MULTIPLE PACKET DATA NETWORK SUPPORT OVER TRUSTED ACCESS

• US 20090022126A1
• Filed: 07/11/2008
• Published: 01/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Marvell Asia Pte Limited (Marvell Technology Group Limited)
• Original Assignee: Marvell World Trade Limited (Marvell Technology Group Limited)
• Inventors: Faccin, Stefano, Zhao, Fan, Damle, Ameya
• Granted Patent: US 8,077,686 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/005 Multiple registrations, e.g. multihoming
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/065 involving selection of the user mobility server
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/085 involving hierarchical organized mobility servers, e.g. hierarchical mobile IP [HMIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]

Abstract

A media access gateway comprises a wireless network interface, an authorization module, a filter information module, and a proxy mobility agent module. The wireless network interface selectively establishes a wireless link with a first interface of a wireless terminal that has a plurality of wireless interfaces. The authorization module determines a home agent corresponding to the wireless terminal. The filter information module receives filter information from one of the wireless terminal and a server and generates output filter information. The proxy mobility agent module transmits a binding update to the home agent. The binding update includes the output filter information.

Claims

1. A media access gateway comprising:

a wireless network interface that selectively establishes a wireless link with a first interface of a wireless terminal that has a plurality of wireless interfaces;

an authorization module that determines a home agent corresponding to the wireless terminal;

a filter information module that receives filter information from one of the wireless terminal and a server and generates output filter information; and

a proxy mobility agent module that transmits a binding update to the home agent, wherein the binding update includes the output filter information.

2. The media access gateway of claim 1 wherein the wireless link is a first type and the binding update includes an identifier of the first type.

3. The media access gateway of claim 2 wherein the first type is one of cellular, wireless local area network, wireless metropolitan area network, and wireless personal area network.

4. The media access gateway of claim 1 wherein the wireless link is a first type, and wherein the filter information module receives the filter information from the server and generates the output filter information by removing filter information that is not associated with the first type.

5. The media access gateway of claim 1 wherein the wireless link is a first type, and wherein the filter information module transmits an identifier of the first type to the server, receives the filter information from the server, and outputs the filter information as the output filter information.

6. The media access gateway of claim 1 wherein the proxy mobility agent module receives an additional interface flag from the wireless terminal and wherein the binding update includes the additional interface flag.

7. The media access gateway of claim 6 wherein the home agent maintains previous state information for the wireless terminal when the binding update includes the additional interface flag.

8. The media access gateway of claim 1 wherein the authorization module determines the home agent by querying the server and determines the home agent by querying the server.

9. A communications system comprising:

the media access gateway of claim 1; and

the home agent, which comprises;

a home agent module that receives the binding update;

a binding cache module that stores an entry corresponding to the wireless terminal, wherein the entry includes the output filter information; and

a network processor that selectively forwards packets based on the output filter information.

10. The communications system of claim 9 wherein the home agent module selectively receives an additional interface flag, wherein the binding cache module selectively replaces a previous entry in the binding cache when the additional interface flag is in a first state, and wherein the binding cache module supplements a previous entry in the binding cache when the additional interface flag is in a second state.

11. The communications system of claim 9 wherein the home agent module allocates a home internet protocol (IP) address to the wireless terminal when the binding cache module first creates the entry for the wireless terminal.

12. The communications system of claim 11 wherein the network processor evaluates the output filter information for packets having a destination address of the home IP address.

13. The communications system of claim 12 wherein the network processor selectively forwards packets that match the output filter information to the media access gateway.

14. The communications system of claim 9 further comprising:

the wireless terminal, which comprises a plurality of wireless interfaces, wherein the plurality of wireless interfaces selectively establish wireless links with a plurality of media access gateways including the media access gateway.

15. The communications system of claim 14 wherein the control module stores filter information for each of the plurality of wireless interfaces.

16. The communications system of claim 15 wherein when one of the plurality of wireless interfaces establishes a wireless link with one of the plurality of media access gateways, the control module transmits filter information for the one of the plurality of wireless interfaces to the one of the plurality of media access gateways.

17. The communications system of claim 16 wherein the filter information is included in a message that requests a Layer 3 address from the one of the plurality of media access gateways.

18. The communications system of claim 14 wherein the control module transmits an additional connection flag having a first state when one of the plurality of wireless interfaces replaces one wireless link with another wireless link and wherein the control module transmits the additional connection flag having a second state when the one of the plurality of wireless interfaces establishes a new wireless link.

19. A method comprising:

selectively establishing a wireless link with a first interface of a wireless terminal that has a plurality of wireless interfaces;

determining a home agent corresponding to the wireless terminal;

receiving filter information from one of the wireless terminal and a server;

generating output filter information based on the filter information; and

transmitting a binding update to the home agent, wherein the binding update includes the output filter information.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the wireless link is a first type and the binding update includes an identifier of the first type.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the first type is one of cellular, wireless local area network, wireless metropolitan area network, and wireless personal area network.

22. The method of claim 19 wherein the wireless link is a first type, the filter information is received from the server, and the output filter information is generated by removing filter information that is not associated with the first type.

23. The method of claim 19 wherein the wireless link is a first type and the filter information is received from the server, and further comprising outputting the filter information as the output filter information and transmitting an identifier of the first type to the server.

24. The method of claim 19 further comprising receiving an additional interface flag from the wireless terminal and including the additional interface flag in the binding update.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the home agent maintains previous state information for the wireless terminal when the binding update includes the additional interface flag.

26. The method of claim 19 further comprising determining authorization of the wireless terminal by querying the server and determining the home agent by querying the server.

27. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

receiving the binding update;

storing an entry corresponding to the wireless terminal in a binding cache, wherein the entry includes the output filter information; and

selectively forwarding packets based on the output filter information.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein the binding update selectively includes an additional interface flag, and further comprising selectively replacing a previous entry in the binding cache when the additional interface flag is in a first state, and supplementing a previous entry in the binding cache when the additional interface flag is in a second state.

29. The method of claim 27 further comprising allocating a home internet protocol (IP) address to the wireless terminal when the entry for the wireless terminal is stored.

30. The method of claim 29 further comprising evaluating the output filter information for packets having a destination address of the home IP address.

31. The method of claim 30 further comprising selectively forwarding packets that match the output filter information.

32. The method of claim 27 further comprising selectively establishing wireless links between the plurality of wireless interfaces of the wireless terminal and a plurality of media access gateways.

33. The method of claim 32 further comprising:

storing filter information for each of the plurality of wireless interfaces; and

transmitting filter information for one of the plurality of wireless interfaces to one of the plurality of media access gateways when the one of the plurality of interfaces establishes a wireless link with the one of the plurality of media access gateways.

34. The method of claim 33 wherein the filter information is transmitted in a message that requests a Layer 3 address from the one of the plurality of media access gateways.

35. The method of claim 32 further comprising:

transmitting an additional connection flag having a first state when one of the plurality of wireless interfaces establishes a wireless link that replaces another wireless link; and

transmitting the additional connection flag having a second state when the one of the plurality of wireless interfaces establishes a new wireless link.