Patent ID: 7065361

Claim:
In a wireless telecommunications network having a plurality of wireless coverage areas, a record of handoff statistics, and a neighbor list associated with at least a given one of said plurality of wireless coverage areas, wherein said wireless telecommunications system makes handoffs from said given wireless coverage area based on signal strength measurements involving wireless coverage areas identified in said neighbor list, a method for tuning said neighbor list for said given wireless coverage area, said method comprising the steps of: selecting m relevant coverage areas from said plurality of wireless coverage areas, exclusive of said given coverage area; for each one of said m relevant coverage areas, calculating, based at least in part on said handoff statistics, a corresponding ranking number related to a frequency of handoffs involving said given coverage area and said one of said m relevant coverage areas, thereby providing m ranking numbers; ranking said m relevant coverage areas based on their corresponding ranking numbers; identifying a first set consisting of a first number of highest-ranked coverage areas from among said m relevant coverage areas; and revising said neighbor list to identify each of said first number of coverage areas in said first set.