the aim to simplify network management and control, Software defined network is proposed as a new paradigm and architecture in networking areas. The concept of Cloud and cognitive cellular network will be important features in the next generation radio access networks. In this paper, we propose a distributed hierarchical architecture for heterogeneous radio access networks based on OpenFlow. SDN architecture enables resource and infrastructure sharing among heterogeneous radio access networks. Mobility management in this new heterogeneous radio access network architecture and a OpenFlow-enabled node architecture for AP infrastructures are defined. We compared it with the one defined in 3GPP LTE standard to show the required changes. An architecture of cognitive information processing is defined to support new features of mobility management, which is taken as an service of network operation system. In the end, typical network applications of mobility management in this SDN architecture are introduced. New topics with technical challenges are analyzed in this SDN based heterogeneous RANs towards the ongoing research and prototypes.