An architecture for spectrum management and coordinated control in 5G heterogeneous networks

Achieving the Key Performance Indicators defined for 5G networks will require the implementation of new technologies and the deployment of dense heterogeneous networks, using different Radio Access Technologies and several chunks of the RF spectrum. An important consideration in this context is how the resultant diversity can be controlled and how the valuable radio resources could be managed and controlled effectively. This paper presents a new architecture for spectrum management and sharing on top of a coordinated network control layer in 5G heterogeneous networks. The architecture is based on the abstraction of networks' resources and the virtualization of control aspects in order to support 5G spectrum management and sharing models. We present the architecture and its main functional entities together with its internal and external interfaces. We also provide a mapping of the diverse set of functionalities and requirements identified for Licensed Shared Access to other spectrum sharing models under consideration for 5G networks.