Cross-layer design of packet scheduling and resource allocation algorithms for 4G cellular systems

Adaptive radio resource management in next generation wireless cellular networks is a key issue to attain efciency and complexity trade-offs with full edged exibility. Cross-layer algorithms encompassing the view of MAC and physical layer are needed to exploit at best radio resource. Two main stochastic drivers need be considered: trafc prole, along with fairness and QoS constraint, and radio channel for mobile terminals. We consider a time division OFDMA/TDD based wireless interface where frequency carriers and OFDM symbols are grouped into resource chunks, that can be individually and dynamically assigned to active trafc ows. We take a loose coupling approach and dene a clear-cut interface between the packet scheduling module, in charge of trafc policies, and the radio resource allocator, aiming at an optimized assignment of resource chunks autonomously performed within each cell. A detailed multi-cell simulation software is used to evaluate the obtained performance in a number of scenarios, as dened during the PRIMO project, where the reported research activity has been developed.