Assessment of Access Selection and Transmit Diversity in (Non) Cosited Multi-Access Networks

Multi-access networks integrate a number of radio accesses (RAs) over which a data flow may be transmitted. Considering the possibility of multi-radio transmit diversity (MRTD), where a given flow may be assigned multiple RAs either in parallel or in a switched mode, we investigate mechanisms for joint RA selection and scheduling of data flows onto the selected RAs. We introduce the active set concept for multiaccess networks, consisting of a subset of the available RAs that are chosen by a user for potential handling of its data flow and establish the latitude for access selection. The performance impact of distinct access selection schemes is assessed in multiaccess networks, considering different scenarios in terms of the degree of non cositing, the traffic load and the number of available RAs. Among the key results, we demonstrate that a significant degree of non cositing is beneficial and that the use of MRTD is fruitful in pursuing performance targets of operational relevance.