Architecture and method for using IEEE 802.11-like wireless LAN system to emulate private land mobile radio system (PLMRS) radio service

• US 7,307,963 B2
• Filed: 07/26/2002
• Issued: 12/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chow, Albert T., Miller, Robert Raymond II, Murray, John F., Rice, Christopher W
• Primary Examiner(s): HSU, ALPUS
• Application Number:
  US10/207,702
• Publication Number:
  US 20030058827A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,964 Days
• Field of Search: 370/259, 370/338, 370/352, 370/390, 370/401, 370/432, 379/88.17, 379/93.07, 379/201.1, 455/414.1
• US Class Current: 370/259
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1016 IP multimedia subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4061 Push-to services, e.g. push-to-talk or push-to-video
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/10 Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-On-Call services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/45 for Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-to-Talk over cellular [PoC] services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/00 Wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/08 Trunked mobile radio systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

An architecture is described for providing IP push-to-talk (IPP2T) service using a wireless local area network (WLAN) serving a plurality of subscriber terminals (STs), having at least one broadband access network terminal (BANT), the BANT coupled to and interacting with at least one of a plurality of Access Points (APs) via a local area network (LAN), the plurality of APs in communication with the plurality of subscriber terminals; a multicast-enabled network, the multicast-enabled network coupled to and interacting with at least one BANT via a broadband access network; an IP network coupled to, and interacting with, the multicast-enabled network via an edge router; and a WLAN mobile radio service (WLMRS) controller (WLMRSC) coupled to and interacting with the IP network via a multicast-enabled router (MR).

Claims

1. An architecture for providing IP push-to-talk (IPP2T) service using a wireless local area network (WLAN) serving a plurality of subscriber terminals (STs), comprising:

at least one broadband access network terminal (BANT), said BANT coupled to and interacting with at least one of a plurality of Access Points (APs) via a local area network (LAN), said plurality of APs in communication with said plurality of subscriber terminals;

a multicast-enabled network, said multicast-enabled network coupled to and interacting with said at least one BANT via a broadband access network;

an IP network coupled to, and interacting with, said multicast-enabled network via an edge router; and

a WLAN mobile radio service (WLMRS) controller (WLMRSC) coupled to and interacting with said IP network via a multicast-enabled router (MR).

2. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said IP network is further coupled to, and interacts with, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) via a PSTN gateway.

3. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said IP network is further coupled to and interacts with an SS7 network via an SS7 gateway.

4. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said IP network is further coupled to and interacts with a public cellular network via a public cellular network gateway.

5. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said IP network is further coupled to and interacts with a content service provider via a content service provider gateway.

6. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said IP network is further coupled to and interacts with an Internet Service Provider (ISP) via a router.

7. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said STs are wireless terminals capable of operating on a wireless LAN system.

8. The architecture according to claim 7, wherein said communication between said STs and said APs are via a common air interface.

9. The architecture according to claim 8, wherein said STs broadcast information and control signaling over said air interface.

10. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said LAN is Ethernet 10/100 base-T.

11. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said WLAN uses a quality-of-service (QoS) protocol capable WLAN.

12. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein information communicated between said plurality of STs and a remainder of components comprising said architecture is multimedia.

13. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said architecture is digital providing superior voice quality and increased compatibility with trunking to other locations.

14. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said WLAN utilizes a small-cell architecture.

15. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said architecture supports redundancy resulting in improved system reliability.

16. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said architecture is a packet communication architecture.

17. The architecture according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of STs are emulated IP push-to-talk (IPP2T) devices.

18. A method for providing IP push-to-talk (IPP2T) service using a wireless local area network (WLAN) comprising:

receiving information and control signaling over the air from a subscriber terminal (ST) at an access point (AP) via a WLAN;

packetizing said information and said control signaling by said AP;

forwarding said packetized information and said control signaling between said AP and a broadband access network terminal (BANT) via a local area network (LAN);

sending said packetized information and said control signaling between said BANT and a multicast-enabled network via a broadband access network;

routing said information and said control signaling between said multicast-enabled network and an IP network via an edge router; and

directing said information and said control signaling to a WLAN mobile radio system (WLMRS) controller (WLMRSC) via a multicast-enabled router (MR).

19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising sending information and control signaling over the air from said AP to a second ST via said WLAN.

20. The method according to claim 18, wherein said IEEE 802.11 ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support a centralized contention and reservation request protocol for quality of service (QoS) driven WLANs.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein said centralized contention and reservation request protocol for quality of service (QoS) driven WLANs is a Mediaplex protocol.

22. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support authentication, accounting and authorization services and associated network control and signaling exchange.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein said network control and signaling exchange is based on IETF RFC 2865 Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) standard.

24. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support calls and features application using IP network protocols.

25. The method according to claim 20, wherein said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support radio frequency (RF) and radio management processes related to IPP2T services.

26. The method according to claim 20, wherein said AT, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support operations, administration, maintenance and provisioning (OAM&

P) processes related to IPP2T services.

27. The method according to claim 20, wherein said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support security management processes necessary for IPP2T services.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein said security management processes include subscriber authentication and data encryption.

29. The method according to claim 27, wherein said security management process includes setting up secure channels based on a network-based key management program.

30. The method according to claim 29, wherein a subscriber part of a secure group by adding a personal security key.

31. The method according to claim 20, wherein said BANT supports media stream mixing and multicasting of said information associated with JPP2T services.

32. The method according to claim 20, wherein said WLMRSC supports system and subscriber database management.

33. The method according to claim 32, wherein said system and subscriber database management includes subscriber profiles, JPP2T multicast team assignments, authentication, accounting and authorization (AAA) services, mobility services and call and features applications.

34. The method according to claim 20, wherein said centralized contention and reservation request protocol for quality of service (QoS) driven WLANs supports a priority scheme such that emergency communications supercede regular LAN traffic.

35. The method according to claim 20, wherein said BANT and said WLMRSC support inter-working with other BANTs and WLMRSCs for IPP2T associated services, information and signaling and control information exchange.

36. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support multicasting.

37. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support multicast routing functions related to IPP2T service.

38. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support mobility for said ST and personal and services management.

39. The method according to claim 38, wherein said IPP2T service is rendered to all subscribers of a group using an IEEE 802.11 device anytime and anywhere via a remote registration scheme and assignment of a temporary IP address.

40. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT, said WLMRSC and said MR all support sending and receiving multicast applications associated with User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Internet Protocol (IP), Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) and Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP).

41. The method according to claim 20, wherein said ST, said AP, said BANT and said WLMRSC all support related network interface card (NIC) and drivers that filter IPP2T-related link layer and network IP layer multicast addresses.

42. The method according to claim 20, wherein said BANT and said WLMRSC support a firewall that permits IP multicast traffic.

43. The method according to claim 20, wherein said MR supports IP information routing.

44. The method according to claim 20, wherein a MR database (DB) associated with said WLMRSC maintains IPP2T subscriber personal and service profiles.