Patent ID: 6934525

Claim:
A mobile radio communications network comprising: a local exchange, or mobile switching centre, connected to a plurality of cell site switches, each cell site switch being connected to a cluster of base station transceivers, wherein one base station transceiver in each cluster acts as a macro cell and the remaining base station transceivers in each cluster act as micro cells, characterized in that (a) each of the local exchange, or mobile switching centre, and the cell site switches incorporates a data base; (b) the connection between the local exchange, or mobile switching centre, and the plurality of cell site switches is in the form of a common bus to which each of the local exchange, or mobile switching centre, and the plurality of cell site switches is directly connected; and (c) the connection between each cell site switch and its cluster of base station transceivers is in the form of a common bus to which the pertaining cell site switch and base station transceivers are directly connected; whereby the network forms a hierarchial system in which the bus enables localisation of signalling to specific buses thereby reducing the signalling load in the local exchange, or mobile switching centre and, in each cluster the specific bus provides a fast signalling path which enables resources to be allocated between the base station transceivers as required to maintain a desired quality of service.