Demonstrator for utility-based SON management

Self-Organising Networks (SON) are a key enabler for the automation of managing and operating a cellular Radio Access Network (RAN). The purpose of SON management is thereby to jointly instrument and configure a multitude of independent SON functions according to objectives defined by the Mobile Network Operator (MNO). Existing approaches such as Policy-based SON Management (PBSM) use action policies for decision making. 

Utility-based SON Management (UBSM), instead, uses utility function policies, where the utility reflects the degree of satisfaction of an objective for a certain network state. The demonstrator described in this paper represents a graphical frontend for the simulation environment that allows to compare the effectiveness of UBSM with an unmanaged SON implementation.