A radio resource management framework for QoS support in multiservice WiMAX networks

Among enabling technologies for the fourth generation networks, WiMAX represents a valuable solution because of its ability to provide wideband coverage and differentiated treatment to traffic with heterogeneous Quality of Service (QoS) requirements. This paper focuses on the design of a channel-adaptive QoS-supporting framework for radio resource management in WiMAX networks with fixed subscriber stations. The base station generates resource grants on the basis of (i) flow-based bandwidth requests, (ii) monitored link conditions to each subscriber station, and (iii) minimum resource requirements by high-demanding flows. A compensation technique that mitigates the negative effects caused by impairments on the radio channel is also presented. The effectiveness of the proposed solution in supporting both inter-class traffic QoS differentiation and intraclass fairness is demonstrated through simulations.