The Effect of a Realistic Urban Scenario on the Performance of Algorithms for Handover and Call Management in Hierarchical Cellular Systems

In this paper we show how the use of real data on vehicular traffic characterization affects the performance of call and handoff management algorithms conceived for hierarchical cellular systems, and designed on the basis of classic traffic distribution and user velocity assumptions. The main contribution of this work is the scenario where these algorithms are analysed. Studies and statistics on traffic in several cities centres are exploited to derive a realistic statistical distribution of the user velocity. The estimation of the user velocity is the key parameter which all the algorithms analysed in this paper are based on, in order to effectively exploit the presence of overlapping coverage layers (macrocell and microcell) to increase the system capacity and to minimise the number of handoff events, which can be detrimental to the offered service quality.