On the hand-over rate in future cellular systems

Consideration is given to the hand-over rate in future cellular radio communications systems in which a much higher number of subscribers and smaller cell sizes than in currently operating systems are to be expected. Three models are used to estimate future hand-over rates. The first is valid for simple roads, the second works with the area of a cell, and the third is a simulation in which information about the road net in the cell and the traffic behaviour of the vehicles is taken into account. The results obtained using all three models show that mobile subscribers will cross cell boundaries more often, so the number of hand-overs per second that a base station of the fixed network has to handle will be much higher than in current mobile telephone systems