Dynamic Allocation of Processing Resources in Cloud-RAN for a Virtualised 5G Mobile Network
Yi Zhang, Federico Barusso, Diarmuid Collins, Marco Ruffini, Luiz A. DaSilva · 2018
One of the main research directions for 5G mobile networks is resource virtualisation and slicing. Towards this goal, the Cloud Radio Access Network (C-RAN) architecture offers mobile operators a flexible and dynamic framework for managing resources and processing data. This paper proposes a dynamic allocation approach for processing resources in a C- RAN supported by the concept of Network Function Virtualisation (NFV). To achieve this objective, we virtualised the Baseband Unit (BBU) resources for Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile network into a BBU pool supported by Linux Container (LXC) technology. We report on experiments conducted in the Iris testbed with high-definition video streaming by implementing Software-Defined Radio (SDR)-based LTE functionality with the virtualised BBU pool. Our results show a significant improvement in the quality of the video transmission with this dynamic allocation approach.