Mobile data communications apparatus, methods and computer program products implementing cellular wireless data communications via a wireless local area network

• US 7,408,906 B2
• Filed: 02/20/2002
• Issued: 08/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ericsson, Inc. (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Original Assignee: Ericsson, Inc. (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Inventors: Bexten, Ron, Griswold, Doug
• Primary Examiner(s): Orgad; Edan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Haliyur; Venkatesh
• Application Number:
  US10/079,159
• Publication Number:
  US 20030156566A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,358 Days
• Field of Search: 370/338, 370/349, 370352-356, 370231-237, 3703951-421, 370/335, 370/392, 370/466, 455/404, 455/406, 455/418, 455/439, 455/456.1, 709/206, 709/230, 709/238, 709/245
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 Inter-networking arrangements

Abstract

A mobile data communications system includes a cellular wireless data communications network, such as a GPRS or CDPD network, including a plurality of base stations that communicate with terminals according to a first radio interface. The plurality of base stations are coupled to a control node, such as a GPRS Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN) or a CDPD Mobile Data Intermediate System (MD-IS), that administers services, such as mobility management and billing, for terminals communicating with the base stations. The system also includes a wireless local area network (LAN), such as a mobile IP network, that is operative to communicate with terminals according to a second radio interface. The system further includes a mobile data internetworking system that is coupled between the control node and the wireless local area network and that provides data communications therebetween. The wireless LAN may have a coverage area that overlaps or adjoins a coverage area of the cellular wireless data communications network, such that, for example, higher user densities and/or data rates may be supported in “hot spots,” such as airports, hotels, convention centers and the like.

Claims

1. A mobile data communications system comprising:

a cellular wireless data communications network comprising a plurality of base stations that communicate with terminals according to a first radio interface, the plurality of base stations coupled to a control node that administers services provided to terminals communicating with the base stations, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network comprises one of a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) network or a Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) network, and wherein the control node comprises a corresponding one of a Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN) or a Mobile Data Intermediate System (MD-IS);

a wireless local area network (LAN) operative to communicate with terminals according to a second radio interface; and

a mobile data internetworking system that is coupled between the control node and the wireless local area network and that provides data communications therebetween, wherein the mobile data internetworking system is interfaced to the control node using a same interface that interfaces the control node to each of the plurality of base stations,

wherein communications between the mobile data internetworking system and the control node use a mobility management protocol layer that supports mobility management in the cellular wireless data communications network and wherein communications between terminals and the mobile data internetworking system do not use a mobility management layer that supports mobility management in the cellular wireless data communications network.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network is operative, via the mobile data internetworking system, to manage services for a terminal communicating with the wireless LAN according to the second radio interface.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network is operative to identify the terminal communicating with the wireless LAN as a subscriber to the cellular wireless data communications network.

4. A system according to claim 2, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network is operative to manage services for a terminal communicating with the wireless LAN even if the terminal is incapable of supporting the first radio interface.

5. A system according to claim 2, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network is operative to assign communications charges for the terminal communicating with the wireless LAN.

6. A system according to claim 1, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network further comprises a gateway node operative to communicate between the control node and an external network according to a data packet routing protocol layer used in communicating between terminals and the mobile data internetworking system.

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless LAN comprises an IP network.

8. A system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless LAN has a coverage area that overlaps or adjoins a coverage area of the cellular wireless data communications network.

9. A system according to claim 8, wherein the coverage area of the wireless LAN is substantially smaller than the coverage area of the cellular wireless data communications network.

10. A system according to claim 8, wherein the wireless LAN is capable of providing substantially higher-bandwidth communications to an individual terminal than the cellular wireless data communications network.

11. A system according to claim 8, wherein the wireless LAN is capable of serving a higher density of terminals than the cellular wireless data communications network.

12. A system according to claim 1, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network comprises a data communications overlay network configured to utilize network infrastructure in common with a cellular radiotelephone network.

16. An internetworking system according to claim 1, wherein the second port is configured to connect to an IP network.

13. A mobile data internetworking system comprising:

a first port configured to be connected to one of a SGSN or MD-IS that administers services provided to terminals that communicate according to a first radio interface with base stations of a corresponding one of a GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network, wherein the first port is interfaced to the one of a SGSN or MD-IS using a same interface that interfaces the one of a SGSN or MD-IS to each of a plurality of base stations of the corresponding GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network;

a second port configured to be connected to a wireless LAN that communicates with terminals according to a second radio interface; and

a protocol converter coupled between the first and second ports and operative to convert between a first protocol stack used by the control node of the cellular wireless data communications network, the first protocol stack comprising a mobility management layer that supports mobility management in the cellular wireless data communications network, and a second protocol stack used for communications with terminals via the wireless LAN, the second protocol stack lacking a layer corresponding to the mobility management layer.

14. An internetworking system according to claim 13, wherein the protocol converter enables the cellular wireless data communications network to manage services for terminal that is in wireless communication with the wireless LAN.

15. An internetworking system according to claim 13, wherein the protocol conversion subsystem enables the cellular wireless data communications network to identify the terminal in wireless communication with the wireless LAN as a subscriber to the cellular wireless data communications network.

17. A method of providing mobile data communications services, comprising:

linking a cellular wireless data communications network comprising a control node that administers communications between terminals and a plurality of base stations according to first radio interface to a wireless LAN operative to communicate with terminals according to a second radio interface, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network comprises one of a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) network or a Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) network, and wherein the control node comprises a corresponding one of a Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN) or a Mobile Data Intermediate System (MD-IS); and

managing services for a terminal in radio communication with the wireless LAN from the control node of the cellular wireless data communications network, wherein managing services for the terminal in radio communication with the wireless LAN from the control node of the cellular wireless data communications network comprises;

communicating information between the one of the SGSN or MD-IS and an internetworking system coupled between the one of the SGSN or MD-IS and the wireless LAN using a mobility management protocol layer that supports mobility management in the cellar wireless data communications network using a same interface that interfaces the one of the SGSN or MD-IS to each of a plurality of base stations of the corresponding GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network; and

communicating information between the terminal and the internetworking system via the wireless LAN without use of a mobility management layer that supports mobility management in the cellular wireless data communications network.

18. A method according to claim 17, wherein managing services for a terminal in radio communications with the wireless LAN from the control node of the cellular wireless data communications network comprises managing services for the terminal as if the terminal is a subscriber to the cellular wireless data communications network.

19. A method according to claim 17, wherein the terminal is incapable of supporting the first radio interface.

20. A method according to claim 17, wherein the wireless LAN comprises an IP network.

21. A method according to claim 17, wherein the cellular wireless data communications network comprises a data communications overlay network configured to utilize network infrastructure in common with a cellular radiotelephone network.

22. A computer-readable medium embodied with a computer program configured to execute in a computer of an internetworking system that couples one of a SGSN or MD-IS that administers services provided to terminals that communicate according to a first radio interface with base stations of a corresponding one of a GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network to a wireless LAN that communicates with terminals according to a second radio interface, the computer program comprising:

instructions operative to convert between a first protocol stack of an interface used by the one of a SGSN or MD-IS of the corresponding one of a GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network to interface to each of a plurality of base stations of the corresponding one of the GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network, the first protocol stack comprising a mobility management layer that supports mobility management in the corresponding one of a GPRS or CDPD cellular wireless data communications network, and a second protocol stack used by the wireless LAN, the second protocol stack lacking a mobility management layer that supports mobility management in the cellular wireless data communications network.

23. A computer-readable medium according to claim 22, wherein the instructions are operative to convert between one of a GPRS or a CDPD cellular wireless networking protocol and IP.