Method, system, and apparatus for a mobile station to sense and select a wireless local area network (WLAN) or a wide area mobile wireless network (WWAN)

• US 20030134636A1
• Filed: 01/17/2002
• Published: 07/17/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/02/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Winphoria Networks, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Aravamudan, Murali, Naqvi, Shamim A., Sundar, Rangamani, Iyer, Prakash R., Vishwanathan, Kumar K., Pai, Gurudutt Upendra
• Granted Patent: US 7,200,112 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/432.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1073 Registration or de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/65 Network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/02 Processing of mobility data, e.g. registration information at HLR [Home Location Register] or VLR [Visitor Location Register]; Transfer of mobility data, e.g. between HLR, VLR or external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/00 Wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/10 adapted for application session management, e.g. SIP [Session Initiation Protocol] connection management H04W76/00; arrangements for session management H04L67/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/04 Large scale networks; Deep hierarchical networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

A method, system and apparatus for internetworking WWAN and WLAN are disclosed. More specifically, a method, system, and apparatus for a mobile station to sense and select a WLAN or a WWAN are disclosed. A mobile station may communicate according to an 802.xx wireless local area network air interface protocol via WLAN logic or according to a wireless wide area network air interface protocol via WWAN logic. The mobile station detects RF energy in the 802.xx spectrum and, in response to the energy detection, determines whether there is an 802.xx WLAN capable of servicing the mobile station by performing a scanning operation. If there is an 802.xx WLAN capable of servicing the mobile station, the mobile station selects the WLAN logic so that it may communicate via an air interface. Under some embodiments, WWAN has information identifying the areas in which capable WLANs operate and the WWAN provisions the mobile station with at least a subset of such information. The mobile station uses such area-identifying information to determine whether to perform the RF energy detection operation. The information may be cell ids, or GPS information.

Claims

13-1. The method of claim 1 wherein the WWAN has information identifying the areas in which capable WLANs operate and wherein the WWAN provisions the mobile station with at least a subset of such information, and wherein the mobile station uses such area-identifying information to determine whether to perform the RF energy detection operation.

18. A multimode mobile station, comprising

first air interface logic to communicate according to an 802.xx wireless local area network air interface protocol;

second air interface logic to communicate according to a wireless wide area network air interface protocol;

logic to sense RF energy in the 802.xx spectrum;

logic, responsive to the sensing logic, to determine whether there is an 802.xx WLAN capable of servicing the multimode mobile station by performing a scanning operation; and

logic, responsive to the determining logic, to select the first air interface logic if there is an 802.xx WLAN capable of servicing the multimode mobile station.

19. A wireless communication system, comprising:

a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless wide area network (WWAN), including at least one MSC;

a multimode mobile station including logic to determine whether to communicate according to an air interface protocol for the WLAN or to communicate according to an air interface protocol for the WWAN.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein the WWAN includes logic to provide information to the multimode mobile station to inform the mobile station of geographic areas of WLANs, and wherein the logic to determine utilizes said information to determine whether to communicate according to the air interface protocol for the WLAN or to communicate according to the air interface protocol for the WWAN.