Mobile association and load balancing in a cooperative relay cellular network

Cooperative relaying is an important technology adopted in 4G cellular networks to improve network coverage and capacity. A relay network will require careful planning and deployment in order to fully exploit the potential performance gain in system capacity and cell coverage. Efficient mobile association and load balancing schemes play an important role in achieving high system capacity and satisfactory user experience in a traditional cellular network. This objective becomes more challenging when low-power relay nodes are overlaid with the existing high-power base stations. In this article, the main challenges for mobile association and load balancing in a cooperative relay network are addressed. A jointly optimal mobile association and load balancing framework that aims to maximize the relay network capacity is presented. In addition, a heuristic algorithm that enables a practical implementation is described. Simulation results show that the proposed mobile association and load balancing method outperforms the conventional counterparts.