MOBILE NETWORK SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROCESSING IP HANDOFF THEREOF

• US 20100020766A1
• Filed: 10/29/2007
• Published: 01/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Kim, Sang Kwon, Kang, Sung-Soo
• Granted Patent: US 8,279,833 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/331
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/00 Hand-off or reselection arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/36 due to handover
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/02 Access restriction performed under specific conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/06 Registration at serving network Location Register, VLR or user mobility server
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

Provided are a mobile network system capable of processing a high-speed handoff by dividing into a data packet path between mobile nodes and a handoff packet path of the mobile node, and a method for processing IP handoff thereof. The system includes a MAP broadcasting a handoff registration request and reply between a foreign agent and a home agent, and an additional handoff signal path between the MAP and a mobile agent operating as a foreign agent and a home agent by means of a HAAP and VPN technology to be physically distinguishable from a data path. Therefore, limitation in a head of line can be resolved and the IP handoff can be promptly provided.

Claims

1. A mobile network system comprising:

a plurality of mobile agents operating as a home agent with respect to a service-subscribed mobile node, and operating as a foreign agent with respect to a mobile node service-subscribed to another mobile agent and moving into a its own mobile network region, such that data is delivered between the mobile node and a correspondent mobile node in administrating mobile network region, respectively; and

a mobile agent platform including a signal path for processing handoff of the mobile agents and the mobile node, and relaying a handoff registration request message and a handoff registration response message between a mobile agent operating as a home agent with respect to a mobile node and a mobile agent operating as a foreign agent with respect to a mobile node through the signal path.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the signal path is embodied through a virtual private network.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the signal path is embodied through a high altitude aeronautical platform (HAAP).

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile agent platform comprises:

a temporary list storing information of a mobile node requesting handoff registration; and

a visitor list storing information of a mobile node permitted for handoff registration.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the mobile agent platform determines whether an entry of a corresponding mobile node is in the visitor list or not when receiving a handoff registration request message from the mobile agent,

wherein if the entry is not in the visitor list, the mobile agent platform stores the registration request message in the temporary list and then delivers the message to a mobile agent corresponding to a home agent after, and

if the entry is in the visitor list, the mobile agent platform updates the corresponding entry of the visitor list platform, delivers a handoff registration response message to a mobile agent corresponding to a foreign agent instead of a home agent, and then delivers the intact handoff registration request message into a mobile agent corresponding to a home agent.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the mobile agent platform stores a lifetime of each mobile node in the visitor list, and eliminates an entry of a corresponding mobile node from the visitor list when the lifetime is expired.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein when receiving a handoff registration response message from a mobile agent, the mobile agent platform erases a corresponding entry from the temporary list, updates the visitor list based on contents of the message, and transmits the handoff registration response message to a mobile agent corresponding to a foreign agent.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the mobile agent platform determines whether registration is permitted or not according to the received handoff registration response message,

wherein if the registration is permitted, the mobile agent platform adds an entry of a corresponding mobile node to the visitor list, and

if the registration is not permitted, the mobile agenet platform erases a corresponding entry from the temporary list without adding the entry to the visitor list.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the mobile agent platform transmits the handoff registration response message into a mobile agent, i.e., a previous foreign agent of the mobile node, if an entry for a mobile node of the received handoff registration response message is in the temporary list, and transmits the handoff registration response message into a mobile agent corresponding to a current foreign agent if the entry is not in the temporary list.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein in a case of operating as a foreign agent, the mobile agent delivers a received handoff registration request message into a mobile agent platform and stores the handoff registration request message in a temporary list when receiving the handoff registration request message of a mobile node moving from another network region.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein in a case of operating as a foreign agent, the mobile agent erases an entry for a corresponding mobile node from the temporary list and adds the mobile node to the visitor list when receiving a handoff registration response message from the mobile agent platform.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein in a case of operating as a foreign agent, the mobile agent delivers a handoff registration response message into a mobile agent platform when receiving the handoff registration response message not from the mobile agent platform.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein in a case of operating a home agent, the mobile agent determines whether handoff registration for a corresponding mobile node is permitted or not when receiving a handoff registration request message from a mobile agent platform, and generates an entry of a corresponding mobile node to store a care-of-address (CoA) and an IP address of a foreign agent and generates a handoff registration response message including the determination result of whether registration is permitted or not to deliver it to the mobile agent platform if the handoff registration is permitted.

14. A method for processing handoff by a mobile agent platform in a mobile network system with a plurality of mobile agents and a mobile agent platform, the method comprising:

receiving a handoff registration request message of a mobile node from a mobile agent;

determining whether an entry of the registration-requested mobile node is in a visitor list or not;

updating a corresponding entry based on contents of the received message if the entry is in the visitor list;

adding an entry of a corresponding mobile node to a temporary list by copying the received message if the entry is not in the visitor list; and

after performing the updating and the adding, delivering the received handoff registration request message in to a mobile agent corresponding to a home agent of a corresponding mobile node.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving a handoff registration response message from a mobile agent by the mobile agent platform;

erasing a corresponding entry from the temporary list and updating the corresponding entry in the visitor list based on the received handoff registration response message; and

delivering the received handoff registration response message into a mobile agent corresponding to a foreign agent of a corresponding mobile node.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the updating a corresponding entry based on contents of the received message further comprises moving an entry of a corresponding mobile node from the visitor list into the temporary list.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the updating a corresponding entry based on contents of the received message further comprises transmitting the handoff registration response message into a mobile agent that transmits the handoff registration request message instead of the home agent of the mobile node.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the erasing a corresponding entry from the temporary list and updating the corresponding entry in the visitor list further comprises:

determining whether handoff registration is permitted or not by referring to the received response message;

determining whether an entry of a mobile node related to the handoff registration response message is in the temporary list or not;

erasing a corresponding entry from the temporary list and adding the corresponding entry to the visitor list if the handoff registration is permitted and the entry of the corresponding mobile node is in the temporary list;

adding a corresponding entry to only the visitor list if the handoff registration of the mobile node is permitted and the entry of the corresponding mobile node is not in the temporary list;

erasing the entry from the temporary list if the handoff registration of the mobile node is not permitted and the corresponding entry is in the temporary list; and

not updating the temporary list and the visitor list if the handoff registration of the mobile node is not permitted and a corresponding entry is not in the temporary list.

19. The method of 18, wherein the the delivering the received handoff registration response message comprises delivering the handoff registration response message into a mobile agent corresponding to a previous foreign agent of the mobile node if the registration of the mobile node is permitted and a corresponding entry is in the temporary list.

20. The method of 18, wherein the delivering the received handoff registration response message comprises delivering the response message into a current foreign agent of the mobile node if the registration of the mobile node is not permitted, or if an entry of a corresponding mobile node is not in the temporary list although the registration of the mobile node is permitted.

21. A method of processing handoff by a mobile agent operating as a home agentin a mobile network with a plurality of mobile agents and a mobile agent platform, the method comprising:

receiving a handoff registration request message from the mobile agent platform;

determining whether handoff registration with respect to a registration-requested mobile node is permitted or not;

generating an entry for a corresponding mobile node in a visit list and copying a CoA and an IP address of a foreign agent from the message if the registration is permitted; and

generating a handoff registration response message with the determination result of whether the registration is permitted or not to deliver it to the mobile agent platform.

22. A method of processing handoff by a mobile agent operating as a foreign agent in a mobile network with a plurality of mobile agents and a mobile agent platform, the method comprising:

receiving a handoff registration request message;

adding an entry of a corresponding mobile node to a temporary list and erasing an entry of a corresponding mobile node from a visitor list if the handoff registration request message is transmitted from the mobile agent platform; and

delivering the handoff registration request message into the mobile agent platform if the handoff registration request message is not transmitted from the mobile agent platform.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

receiving a handoff registration response message;

determining whether an entry of a corresponding mobile node is in a temporary list or not if the handoff registration response message is transmitted from the mobile agent platform;

erasing a corresponding entry from the temporary list if the entry is in the temporary list;

processing the received registration response message as a foreign agent if the entry is not in the temporary list according to the determination result; and

delivering the message into a mobile agent platform after updating the entry of the visitor list if the handoff registration response message is not transmitted from the mobile agent platform.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

receiving data packet from a correspondent node;

determining whether a mobile node, i.e., a destination of the data packet, is in the visitor list or not;

delivering the data packet into a corresponding mobile node if the mobile node is in the visitor list according to the determination result; and

delivering the data packet into a current foreign agent of the mobile node by searching the temporary list if the mobile node is not in the visitor list.