A two-level scheduling algorithm for QoS support in the downlink of LTE cellular networks

Long Term Evolution represents an emerging and promising technology for providing a broadband ubiquitous Internet access. But several aspects have to be considered in order to provide an effective service to users. In particular, in this work, we consider the problem of optimizing the performance of real time downlink communications using a novel two-level scheduling algorithm. The upper level exploits an innovative approach based on discrete-time linear control theory. At the lower level, instead, a maximum throughput scheduler has been properly tailored to our purposes. The performance and the complexity of the proposed scheme have been evaluated theoretically and by using simulations. Both the analyses demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.