Decentralized spectrum and radio resource management enabled by an on-demand Cognitive Pilot Channel

This paper presents a framework to achieve an efficient dynamic and decentralized spectrum and radio resource usage in heterogeneous wireless network scenarios. The envisaged technical solution follows a layered approach, where joint radio resource management (JRRM) and advanced spectrum management mechanisms are identified at both the intra- and inter-operator levels. The importance of cognitive network functionalities is highlighted. An on-demand Cognitive Pilot Channel (CPC) is proposed as radio enabler solution for decentralized operation with decision making processes executed at the mobile terminal side. The suitability of the proposed solution is shown by comparison with a broadcast CPC approach. Finally, the paper presents and evaluates decentralized JRRM algorithms both at the intra- and inter-operator levels using the proposed framework.