Methods And Devices For Associating Users To Base Stations In Third Generation Wireless Networks Using Fairness Considerations

Abstract

The transmission of data from base stations to users (and their devices) in a wireless network is made using proportional fairness without sacrificing throughput by taking in to account fairness considerations at the time the devices are associated with a base station.

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         11 . A method for generating user-to-base station associations in a wireless network comprising:
 allowing changes to user-to-base station associations when a hand-off is required or a connection failure occurs; and   allowing the changes to user-to-base station associations as long as the number of association changes does not exceed a threshold value.   
     
     
         12 . The method as in  claim 11  further comprising varying the threshold value to improve an objective function. 
     
     
         13 . The method as in  claim 11  further comprising:
 partitioning the network into one or more regions, each region including one or more wireless devices and base stations; and 
 associating each device with a base station within its region, 
 wherein the associations are generated within a polynomial time period. 
 
     
     
         14 . The method as in  claim 13  further comprising:
 swapping user-to-base station associations of two or more of the devices by associating a first device, currently associated with a first base station in a first region, to a second base station in the same region and associating a device, currently associated with the second base station, to the first base station; and 
 changing the user-to-base station associations of at a device by associating a first device, currently associated with a first base station in a first region, to a second base station in a second region. 
 
     
     
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         25 . A device for generating user-to-base station associations in a wireless network operable to:
 allow changes to user-to-base station associations when a hand-off is required or a connection failure occurs; and   allow the changes to user-to-base station associations as long as the number of association changes does not exceed a threshold value.   
     
     
         26 . The device as in  claim 25  further comprising varying the threshold value to improve an objective function. 
     
     
         27 . (Original The device as in  claim 25  further operable to:
 partition the network into one or more regions, each region including one or more wireless devices and base stations; and 
 associate each device with a base station within its region, 
 wherein the associations are made within a polynomial time period. 
 
     
     
         28 . The device as in  claim 27  further operable to:
 swap user-to-base station associations of two or more of the devices by associating a first device, currently associated with a first base station in a first region, to a second base station in the same region and associating a device, currently associated with the second base station, to the first base station; and 
 change the user-to-base station associations of at a device by associating a first device, currently associated with a first base station in a first region, to a second base station in a second region.