A Framework for Cell-Association Auto Con_x000C_guration of Network Functions in Cellular Networks

Self-Organizing Networkss (SONs) introduce automation in Network Management (NM). Herein, SON functions automate the traditional NM tasks in the network. For some of these tasks, several cells must be associated together in order to achieve the intended objectives. As such, part of the process of con_x000C_guring SON function is the configuration or selection of the required cell associations. For end-to-end automated NM, it is necessary that this task is also automated, especially in an environment with many SON functions. This paper proposes an applicable auto con_x000C_guration solution, called Cell Association Auto-Con_x000C_guration (CAAC). First, we justify the need for the solution and describe the design of its component parts. Then, we evaluate the application of components of the approach to a real LTE network. The results, based on real network data, prove that CAAC is able to select the most appropriate associations for the SON functions, reducing the potential for run-time conflicts among the functions.