Systems and methods for enhancing spectrum sharing over wireless networks

Abstract

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a method in which a processing system obtains an indication of user equipment demand associated with mobile devices wirelessly communicating with a first access point using a first radio access technology and a second access point using a second radio access technology; the devices include dual connectivity mobile devices. The first access point shares a total amount of radio frequency spectrum with the second access point. The method also includes determining, based on the indication of user equipment demand, a first split between the first access point and the second access point of the total amount of the radio frequency spectrum; and determining, based on the first split, a second split between the first access point and the second access point of an internet protocol (IP) traffic flow. Other embodiments are disclosed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A device comprising:
 a processing system including a processor; and   a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising:   obtaining an indication of user equipment demand associated with a plurality of mobile communication devices wirelessly communicating with a first access point using a first radio access technology and a second access point, the second access point sharing a portion of radio frequency spectrum with the first access point and using a second radio access technology different from the first radio access technology, wherein each of the plurality of mobile communication devices is configured for communication with at least one of the first access point and the second access point;   determining, based at least in part on the indication of the user equipment demand, a first split between the first access point and the second access point of the portion of the radio frequency spectrum; and   determining, based at least in part upon the first split of the portion of the radio frequency spectrum between the first access point and the second access point, a second split between the first access point and the second access point of a wireless communication traffic flow.   
     
     
         2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of mobile communication devices comprises at least a plurality of dual connectivity mobile communication devices. 
     
     
         3 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the wireless communication traffic flow comprises an internet protocol (IP) traffic flow. 
     
     
         4 . The device of  claim 3 , wherein the operations further comprise providing information indicative of the second split to a network component that facilitates splitting of the IP traffic flow between the first access point and the second access point. 
     
     
         5 . The device of  claim 3 , wherein:
 the IP traffic flow comprises a total IP traffic flow associated with communications, over a given period of time, among the first access point, the second access point, and the plurality of mobile communication devices; and   the second split comprises a first portion of the total IP traffic flow to allocate to the first access point and a second portion of the total IP traffic flow to allocate to the second access point.   
     
     
         6 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the first radio access technology and the second radio access technology respectively correspond to fourth generation (4G) and fifth generation (5G) wireless communication. 
     
     
         7 . The device of  claim 6 , wherein the plurality of mobile communication devices further comprises one or more single connectivity 4G mobile communication devices and one or more single connectivity 5G mobile communication devices. 
     
     
         8 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise providing information indicative of the first split to a network component that facilitates splitting of radio frequency resources between the first access point and the second access point. 
     
     
         9 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the device is part of a Mobile Edge Compute (MEC), Self Organized Network (SON) RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC), or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         10 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the first split is determined at least in part according to one or more Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, one or more RF coverage parameters, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         11 . A method comprising:
 obtaining, by a processing system including a processor, an indication of user equipment demand associated with a plurality of mobile communication devices wirelessly communicating with a first access point using a first radio access technology and a second access point, the second access point sharing a portion of radio frequency spectrum with the first access point and using a second radio access technology different from the first radio access technology, wherein each of the plurality of mobile communication devices is configured for communication with at least one of the first access point and the second access point, wherein the first radio access technology and the second radio access technology respectively correspond to fourth generation (4G) and fifth generation (5G) wireless communication;   determining, by the processing system based at least in part on the indication of the user equipment demand, a first split between the first access point and the second access point of the portion of the radio frequency spectrum, wherein the first split is determined at least in part according to one or more Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, one or more RF coverage parameters, or any combination thereof; and   determining, by the processing system based at least in part upon the first split of the portion of the radio frequency spectrum between the first access point and the second access point, a second split between the first access point and the second access point of a wireless communication traffic flow.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of mobile communication devices comprises at least a plurality of dual connectivity mobile communication devices. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the wireless communication traffic flow comprises an internet protocol (IP) traffic flow. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the first radio access technology and the second radio access technology respectively correspond to fourth generation (4G) and fifth generation (5G) wireless communication. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising providing, by the processing system, information indicative of the first split to a network component that facilitates splitting of radio frequency resources between the first access point and the second access point. 
     
     
         16 . A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processing system including a processor, facilitate performance of operations comprising:
 obtaining an indication of user equipment demand associated with a plurality of mobile communication devices wirelessly communicating with a first access point using a first radio access technology and a second access point, the second access point sharing a portion of radio frequency spectrum with the first access point and using a second radio access technology different from the first radio access technology, wherein each of the plurality of mobile communication devices is configured for communication with at least one of the first access point and the second access point;   determining, based at least in part on the indication of the user equipment demand, a first split between the first access point and the second access point of the portion of the radio frequency spectrum; and   determining, based at least in part upon the first split of the portion of the radio frequency spectrum between the first access point and the second access point, a second split between the first access point and the second access point of a wireless communication traffic flow.   
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 16 , wherein the plurality of mobile communication devices comprises at least a plurality of dual connectivity mobile communication devices. 
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 16 , wherein the wireless communication traffic flow comprises an internet protocol (IP) traffic flow. 
     
     
         19 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 18 , wherein the operations further comprise providing information indicative of the second split to a network component that facilitates splitting of the IP traffic flow between the first access point and the second access point. 
     
     
         20 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 18 , wherein:
 the IP traffic flow comprises a total IP traffic flow associated with communications, over a given period of time, among the first access point, the second access point, and the plurality of mobile communication devices; and   the second split comprises a first portion of the total IP traffic flow to allocate to the first access point and a second portion of the total IP traffic flow to allocate to the second access point.