Proxy mobile node capability for mobile IP

• US 7,139,833 B2
• Filed: 04/04/2001
• Issued: 11/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: IPR Licensing Incorporated (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: IPR Licensing Incorporated (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Inventors: Heller, Howard Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Jungwon
• Application Number:
  US09/826,060
• Publication Number:
  US 20020147837A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,057 Days
• Field of Search: 370/331, 370/338, 370/401, 370/328, 709/202, 709/238, 709/245, 709/239, 455/456.1, 455/433
• US Class Current: 709/238
• 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 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/182 Network node acting on behalf of an other network entity, e.g. proxy

Abstract

A method and system are provided for transmitting information in a Mobile Internet Protocol (IP) environment, which includes a home agent (HA) provided at a home network, a base station (BS) broadcasting a pilot signal, a foreign agent (FA) provided at or associated with the BS, a mobile node (MN) providing the ability to detect and identify itself to a BS, and a proxy mobile node (PMN) identifying the MN wherein the PMN is provided at the BS. If the PMN identifies the MN, the PMN retrieves an IP address for each of the MN, FA and HA and sends a registration request to the FA. The FA relays the registration request to the HA, and the proxy MN is registered with the HA. Thus, the MN functionality is provided transparently to the MN by the PMN. This significantly simplifies the configuration of the MN and the Mobile IP network.

Claims

1. A method for transmitting information in a Mobile Internet Protocol (IP) network including a mobile node (MN), a base station (BS) and a home network, wherein a proxy mobile node (PMN) and a foreign agent (FA) are provided at the BS, and a home agent (HA) is provided at the home network, the method comprising the steps of:

the MN detecting the BS from a pilot signal broadcast from the BS;

the PMN identifying the MN from link layer messages that provide an identity of the MN to the BS;

the PMN retrieving an IP address for each of the MN, FA and HA from a database based on the identity of the MN, the MN not participating in Mobile IP registration;

the PMN generating and sending a registration request as a network message with the IP address of the MN to the FA on behalf of the mobile node (MN);

the FA relaying the request to the HA;

the HA registering the PMN identified with the MN;

the HA forwarding Mobile IP packet to the FA by encapsulating the information into at least one Mobile IP packet;

the FA unencapsulating the forwarded IP packet into original data;

the FA forwarding the original data to the MN;

determining whether a new base station including a new proxy mobile node (PMN) is detected from a pilot signal broadcast from the new base station;

if it is determined that a new base station is detected,

(a) the MN transmitting link layer messages that provide the identity of the MN to the new BS;

(b) the new PMN identifying the MN from the link layer messages;

(c) the new PMN retrieving an IP address for the MN, a new foreign agent (FA), and the HA from the database based on the identity of the MN;

(d) the new PMN generating and sending a new registration request to the new FA associated with the new BS on behalf of the mobile node (MN);

(e) the new FA relaying the new registration request to the HA;

(f) the HA registering the new PMN; and

(g) the HA forwarding the Mobile IP packet to the new FA.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of acknowledging the registration of step (f).

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the MN comprises customer premise equipment (CPE) and a computer.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the CPE comprises at least one of a wireless radio, personal digital assistant (PDA) and a mobile telephone, T1 line, cable modem, digital subscriber line (DSL) and asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) modem.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of storing additional information for the PMN in the database wherein the additional information comprises;

a home address which is an IP address of the MN;

a foreign agent IP address which is an IP address of the FA;

a home agent IP address which is an IP address of the HA;

a care-of address which is an IP address for a destination for the information;

mobile-foreign security information which is a security association between the MN and the FA;

mobile-home security information which is a security association between the MN and the HA;

an identification field value for matching registration requests and acknowledgments;

a lifetime value for a number of seconds allowed from the registration before the registration is considered expired; and

a current lifetime value for a number of seconds remaining before the registration is considered expired.

6. A Mobile Internet protocol (IP) network comprising:

a home network;

a home agent (HA) provided at the home network;

a base station (BS) broadcasting a pilot signal;

a foreign agent (FA) provided at or associated with the BS;

a mobile node (MN) providing an ability to detect and identify itself to a BS, such that the MN detects the BS from the pilot signal broadcast from the BS and the MN identifies itself to the BS by transmitting link layer messages that provided an identity of the MN to the BS, the MN not participating in Mobile IP registration; and

a proxy mobile node (PMN) identifying the MN from the link layer messages, the proxy MN being provided at the BS;

wherein the PMN respectively retrieves an IP address for each of the MN, FA and HA from a database based on the identity of the MN, the PMN generates and sends a registration request as a network message with the IP address of the MN to the FA on behalf of the mobile node, the FA relays the registration request to the HA, and the PMN is registered with the HA if the PMN identifies the MN, so that the MN functionality is provided transparently to the MN by the PMN;

a new base station (BS) broadcasting a pilot signal;

a new foreign agent (FA) associated with the new BS;

a new proxy mobile node (PMN) provided at the new BS;

wherein if the MN detects the new BS from the pilot signal broadcasted by the new BS, the MN transmits link layer messages that provide the identity of the MN to the new BS, the new PMN identifies the MN from the link layer messages, the new PMN retrieves an IP address for each of the MN, the new FA, and the HA from the database based on the identity of the MN, the new PMN generates and sends a new registration request to the new FA on behalf of the mobile node, the new FA relays the new registration request to the HA, and the new PMN is registered with the HA via the new FA.

7. The network of claim 6 wherein the MN comprises customer premise equipment (CPE) and a computer.

8. The network of claim 7 wherein the CPE comprises at least one of a wireless radio, personal digital assistant (PDA) and a mobile telephone, T1 line, cable modem, digital subscriber line (DSL) and asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) modem.

9. The network of claim 6 wherein the database stores additional information for the PMN, the additional information comprising;

a home address which is an IP address of the MN;

a foreign agent IP address which is an IP address of the FA;

a home agent IP address which is an IP address of the HA;

a care-of address which is an IP address for a destination for the information;

mobile-foreign security information which is a security association between the MN and the FA;

mobile-home security information which is a security association between the MN and the HA;

an identification field value for matching registration requests and acknowledgments;

a lifetime value for a number of seconds allowed from the registration before the registration is considered expired; and

a current lifetime value for a number of seconds remaining before the registration is considered expired.