LTE eRAN7.

0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

As mobile telecommunications technologies advance, networks continue to grow and

incorporate multiple radio access technologies (RATs), resulting in complicated network

maintenance. To simplify maintenance, an LTE system must support self-organizing
network (SON) technology. Mobility robustness optimization (MRO) is used for selfoptimization in an SON.

MRO collects handover performance statistics for different scenarios, identifies abnormal
handover scenarios, and optimizes the handover-related parameter settings. The handoverrelated parameters involved in MRO are based on reference signal received power (RSRP).
MRO significantly reduces the number of service drops caused by premature and delayed
handovers, to achieve better resource utilization and improve user experience.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

The procedure is as follows:

Handover scenario identification

The eNodeB counts the numbers of different types of handovers and abnormal
handovers within an MRO period, which is specified by the MRO.OptPeriod
parameter. Abnormal handovers are premature handovers, delayed handovers, and
ping-pong handovers.

Handover scenario handling

When the MRO period approaches its end, the eNodeB modifies its parameter
settings based on the number of abnormal handovers.

Result monitoring

The eNodeB evaluates whether a ping-pong parameter adjustment occurred during

MRO periods. If yes, the eNodeB imposes a penalty.
After modifying the parameters, the eNodeB monitors handover-related
performance indicators. If handover performance improves, the eNodeB retains the
parameter settings in the next MRO period.
If handover performance deteriorates, the eNodeB rolls back to the previous
parameter settings during the next MRO period.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Event A2 indicates that the signal quality in the serving cell is lower than a specified

threshold. When the information about the cells that meet the triggering condition is
reported, the eNodeB starts inter-frequency or inter-RAT measurements.

Event A3 indicates that the signal quality in at least one intra-frequency neighboring cell is
higher than that in the serving cell. When the information about the cells that meet the
triggering condition is reported, the source eNodeB sends an intra-frequency handover
request.

Event A4 indicates that the signal quality is higher than a specified threshold in at least one
inter-frequency neighboring cell. When the information about the cells that meet the
triggering condition is reported, the source eNodeB sends an inter-frequency handover
request.

Intra-RAT MRO can be performed only when an X2 interface is available between eNodeBs.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Intra-RAT MRO is a process where the LTE parameters related to intra-frequency or inter-

frequency handover are optimized. An intra-frequency handover is triggered by event A3,

and an inter-frequency handover is triggered by events A2,A3 and A4. Therefore, the
parameters whose values need to be changed are the Cell Individual Offset (CIO)
parameter of event A3, the CIO parameter of event A4, and the threshold for event A2.

Cell Individual Offset (CIO)

Specific Cell Individual Offset (CIO) values can be set for the serving cell and its
neighboring cells. (Ocs and Ocn denote the CIO for the serving cell and the CIO for
the neighboring cell respectively.) When the quality of signals fluctuates, the
probability of triggering handovers to or from a specific cell can be adjusted by
changing the value of CIO. This reduces the risk of call drops. The CIO values can
be adjusted automatically by the MRO function.
According to 3GPP TS 36.331, CIO values are contained in the Neighbor cell list i.e.
in the measurement configuration.
The CIO value can adjust the boundary of the associated cell for handover. A
smaller value of CIO for the serving cell results in a higher probability of handover
from the serving cell, and a larger value of CIO for the target cell also results in a
higher probability of handover to the target cell.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

After detecting a premature handover, the eNodeB increases the number of premature

handovers by one for the corresponding cell pair in the neighboring relation table (NRT).
Premature handovers are classified into the following types:

Type 1: A UE receives a handover command. During the handover, the UE

experiences a radio link failure (RLF). The radio resource control (RRC) connection is
then reestablished with the source cell. This indicates a premature handover in
which the signal quality of the source cell is still satisfactory for the UE or the target
cell was inappropriately selected.

Type 2: A UE receives a handover command. After the handover, the UE camps on

the target cell for a short period and then experiences an RLF. The RRC connection
for the UE is then reestablished with the source cell or another cell. If the source
cell is selected, this is a premature handover in which the signal quality of the
target cell is unstable. If another cell is selected, this is a premature handover in
which the target cell was inappropriately selected.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Delayed handovers occur in figure. In a delayed handover, an RLF occurs in the source cell
and then the RRC connection is reestablished with another cell. When a delayed handover
occurs, the UE has moved out of the source cell.

Delayed handovers may occur because of inappropriate parameter settings or coverage

problems. If the proportion of coverage-induced delayed handovers reaches a specified
threshold, the eNodeB does not perform MRO.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Figure shows how the eNodeB determines a ping-pong handover. A ping-pong handover

occurs if the following conditions are met:

In the UE History Information IE received by target cell A of a handover, the global

cell identity (GCI) of the next to last cell that the UE camped on is the same as the
GCI of cell A.

The length value of period 2 in fingure during which the UE camped on the last cell
is less than the MRO.PingpongTimeThd value.

A ping-pong handover indicates that cell B has poorer signal quality than cell A and
therefore is not qualified as the target cell for the handover.

Ping-pong handovers increase the signaling overhead and the probability of handover
failures, and they adversely affect cell throughput.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Handover scenario statistics for an MRO period are useful only if a specified number of
handovers occurred between a pair of neighboring cells recorded in the NRT within the
specified time. The MRO.OptPeriod and MRO.StatNumThd parameters specify the MRO
period and the threshold for the number of handovers, respectively.

In the early phase of network deployment, the number of handovers within an MRO
period cannot reach the handover statistics threshold in many cells; however, RLFs
frequently occur in these cells. In this situation, the MRO procedure cannot be triggered in
these cells. If users change the value of MRO.OptPeriod or MRO.StatNumThd to
increase the probability of triggering MRO in these cells, the statistics are not useful. To
solve this problem, Huawei provides the following solution:

If the number of handovers between a pair of neighboring cells reaches the

threshold within the first MRO period, the MRO procedure is triggered in these
cells.
If the number of handovers between a pair of neighboring cells does not reach the
threshold within the first MRO period, the eNodeB retains the number of
handovers. Within 30 MRO periods, the MRO procedure is triggered in these cells
as long as the cumulative number of handovers reaches the threshold at the end of
any one of the 30 periods.
If the cumulative number of handovers within 30 MRO periods does not reach the
threshold, the eNodeB clears the number and does not perform the MRO
procedure in these cells.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

The MRO feature of Huawei eNodeBs for intra-frequency neighboring cells is controlled by

a switch under the ENodeBAlgoSwitch.MroSwitch parameter. If the switch is turned on

and the number of handovers between a pair of intra-frequency neighboring cells reaches
the value of MRO.StatNumThd within an MRO period specified by MRO.OptPeriod, the
eNodeB performs MRO against premature or delayed handovers between the neighboring
cells in the above scenarios:

The RLF-induced abnormal handover threshold is 1/10.

Proportion of RLF-induced abnormal handovers = (Number of premature handovers +

Number of delayed handovers)/(Number of premature handovers + Number of delayed
handovers + Number of successful handovers - Number of ping-pong handovers)

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

The specified threshold has a fixed value of 1/20. You cannot change the value.

The method of adjusting event A2 is the same regardless of whether the inter-frequency
handover configuration is based on events A2 and A3 or events A2 and A4. The threshold
for event A2 is small in this case. Therefore, an inter-frequency measurement is triggered
only when the signal quality of the source cell is poor. In this case, the threshold is
increased by one step, e.g. from -105dBm to -104dBm.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

If the proportion of delayed handovers related to event A2 is smaller than the specified

threshold, the handover is regarded as a delayed handover unrelated to event A2 or a

premature handover. If a delayed handover unrelated to event A2 or a premature
handover occurs, the CIO value for event A4 is modified within the valid value range. The
modification principles are the same as the modification principles of MRO for intrafrequency neighboring cells, i.e., CIO of inter-frequency neighbor cell is decreased by one
step.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

If within an MRO period an eNodeB has performed MRO against premature or delayed

handovers between a local cell and a neighboring cell indicated in an NRT, the eNodeB
does not perform MRO against ping-pong handovers between the cells in this period. If
the eNodeB has not performed MRO against premature or delayed handovers, the eNodeB
checks conditions for performing MRO against ping-pong handovers between the cells in
this period.

Intra- and inter-frequency MRO against ping-pong handovers use the same mechanisms,
except that intra-frequency MRO adjusts the CIO for intra-frequency event A3 whereas
inter-frequency MRO adjusts the CIO for inter-frequency event A4 or A3.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Some parameters for intra-frequency event A3 are specific for QoS class identifiers (QCIs).

The CIO value range is determined by the minimum and maximum values among the lower
and upper limits calculated for all QCIs.

If operators do not set CELLMRO.CioAdjUpperLimit and CELLMRO.CioAdjLowerLimit,

the eNodeB automatically calculates the lower and upper limits according to these
formulas with A and B replaced by 2 and 5, respectively.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

The CIO value range for inter-frequency event A3 follows the same calculation mechanisms

as the CIO value range for intra-frequency event A3.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

MRO algorithm switch

Value Range: IntraFreqMroSwitch(IntraFreqMroAlgoSwitch),

InterFreqMroSwitch(InterFreqMroAlgoSwitch), UtranMroSwitch(UtranMroSwitch),
GeranMroSwitch(GeranMroSwitch), UEMroSwitch(UeMroAlgoSwitch)
Unit: None
Recommended Value: IntraFreqMroAlgoSwitch:Off, InterFreqMroAlgoSwitch:Off,
UtranMroSwitch:Off, GeranMroSwitch:Off, UeMroAlgoSwitch:Off

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Ncell optimization threshold

Meaning: Indicates the threshold for enabling MRO based on the handover success rate.
MRO is applied and parameter adjustment is started only if the success rate of handovers
from the local cell to a neighboring cell is below this threshold.

GUI Value Range: 0~100

Unit: %

Recommended Value: 99

Pingpong ratio threshold

Meaning: Indicates the threshold for the percentage of intra-RAT ping-pong handovers. If
the percentage of intra-RAT ping-pong handovers exceeds the threshold, parameter
adjustment is performed. If the percentage is lower than the threshold, parameter
adjustment is not performed.

GUI Value Range: 0~100

Unit: %

Recommended Value: 5

UE PingPong Number Threshold

Meaning: Indicates the threshold for the number of pingpong handovers. If the number of
consecutive ping-pong handovers reaches the threshold, the UE is a ping-pong UE.

GUI Value Range: 1~7

Recommended Value: 5

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Inter-RAT MRO is a process where the parameters related to the handover between an LTE
cell and a non-LTE cell are optimized.

To trigger an inter-RAT handover, event A2 triggers an inter-RAT handover measurement

of the UE. Then, the UE requests an inter-RAT handover if the conditions for triggering
event B1 are met. Therefore, the threshold for event A2 or the hysteresis, threshold, or
time-to-trigger for event B1 can be modified if inter-RAT handovers are required at an
earlier or later time.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

Inter-RAT only support UMTS and GSM, controlled by MroUtranSwitch and

MroGeranSwitch.

Inter-RAT has similar mechanism as intra-RAT, but all the trigger threshold are fixed presetting in eNodeB.

The MRO function is implemented within an MRO period only when all the following
conditions are met (Note that the number of handovers and proportions described as
follows are based on the QCI of a specified service):

Sufficient handovers have occurred.

Proportion of abnormal handovers Corresponding proportion threshold

Proportion of abnormal handovers = (Number of premature handovers +

Number of delayed handovers)/Total number of handovers

Proportion of abnormal handovers during the previous period - Proportion of

abnormal handovers during the current period > Fluctuation threshold for the
corresponding proportion between periods

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

A delayed handover related to event A2 occurs if the following conditions are met:

The eNodeB does not or fails to deliver the GAP measurement configuration, and
does not receive intra-RAT premature or delayed handover indication.
The source cell has valid inter-RAT neighboring cells and the inter-RAT neighboring
cells support the ongoing services of the UE.
The source cell deletes the UE context due to timer expiration.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

The MRO for delayed inter-RAT handovers is performed, that is, the threshold for event A2

is increased by one step for the services of the corresponding QCI in the system when the
following conditions are met:

Proportion of delayed handovers in type 1 Proportion threshold for delayed

handovers related to event A2
Threshold for event A2 < Threshold for event A1

The parameter settings should be rolled back if Proportion of abnormal handovers during
the current period > Proportion of abnormal handovers during the previous period.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

A delayed handover related to event B1 occurs if the following conditions are met:

The eNodeB does not or fails to deliver a handover command, and does not receive intraRAT premature or delayed handover indication.
The source cell has valid inter-RAT neighboring cells and the inter-RAT neighboring cells
support the ongoing services of the UE.
The source cell deletes the UE context due to timer expiration.

The delayed handover related to event B1 (type 2) occurs in the following situations:

The eNodeB receives a measurement configuration for event A2 and successfully delivers a
measurement configuration for setting up a measurement gap.

The eNodeB does not receive the inter-RAT measurement report. In this case, the source
eNodeB cannot obtain the information about the cell in another system where the UE
camps. This results in a failure to measure the number of delayed handovers in the system.
In this situation, if a neighboring cell exists in another system and the UE supports the
system, the Huawei eNodeB increases the number of delayed handovers in type 2 for the
services of the corresponding QCI by 1.
The eNodeB receives the inter-RAT measurement report. In this case, the eNodeB measures
the number of delayed handovers in type 2 for the services of the corresponding QCI in the
system that provides the best cell. The information about the best cell is provided in the
measurement report.

The number of delayed inter-RAT handovers can be calculated using the following formula:

Number of delayed inter-RAT handovers = Number of delayed handovers in type 1 +

Number of delayed handovers in type 2

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

When the following conditions are met, MRO for delayed inter-RAT handovers is

performed; that is, the threshold for event B1 is decreased by one step for the services of
the corresponding QCI in the system.

Proportion of delayed handovers in type 1 < Proportion threshold for delayed

handovers related to event A2
Number of premature handovers < Number of delayed handovers in type 2

If the proportion of abnormal handovers during the current period is greater than the
proportion of abnormal handovers during the previous period, the parameter settings
should be rolled back.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

A premature inter-RAT handover is defined the same as the premature intra-RAT handover

in scenario 1. A premature handover is performed after the eNodeB sends a handover

command to the base station in another system at the peer end. Therefore, the eNodeB
can measure the number of premature handovers in any given system. According to the
QoS Class Identifier (QCI) of the service initiated by a UE, the source eNodeB measures the
number of premature handovers for the services of the corresponding QCI in each system.

When the following conditions are met, MRO for premature handovers is performed; that
is, the hysteresis for event B1 is increased by one step for the services of the corresponding
QCI in the system.

Proportion of delayed handovers in type 1 < Proportion threshold for delayed

handovers related to event A2
Number of premature inter-RAT handovers > Number of delayed inter-RAT
handovers in type 2

If the proportion of abnormal handovers during the current period is greater than the
proportion of abnormal handovers during the previous period, the parameter settings
should be rolled back.

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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LTE eRAN7.0 MRO Feature

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