Abstract: A method for beamform management in vehicular communications includes, within a computerized processor, determining a planned route for a vehicle, identifying a plurality of candidate cellular towers with which the vehicle may communicate along the planned route, and determining signal strengths of each of the towers at locations along the route. The method further includes determining a communication plan including identifying locations of each of the towers and segmenting the planned route into portions based upon the determined signal strengths. One of the towers is assigned to communicate with the vehicle for each of the portions based upon the signal strengths. The method further includes utilizing the communication plan to change communication between the vehicle and the towers as the vehicle traverses the route by directing a primary lobe of an antenna beam toward each of the candidate cellular towers in turn according to the communication plan.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method in a cellular communications network having a plurality of base stations, and to a base station for said cellular communications network, wherein each base station is configured to use a frequency band of one of a hierarchy of spectrum levels, the method comprising: a first base station using a frequency band of a first spectrum level of the hierarchy of spectrum levels; determining an interference level in the network; determining whether the interference level indicates that the first base station's performance is sub-optimal; and, if so, the first base station reconfiguring to use a frequency band of a second spectrum level of the hierarchy of spectrum levels, the second spectrum level having a different number of frequency bands than the first spectrum level.