2023 9th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS)
An Investigation on Spectrum Mobility
Mechanisms in Cognitive Network
2023 9th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS) | 979-8-3503-9737-6/23/$31.00 ©2023 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/ICACCS57279.2023.10113068
Communication
N. Gayathri
Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Sri Eshwar College of Engineering,
Coimbatore, TamilNadu, India.
gayathri.n@sece.ac.in
R. Sathya
Department of Information Technology,
Kongunadu College of Engineering and Technology,
Trichy, TamilNadu, India.
sathyaphdkncet@gmail.com
Abstract—In our increasingly digitized environment, the
demand for more effective spectrum usage is becoming more
and more prominent. By permitting unauthorized
individuals to take advantage of the spectrum in an adaptive
way, cognitive radio (CR) is a prospective method to increase
spectrum efficiency. Spectrum handover, which ensures that
Secondary Users (SUs) can leave the available spectrum that
is currently in use and identify a suitable target channel to
continue the interrupted service, is a critical component of
the development of Cognitive Radio Networks (CRN). A
complete description and investigation of the current
spectrum handoff techniques for CRN are discussed in this
paper. Numerous research challenges and constraints are
also studied in the development of effective spectrum
handoff methods. Also, the comparative study on different
spectrum handoff mechanisms is presented to discover the
least number of reductions in performance during a
spectrum handoff.
Keywords—Cognitive network, Primary User (authorized
user), Secondary User (unauthorized user), Frequency
Handoff )
I. INTRODUCTION
The demand for additional frequency bands has
increased due to the rapid growth of mobile devices and
wireless services. To satisfy the growing bandwidth
requirements, the frequency that is now accessible must be
used more effectively [1], [2]. The present fixed spectrum
allocation by Government agencies finds the rising costs
for wireless networks a challenging task. To solve this
issue, the design of CRN has been developed. This leads to
the creation of a brand-new field of study, a vital tool for
using underutilized spectrum through Spectrum Access
dynamically (DSA). Through the usage of DSA, secondary
users can strategically utilize the vacant spectrum band,
also known as the spectrum hole or licensed frequency
band, without impacting the current (or primary) users [3].
We consider the two important features of the CRN to
be defined as:
979-8-3503-9737-6/23/$31.00 ©2023 IEEE
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H. Anandakumar
Department of Computer Science and Engineering,
Sri Eshwar College of Engineering,
Coimbatore, TamilNadu, India.
anandakumar.h@sece.ac.in
S. Gowri
Department of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science,
Sri Eshwar College of Engineering,
Coimbatore, TamilNadu, India.
gowri.s@sece.ac.in
1) Cognitive Competence: The term "cognitive
competence" describes a radio technology's capacity to
gather or sense data from its radio environment. More
advanced techniques are needed to observe the terrene and
spatial deviations in the CRN area and prevent intrusion to
other users. This capacity cannot commonly be obtained
by investigating the energy in some interest frequency
range.
2) Reconfigurability: Spectrum awareness is provided
by cognitive capabilities, whereas reshaping permits the
radio to be progressively constructed in agreement with
the radio environment.
Two main user categories can be found in CR
networks: PU - primary users called recognized users with
high priority and SU - secondary users called cognitive
users with low priority. The SUs can transmit information
to use that available spectrum in the absence of PUs. A
major priority PU has the right to terminate
communication with the least important SU when it enters
the band authorized and is being used by those SU [4].
Many functions, including frequency disclosure,
frequency decision-making, frequency distribution, and
frequency movement in CRN, are needed for the dynamic
application of the frequency spectrum.
The cognitive users observe the surroundings to
identify the accessible spectrum sections, also known as
white spaces or spectrum holes, and choose a free channel
from the existing vacant bands in the spectrum
management system.
After that, the Cognitive user develops a
communication channel on the specified band without
interfering with the primary user [5].
The final crucial function—handoff/mobility—is
regarded as one of the most crucial features since it calls
for the cognitive user to transition from its present
communication channel to another operational frequency
 2023 9th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS)
dependent on the free frequency bands. The handoff of the
spectrum is necessary [6], [7].
To accommodate the CR networks' growing need for
increased spectrum, considerable study has been done in
the domain of spectrum handoff issues.
The following list summarizes the paper's main
contributions:
i) This research gives an extensive survey and detailed
description of the available spectrum handoff strategies for
cognitive radio.
ii) It also serves as a simple overview of the issues
being researched at the present in CR networks' spectrum
handoff.
This work begins with a concise description of CR
networks, then moves on to discuss spectrum management
in section 2, the idea of spectrum handoff is discussed in
section 3, and a thorough taxonomy of the various
spectrum handoff techniques with comparative analysis in
section 4. Finally, we conclude the paper through
conclusion and future enhancements.
II. SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT
The Overview of Spectrum Management is described
through four essential steps of Cognitive Networks and it
is illustrated in Fig. 1.
Fig. 1. Main Functions of CRN – Spectrum Management
A. Frequency Spectrum Sensing
In a CR network, unused channels are found via a
process called frequency sensing. The knowledge about
the frequency bands that are available as well as any
unused gaps are detected by CRs. The CU (Cognitive User
or Secondary User) senses the surrounding area to identify
the spectrum bands that are open for use. The sensing
process should also be able to quickly and precisely
identify the entry of PUs into the spectrum band, which is
currently engaged by SUs.
For locating transmitted signals and determining the
nature of the signal, several spectrum sensing techniques
are offered. The three basic types are:
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1) Energy Detection: It doesn't require a prior
understanding of the PUs signal and doesn't require
sophisticated spread spectrum signal detection designs.
2) Feature Detection: The precise properties
connected to the modulated signals transmitted by primary
users are what feature detection is based on. The basic
user signal is sampled and the amplitude is normalized in
cyclo-stationary feature detection.
3) Matched Filter Detection: An improved detection
technique is matched filter detection, which operates on
the premise that the signal from authorized users is
already known to unauthorized users.
B. Frequency Spectrum Decision
The selection of a spectrum from among the provided
is the focus of the spectrum decision. Spectrum depiction,
spectrum preference, network protocol through routing,
and spectrum adaptation are the four primary
responsibilities for spectrum decision-making.
A small deviation-based decision and the highest
storage spectrum selection are intended for practical
systems and great quality for CR networks. [8] offers a
system for spectrum management that is QoS aware and
takes dynamic spectrum availability and varying QoS
requirements for CR networks into account.
For transmission, the needs of CR users are satisfied by
opting for the appropriate frequency band that provides
QoS – Quality of Service requirements.
C. Frequency Spectrum Sharing
As it manages transmission between secondary and
authorized users, spectrum sharing is a salient feature of
cognitive radio. It is a difficult task since it calls for a high
level of participation, comprehension, and organization
between Pus and SUs. By preventing the impact of
numerous CRs trying to access the channel
simultaneously, spectrum sharing contributes to the
preservation of service quality. The three primary purposes
of frequency distribution are channel selection, resource
allocation, and frequency access.
D. Frequency Spectrum Mobility
For SUs to prevent interference with licensed users,
spectrum mobility (or spectrum handoff) is crucial. In
other words, as soon as the PU is identified, the secondary
user should be able to modify the licensed band at which it
is currently operating.
Spectrum handoff and connection management are the
two primary purposes of spectrum mobility. Gathering
spectrum exchange data and processing is the first step in
the spectrum handoff procedure. Based on spectrum
handoff detection, the relevant spectrum handoff
techniques are selected. The right connectivity in CR
networks is required for effective and seamless spectrum
handoff.
III. FREQUENCY HANDOVER TECHNIQUES
The timing of the spectrum transfer event determines
how the various handoff-triggering strategies are applied.
The different types of handoff patterns are divided into
 2023 9th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS)
three groups: Proactive Frequency, Reactive Frequency,
and Hybrid Frequency Handoff which is triggered at
different times depending on the handoff of the spectrum.
The Frequency hand-over procedure is shown in Fig. 2.
Fig. 2. Spectrum Handoff Procedure
A. Proactive Frequency handoff
When performing the proactive hand-over approach,
the SUs regularly detect the primary user’s activity before
deciding to begin data transmission on an open channel
[9].
PU traffic is the foundation for the intended free
channel for the upcoming frequency hand - over. Before
the handoff time-based triggering event, CR might
anticipate PU arrivals in the channel. As a result, this
handover strategy depends on the PU traffic model and has
a minimal spectrum handoff time.
The proactive frequency exceeds the reactive
frequency handout technique for extended sensing times.
In CR networks, there is sufficient time for spectrum
sensing for open channels. Therefore, when the sensing
time is long, proactive frequency handoff outstrips the
reactive frequency handoff strategy in terms of handoff
delay.
This handoff mechanism precisely specifies the overall
data collection time for various intent channel sequences
that are proactively created [10].
They suggest a proactive handoff mechanism that uses
a packet routing algorithm to cut down on unused
channels. The strategy minimizes bandwidth segmentation
and boosts channel efficiency.
B. Reactive frequency handoff
The SU detects the idle channel when the PU arrives
in the reactive handoff decision process. This technique
still encounters handoff latency during spectrum sense
even though it can find the idle channel for handoff.
It is possible to obtain the precise target channel in CR
using the reactive spectrum handoff strategy. [11]
presented the statistical framework to assess the impact of
the reactive frequency handoff method on channel capacity
and CRN latency efficiency.
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The highlight of the reactive technique is that the
precise destination channel may be found. However, when
the detecting time is longer, it has a longer handoff latency
compared to a proactive method. Therefore, the reactive
method improves the proactive frequency handoff strategy
in terms of short detecting time.
C. Hybrid frequency handoff
To achieve the shortest possible handoff hindrance, it
makes use of the benefits of combined frequency handover
methods. Proactive and reactive frequency handover
concepts are used to construct the hybrid spectrum handoff
scheme [12].
In contrast to proactive and reactive frequency
handover schemes, the hybrid frequency handover method
has a higher handoff delay. For a suitable handoff strategy
to be used, CR should be aware of the PU's traffic patterns
[10]. Every time the PU's traffic pattern changes, it should
be able to notice it so that the appropriate handoff strategy
may be used for the new circumstances.
D. Mobility-based spectrum handoff
The mobility-based spectrum handoff techniques
proposed in [13] are ideally suited for CR cellular
networks since they take into account spectrum sensing
management, customer mobility management, and budget
allocation. These frequency handover techniques are
categorized into various types based on the user with
frequency recognition.
1) Intracell frequency handover scheme: The intracell
frequency handover technique keeps the operating base
station the same when the SU handoff is in the same
spectrum stream. This kind of handoff takes place when
PUs enters the network.
2) Intercell frequency handover scheme: Cognitive
Radio modifies the serving base station rather than the
serving frequency pool in the intercell frequency handover
scheme. The RF front end does not need to be reconfigured
for this kind of spectrum handoff system because it uses
the same spectrum pool.
3) Intercell frequency handover scheme: In the
intercell frequency handover method, the serving BS is
changed and the CRs switch to a different spectrum pool.
As a result, CRs modify cells into different target cells.
4) Intracell frequency handover scheme: With this
type of handoff strategy, the serving base station remains
the same while secondary users transfer to a new spectrum
area. When primary users appear, cognitive users perform
a reactive handoff. When primary users arise and the RF
front-end configuration needs to change, CRs migrate to
the other spectrum source.
E. Spectrum Sensing-based frequency handover
Most important currently available sensing methods,
such as Cooperative Spectrum Sensing (CSS), Energy
Detection Technique (EDT) [14],[15] CSS approach, or
Cluster-based CSS [17], can be used to accomplish the
spectrum sensing process.
1) Cooperative frequency spectrum sensing: When
CRNs interact together as a network, they can transfer
information about perceived advantages to performing
cooperative spectrum sensing. The area where the CRs are
located has a better depiction of how the spectrum is used
[20].
 2023 9th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS)

The optimum approach is still organized through TABLE I. COMPARISON OF PROACTIVE, REACTIVE, AND HYBRID
SPECTRUM HANDOFF
cooperative sensing, which also improves PU's detecting
capabilities. By locating the gaps in the spectrum, the SU Name of
collaborates and intelligently fills them. After the method the
Main Description Merits Demerits
of detection, it must focus on sensing to regulate whether Spectrum
the main user is occupied or not [18]. Handoff
2) Group-based Cooperative frequency spectrum The detection of both Detection of
Proactive the intent channel and Sparse Primary User
sharing: CSS in Cognitive radio takes longer to perform Spectrum the handoff operation Handoff traffic leads
the perception and dispatching when there is more SUs Handoff has been done in a Latency to reduced
available in the frequency band. Each and every authorized useful method. performance
user’s available bandwidth is contained in the cluster- Gained
The detection of both
handoff
based CSS at the cluster head. The FC recommends the the intent channel and Best
latency
optimum inactive channel when the SU is made to Reactive the reactive handoff useful
compared to
Spectrum method has been for short-
complete the handover to ensure a seamless transmission. Handoff carried out with the sensing
proactive
3) Energy Efficient Sensing based Spectrum Handoff: handoff
following handoff data
technique
The energy is calculated using the signal recognized using activation.
a fixed bandwidth and period in the energy-efficient Poor
recognition technique. Through the use of a recognized proactive
value along with the energy detector's threshold value, the spectrum
Hybrid Collective aggregation Reduced
detection
energy signal is detected [16]. Spectrum of Reactive and latency
produces
Handoff Proactive schemes. handoff
delayed
F. Probability-based frequency handover spectrum
In CR networks, the probability theory is frequently handoff
useful for spectrum handoff. Using probability, they
provide a spectrum handoff system. To choose the TABLE II. COMPARISON OF MOBILITY, SPECTRUM SENSING,
beginning and select the frequency band for the spectrum PROBABILITY, AND FREQUENCY HANDOFF BASED ON FUZZY
transfer selection, the probability technique is applied [21]. LOGIC
The channel conditions are identified via the Name of
probability-based prediction approach. Therefore, using the
Main Description Merits Demerits
probability, CRs can predict whether the channel will be Spectrum
Handoff
open or closed shortly. Since CR handoff networks now CRS handoff does not
perform better, the impact between cognitive users and alter the spectrum area
primary users can be avoided. but changes the base The spectrum
Useful for
These circumstances determine whether the proactive Mobility-
station signals.
Proactive
pool’s
spectrum handoff occurs. Three probability criteria are Cognitive radio proximity is
based and
network handoff causing an
taken into account in this study for the proactive Spectrum
appears in the same
Reactive
incompatibili
Handoff
handovers. These are the frequencies considered for the manner along with
spectrum
ty issue
lower-level channel and it is engrossed at the end of frame handoff
various spectrum pools
distribution, and at a higher level, the channel is measured also without changing
as minor at the end of a certain frame, and also the channel the base station signal.
is considered as vacant for the transmission of the
Erroneous
following frame. Spectrum
Spectrum sensing spectrum
Sensing- Reduced
identifies the main detection
G. Fuzzy logic-based Spectrum handoff based
user whether it is
handoff
produces a
Fuzzy logic was used to handle handoffs, which Spectrum
active or inactive
delay
poor
performed two crucial tasks: power reduction and adaptive Handoff
spectrum
handoff selection based on intervention, network Handoff
throughput, and needed data-rate information. Probabilit Determines the source
Sparse Complex
Spectrum handoff techniques in Cognitive radio y and destination
Handoff handoff
Spectrum network selection for
networks become challenging if these strategies use Handoff the spectrum transfer
Latency scheme
heterogeneous and information asymmetries. Frequency
An appropriate mathematical tool for decision-making Intelligent Increase in
Handoff Challenging frequency
decision Signal
is fuzzy logic. For CR networks, Wanbin and Dong [19] based on handoff differs and
based on processing
present a fuzzy logic-based spectrum handoff technique Fuzzy data asymmetries.
Fuzzy logic time
Logic
that employs three various values to determine when to
switch frequencies. V. CONCLUSION
IV. COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SPECTRUM HANDOFF Frequency handover schemes in CRN are an important
SCHEME method to avoid intervention with authorized users and
unauthorized users in cognitive network communication.
In Tables, I and II, a comparison of several spectrum
The key benefit of employing the CRN is that it can lessen
handoff methods is described in terms of their synopsis,
the issue of secondary user spectrum underutilization and
key characteristics, and limitations.
keep major and secondary user traffic from interfering with
one another. Also, the service quality is preserved during

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 2023 9th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS)
the communication of the unauthorized user. In this
investigation, we have compared the various categories of
frequency handover schemes which are: proactive,
reactive, hybrid, mobility, spectrum sensing-based,
probability-based, and fuzzy logic-based schemes with
their main features, performance, and limitations. All these
methods eliminate channel interruption and sense the
feasible channel for the secondary user through the
avoidance of unnecessary frequency spectrum handoff
latency. The future enhancement work will be considered
the other developments in frequency spectrum handoff
techniques to reduce the frequency band latency and
achieve faster performance in Spectrum handoffs.
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