HANDOVER MANAGEMENT IN WIRELESS

NETWORKS
Dr Sudesh Pahal1, Vineet Gulia2, Nishank Chauhan3,Ashish Goel4
1
Assistant professor, Department of ECE, GGSIPU, New Delhi, pahal.sudesh@gmail.com
2
Student, Department of ECE, GGSIPU, New Delhi, vineetgulia10@gmail.com
3
Student, Department of ECE, GGSIPU, New Delhi, nishankchauhan007@gmail.com
4
Student, Department of ECE, GGSIPU, New Delhi, goelashish008@gmail.com

Handover is the main reason of the call drop all over the world [1]. So to find the accurate
handover point may be of great help in the communication world. Call drops is mainly observed
when a person is moving. Although quite a lot of progress has been made in the field of reduction of
calls drops but still there is a lot that may be done. Using factors like received signal strength,
distance, threshold RSS etc. calculation of handover point and threshold signal have been done. In
this research paper free space model and log distance path loss model have been studied
theoretically and implemented practically and have been compared.

INDEX TERM—Handover, Router, Received signal strength, Shadow fading

I. INTRODUCTION to interconnect multiple access networks will be

Wireless networking has become an increasingly
important way to provide global information access
for users regardless of time and location. Wi-Fi is
a local area wireless computer networking technology
that allows electronic devices to connect to the
network, mainly using the 2.4 gigahertz
(12 cm) UHF and 5 gigahertz (6 cm) SHF. Wireless
networking hardware requires the use of underlying
technology that deals with radio frequencies as well
as data transmission. The most widely used standard
is 802.11 produced by the Institute of Electrical and
Electronic Engineers (IEEE). This is a standard
defining all aspects of Radio Frequency Wireless
networking [2]
With the increasing demands for new data and real-
time services, wireless networks should support calls
with different traffic characteristics and different
Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees. In addition,
various wireless technologies and networks exist
currently that can satisfy different needs and
requirements of mobile users. Since these different
wireless networks act as complementary to each other
in terms of their capabilities and suitability for
different applications, integration of these networks
will enable the mobile users to be always connected
to the best available access network depending on
their requirements. This integration of heterogeneous
networks will, however, lead to heterogeneities in
access technologies and network protocols. To meet
the requirements of mobile users under this
heterogeneous environment, a common infrastructure
needed [3].
Handoff management is the process by which a
mobile node keeps its connection active when it
moves from one access point to another. There are
three stages in a handoff process. First, the initiation
of handoff is triggered by either the mobile device, or
a network agent, or the changing network conditions.
The second stage is for a new connection generation,
where the network must find new resources for the
handoff connection and perform any additional
routing operations. Finally, data-flow control needs to
maintain the delivery of the data from the old
connection path to the new connection path according
to the agreed upon QoS guarantees.
The main challenge which is facing in wifi is that we
cannot get the contiguous connectivity due to the
various factors which are high user mobility and also
due to different traffic patterns which may be caused
due to the surroundings. The handover mainly
requires when the user is in mobility state which
means that The ability for a user to continue to access
network services from different terminals under the
same user identity when the user moves. When a
mobile is connected to a wifi router and a range of
another wifi is also available it does not switches to
the next router until it gets out of range of the first
router.
In this research paper we have practically analyzed
the handover point when different number of users
are connected to the routers and the graph of received
signal strength versus distance can be obtained.
This research paper proposes and provides the study point which we can find the threshold signal.
of some of parameter that affects the position and
received signal strength (RSS) of handover point that
could help in further research of handoff management
in wifi network.
In section 2 of the research paper, the different
propagation models used by us have been discussed
in brief.
In section 3 system model have been explained
briefly. Figure 1.ideal cell site of router
In section 4 the proposed work of this research paper
is discussed. To reduce the interference of the signal we choose
In section 5 result analysis of practical and theoretical the hexagonal shaped cell of wifi router. In case of
measurement has been compared. closed environment there are several obstacles
In section 6 the conclusion of this research paper is present due to which the signal strength vary non
explained. uniformly as we change the distance because in that
environment the signal got interference due to several
II. STATE OF ART factors like shadow fading, fast fading. But fast
fading does no effect so much on the signal so we can
In this research paper two models are used free space neglect that factor.
path loss model and log distance path loss model The
propagation channel model consists of
threecomponents: path loss, shadow fading, and fast
fading. Fast fading is assumed to be averaged out due
to its short correlation distance. The pilot signal
strength received by MS in dBm from BSg and BSw..
We are concerned with handover initiation phase
only. It includes monitoring of radio link quality,
efficient processing of link quality measurement, and
decision making process in order to conclude when
and to which BS a handover is triggered. It is
assumed that a handover occurs if and only if an
initiation trigger for a handover is present[4].
The maximum defined transmit power results in a
cell size of tens of meters indoors and over a hundred
meters outdoors. Therefore the previously described
CI method is very inaccurate using technology.
Numbers of overlapping WLAN cells should improve
accuracy. However overlapping cells are unlikely due Figure 2. Layout of indoor environment
to high network throughput, relatively high price of
AP and a narrow frequency band which allows only When a signal is reflected with the walls it got
three networks or APs to exist without interference[1] interference with the other signal which causes the
Once the handover requirement factor is found to be peaking of signal at that interference point but some
greater than a predefined threshold (considered as of the signal passed through the wall which causes
55dBm), the target network selection procedure is the signal to degrade its signal strength. To get the
performed[5]. exact measurement in indoor environment the path
III. SYSTEM MODEL being followed is not a line of sight rather it is a
random path [6]. In this research paper two models
When a wifi router is setup its ideal range is in the are used to find the received signal strength.
shape of hexagonal polygon and its distance vary A) Free space path loss model:
from router to router but in the real case its range In telecommunication, free-space path loss (FSPL) is
shape is non uniform[5]. In the case of wifi the the loss in signal strength of an electromagnetic wave
mobile station doesn’t switch itself from one router to that would result from a line-of-sight path through
another router but still a handoff point can be find out free space (usually air), with no obstacles nearby to
by measuring the received signal strength at various cause reflection or diffraction. It is defined in
"Standard Definitions of Terms for Antennas", IEEE
Std 145-1983, as "The loss between two isotropic
radiators in free space, expressed as a power ratio."
Usually it is expressed in dB. It does not include any
loss associated with hardware imperfections, or the
effects of any antennas gain.Free-space path loss in
decibels[4].
FSPL(dB)=20log10(d) + 20log10(f) – 27.55
Where, d is distance between mobile station and
transmitter router and calculated in meters and f is the
frequency of the signal coming out of the router
which is calculated in megahertz. This model has
been used to find the handover point for an outdoor
environment theoretically using the simulations in
MATLAB.
Dependency of the FSPL on distance is caused by the
spreading out of electromagnetic energy in free
space. With the increase of the frequency the
requirement to keep the gain of the receiving antenna
intact cause an antenna aperture to be decreased,
which will result in less energy being captured with
the smaller antenna, which is similar to increasing the
path loss in the situation when receiving antenna gain
would not have been fixed.
B)Log distance path loss model:
The log-distance path loss model is a radio
propagation model that predicts the path loss a signal
encounters inside a building or densely populated
areas over distance. The mathematical formula of
path loss for log distance path loss model is
PL = PLo + 10 γ log10(d/do) + Xg
Where PLo is the path loss at the reference distance
d0. Unit: Decibel (dB), d is the length of the path, do
is the reference distance, usually 1 m. γ is the path
loss exponent. Xg is a normal (or Gaussian) random
variable with zero mean, reflecting the attenuation (in
decibel) caused by flat fading.
Xg= roX(g-1) + S0[1-ro]1/2
Xg is a normal (or Gaussian) random variable with
zero mean, reflecting the attenuation (in decibel)
caused by flat fading. Auto correlation coefficient of
shadow fading is represented by the parameter r o.
X(g-1) is the previous value of normal random
variable. X0 is equal to standard deviation S0.
In case of no fading, this variable is 0. In case of only
shadow fading or slow fading, this random variable
may have Gaussian distribution with S0 standard
deviation in dB, resulting in log-normal distribution
of the received power in Watt. In case of only fast
fading caused by multipath propagation, the
corresponding gain in Watts Fg = 10-Xg/10 may be
modelled as a random variable with Rayleigh
distribution or Ricean distribution. This model has
been used to find the handover point for an indoor
environment theoretically using the simulations in
MATLAB.
TABLE 1: System parameter for simulation [4]
Frequency F 2.4GHz
Reference distance d0 1m
Auto-correlation coefficient ro 0.34
Path loss exponent Γ 3.32
Transmitted power K -20.487
IV. PROPOSED WORK
For showing the simulation we have considered
MATLAB as the software platform based on two
propagation model which are free space path loss
model and Log distance path loss model.
We have been studied that when we take one sample
to obtain the final result in that case the effect of
shadow fading is very high due to which the number
of handovers occur rapidly near about threshold RSS,
therefore to conquer this problem we have taken
multiple samples [7].
By taking single sample no fix pattern can be inferred
from the graph therefore we have studied multiple
sample and their values being average out to get a
more systematic plot of the graph. A total number of
50 samples were taken for both simulation and
practical results.
For the practical measurements the readings were
taken at the interval of 1 meter with the constant
velocity of 0.5m/sec. A software application wifi
analyzer was used to measure the received signal
strength.
Shadow fading is the random function which varies
continuously with the time and position. Shadow
fading occurs due to the presence of obstacles like
furniture, wall, ceilings, etc. In wireless
communications, fading is deviation of the
attenuation affecting a signal over certain propagation
media [8]. The fading may vary with time,
geographical position or radio frequency, and is often
modeled as a random process. A fading channel is a
communication channel that experiences fading. In
wireless systems, fading may either be due to
multipath propagation, referred to as multipath
induced fading, or due to shadowing from obstacles
affecting the wave propagation, sometimes referred
to as shadow fading.
 strength from the router 1 decreases since we are
moving towards the router 2 the received signal
strength increases. In outdoor environment (line of
V. SIMULATION AND PRACTICAL sight) the handover point occurs at a distance of 25m
RESULT and the value of RSS at the handover point is -79dBm

We evaluate the threshold signal Rth and the threshold RSS vs Distance
distance dth for different number of user connected to -25
router 1
the router.
-30 router 2
 SIMULATION RESULT
-35
0
router1 Handover Point
router2 -40
-10 distance-10.2m
RSS- 57dBm

RSS(dBm)
-45
-20

-50
RSS(dBm)

-30
-55
-40
-60
-50
-65

-60
-70
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
-70 Distance(m)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Distance(m)
Graph 3: RSS vs distance
Graph 1: rss vs distance The distance at which handover occur is 10.2m and
As the mobile set is moved away from router 1 and the RSS is -57dBm.
towards the router 2 the received signal strength
decreases and increases respectively. The distance at VI. CONCLUSION
which the signal strength of router 2 exceeds the
signal strength of router 1 that point is handover In this research paper we conclude that as the mobile
point. station moves away from router its signal strength
As the mobile set is moved away from the router 1 decreases uniformly in case on free space but in the
the path loss increases enhance the received signal indoor environment the due to shadow fading it
decreases non- uniformly and when there are two
path loss vs distance routers then somewhere between them a handover
80
point is available at which the mobile station have to
70 switch so that the signal strength is maintained above
path loss(dB)

threshold signal value in indoor environment

60
handover occur at 10.2m and in outdoor environment
PL router1 handover occur at 26.3m As the threshold signal
50
PL router2
value is decreased the number of handovers decreases
40
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 and after -60dBm the number of handovers tends to
distance from router1 the ideal value i.e. 1 both practically and
RSS vs distance
-50 theoretically. With the increase in the number of
RSS router1
users connected to both the routers there is no visible
-60 difference in the received signal strength at the
RSS router2
RSS(dB)

-70
handover point. The received signal strength remains
constant at any point with respect to the change in
-80 number of users connected to the routers.
-90
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 VII. REFRENCES
distance from router1

Graph 2:a) path loss vs distance [1] Atreyi Bose and Chuan Heng Foh , School of
b) rss vs distance Computer Engineering Nanyang Technological
University Singapore, {atre0001,
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For Indoor WiFi Positioning Enhancement IEEE
2007.
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[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handover
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