Enhancements to QoS management for real time radio bearers in 3G cellular systems

This article presents a research study detailing the issues related to the quality of service (QoS) management during bearer setup and modifications for real-time multimedia traffic in packet based mobile networks. Bearer modifications caused due to various reasons (such as user initiated session modifications, cellular handovers, changing network conditions etc.) affect the bearers allocated to a call leading to a change in QoS characteristics. It is highly desirable to minimize the effects due to the issues related to QoS management so that the service quality perceived by the user is sufficiently acceptable. This study presents new concepts and features that can be utilized in the radio access network (RAN) or base station controller (BSC) and mobile station (MS) as part of the QoS management to improve the efficiency. Further, a generic example related to QoS handling during handover of real-time services is discussed and the new concepts presented here are shown to most useful in handling the problem.