Dynamic, context-specific SON management driven by operator objectives

The management and operation of a Self-Organizing Network (SON)-enabled mobile network still requires considerable human effort. On the one hand, SON Functions need to be configured through low-level parameters in order to control the optimization of the network. On the other hand, an operator wants to steer the system with solely technical objectives, and the underlying network should be adapted accordingly. This opens up a gap in network management that is currently closed manually. This paper presents an approach that overcomes the manual gap between technical objectives and SON Functions by choosing the best values for the SON Functions' configurations automatically. Main advantage of this approach is that it allows to manage a system at a high level of abstraction and, at the same time, reduces manual effort. The approach is explained by applying it in a case study in the field of mobile networks with four SON Functions, namely Mobility Load Balancing (MLB), Coverage and Capacity Optimization (CCO), Energy Savings Management (ESM) and Mobility Robustness Optimization (MRO).