We explore decentralized coordination of sectored cellular networks to adapt the usage of downlink resources to the instantaneous network conditions. The transmission frame consists of an orthogonal bandwidth usage phase, where sectors perform FDMA and power control over an agreed frequency chunk, and a shared bandwidth usage phase where each sector performs FDMA over the full available bandwidth without power control (interference is not controlled in this phase by any means). Decentralized network utility maximization with global optimality guarantee is enabled by fixing this structure of the transmission frame, which does not cause significant network-wide losses. Thus, the ability to better balance the resources gained from coordination generates some slack that can be used to either i) provide higher-quality access, ii) increase the number of active users, or iii) reduce deployment and maintenance costs by operating larger cells.

Peer Reviewed