Patent ID: 10257721

Abstract:
In a wireless network formed of short range femtocells, each femtocell provides wireless connectivity to user equipment devices and the user equipment can move around the topographical range covered by the network by handing over to a neighboring femtocell. Due to the limited range of a femtocell, there will be coverage gaps. If the device moves to a location not covered by a femtocell, it will try to connect to a macrocell of a different wide area cellular network until it is within range of another femtocell network. To minimize handovers from the femtocell network to the macrocell network, each femtocell is arranged to analyze historic log data to detect coverage gaps experienced by the user equipment as it moves along a user equipment route and try to close the gaps by increasing the coverage range of femtocells on either side of the coverage gap to close the gap.