Method and system for providing multiple connections from a common wireless access point

• US 7,633,909 B1
• Filed: 12/20/2002
• Issued: 12/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LLC (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Delker, Jason R. A., Everson, John M., Jones, Bryce A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoang; Thai D
• Application Number:
  US10/327,427
• Time in Patent Office: 2,552 Days
• Field of Search: 370/338, 370328-329, 370342-348, 370419-420, 455/411
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/088 using filters or firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/085 Access point devices with remote components

Abstract

A method and system for providing connections from a wireless access point. The wireless access point has multiple connections to remote endpoints. The access point detects a wireless-network identifier (such as a service set identifier (SSID)) provided by a terminal via an air interface, and the access point uses the wireless-network identifier as a basis to select one of the connections over which to send traffic from the terminal.

Claims

1. A wireless local area network (WLAN) access point comprising:

a wireless communication interface for wirelessly communicating with terminals over an air interface;

at least one network interface for coupling with at least one communications network, wherein, after the access point is coupled via the at least one network interface with the at least one communications network, a plurality of connections extend from the access point over the at least one communications network, each connection extending to a respective remote endpoint;

connection-selection logic applicable by the access point to detect a wireless-network identifier that the access point receives from a given terminal via the wireless communication interface and, based on the wireless-network identifier, to select one of the connections over which to send at least one communication from the given terminal; and

traffic-filtering logic applicable by the access point (a) to determine whether the at least one communication from the given terminal is a particular type, (b) to allow transmission of the at least one communication over the selected connection if the at least one communication is the particular type and (c) to prevent transmission of the at least one communication over the connection if the at least one communication is not the particular type.

2. The access point of claim 1, wherein the particular type is voice traffic.

3. The access point of claim 1, wherein the wireless-network identifier is a service set identifier (SSID).

4. The access point of claim 1, wherein the access point receives the wireless-network identifier in an access request from the given terminal, and wherein the at least one communication comprises a given communication that the access point receives after the access request.

5. The access point of claim 4, wherein the connection-selection logic comprises connection-correlation data that correlates (i) a hardware address of the given terminal with (ii) the selected connection,

whereby, when the access point receives the given communication from the given terminal, the access point detects the hardware address of the given terminal and, pursuant to the connection-correlation data, routes the given communication over the selected connection.

6. The access point of claim 1, wherein the access point receives the wireless-network identifier together with the at least one communication from the given terminal.

7. The access point of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections comprises a plurality of logical connections.

8. The access point of claim 7, wherein the plurality of logical connections comprises a plurality of virtual private network (VPN) tunnels, and wherein the respective remote endpoint of each VPN tunnel is a respective remote VPN terminator.

9. The access point of claim 8, further comprising VPN client logic applicable by the access point to establish the plurality of VPN tunnels, wherein the connection-selection logic comprises VPN-correlation logic that correlates wireless-network identifiers with the VPN tunnels.

10. The access point of claim 9, further comprising a processor, wherein the VPN client logic comprises machine language instructions executable by the processor.

11. The access point of claim 10, further comprising data storage, wherein the machine language instructions are stored in the data storage.

12. The access point of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections comprises a plurality of physical connections.

13. The access point of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections comprises at least one physical connection and at least one logical connection.

14. The access point of claim 1, wherein the access point communicates with the terminals over the air interface according to a WLAN protocol.

15. The access point of claim 14, wherein the WLAN protocol is a protocol selected from the group consisting of 802.11, an 802.11-variant, Bluetooth, and HomeRF.

16. The access point of claim 1, further comprising a processor, wherein the connection-selection logic comprises machine language instructions executable by the processor.

17. The access point of claim 16, further comprising data storage, wherein the machine language instructions are stored in the data storage.

18. The access point of claim 1, wherein the at least one network interface comprises an interface selected from the group consisting of (i) an Ethernet network interface, (ii) a cable modem and coaxial cable port and (iii) a DSL modem and RJ-11 port.

19. The access point of claim 1, wherein

the connection-selection logic is applicable by the access point to detect a first wireless-network identifier that the access point receives from a first terminal via the wireless communication interface and, based on the first wireless-network identifier, to select a first one of the connections over which to send at least one communication from the first terminal;

and

the connection-selection logic is applicable by the access point to detect a second wireless-network identifier that the access point receives from a second terminal via the wireless communication interface and, based on the second wireless-network identifier, to select a second one of the connections over which to send at least one communication from the first terminal,

wherein the first wireless-network identifier is different than the second wireless-network identifier, and the first one of the connections is different than the second one of the connections.

20. A voice access point having a housing and comprising within the housing:

a processor;

a wireless communication interface for wirelessly communicating with terminals over an air interface;

a network interface for coupling with a communications network;

virtual private network (VPN) client logic executable by the processor to establish plurality of VPN tunnels over the communications network, each VPN tunnel extending from the voice access point to a respective remotely located VPN terminator;

connection-selection logic executable by the processor (i) to detect a first service set identifier (SSID) received from a first terminal over the air interface and, based on the first SSID, to select a first one of the VPN tunnels over which to send a first communication from the first terminal and (ii) to detect a second SSID received from a second terminal over the air interface and, based on the second SSID, to select a second one of the VPN tunnels over which to send the second communication, wherein the first SSID is different than the second SSID, and the first VPN tunnel is different than the second VPN tunnel; and

traffic-filtering logic applicable by the access point (a) to determine whether the first communication from the first terminal is a particular type, (b) to allow transmission of the first communication over the selected first VPN tunnel if the first communication is the particular type and (c) to prevent transmission of the first communication over the selected first VPN tunnel if the first communication is not the particular type.

21. A method comprising:

establishing a plurality of connections from a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point, each connection extending over at least one communications network to a respective remote endpoint;

wirelessly receiving into the access point a first wireless-network identifier from a first terminal via an air interface extending from the first terminal to the access point;

within the access point, using the first wireless-network identifier as a basis to select a first one of the connections over which to send a communication from the first terminal; and

within the access point, (a) determining whether the communication from the first terminal is a particular type, (b) sending the communication from the first terminal over the selected first connection if the first communication is the particular type and (c) preventing transmission of the communication from the first terminal over the selected first connection if the first communication is not the particular type.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein receiving the first wireless-network identifier from the first terminal comprises receiving an access request from the first terminal, the method further comprising receiving the communication from the first terminal after receiving the access request from the first terminal.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of connections comprises a plurality of physical connections.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of connections comprises a plurality of logical connections.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of logical connections comprises a plurality of virtual private network (VPN) tunnels.

26. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

wirelessly receiving into the access point a second wireless-network identifier from a second terminal via an air interface extending from the second terminal to the access point, the second wireless-network identifier being different than the first wireless-network identifier;

within the access point, using the second wireless-network identifier as a basis to select a second one of the connections over which to send a communication from the second terminal, the second one of the connections being different than the first one of the connections; and

sending the communication from the second terminal over the selected second connection.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein receiving the second wireless-network identifier from the second terminal comprises receiving an access request from the second terminal, the method further comprising receiving the communication from the second terminal after receiving the access request from the second terminal.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of connections comprises a plurality of VPN tunnels, wherein the respective remote endpoint of each VPN tunnel is a respective VPN terminator.

29. A method comprising:

connecting to a local area network (LAN) a wireless access point that has a housing and that comprises within the housing (i) a wireless communication interface for wirelessly communicating with terminals over an air interface, (ii) at least one network interface for coupling the access point with at least one communications network, and (iii) a virtual private network (VPN) client application configured with a plurality of predefined sets of security settings;

after the wireless access point is connected to the LAN, the wireless access point using the plurality of sets to establish a plurality of VPN tunnels via the LAN and a public packet network, wherein each VPN tunnel extends from the VPN client to a respective VPN terminator on a respective remote network, including a first VPN tunnel extending from the VPN client to a first VPN terminator on a first remote network;

the wireless access point receiving a first wireless-network identifier from a first terminal via the air interface;

the wireless access point using the first wireless-network identifier as a basis to select the first VPN tunnel from the plurality of VPN tunnels;

the access point determining whether the communication from the first terminal is a particular type;

the wireless access point routing the communication from the first terminal along the first VPN tunnel if the communication from the first terminal is the particular type; and

the wireless access point preventing transmission of the communication from the first terminal along the first VPN tunnel if the first communication is not the particular type.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the first network identifier comprises a wireless local area network (WLAN) service set identifier (SSID).

31. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

the wireless access point forwarding a first dynamic host control protocol (DHCP) request from the first terminal over the selected first VPN tunnel.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the a plurality of VPN tunnels further includes a second VPN tunnel extending from the VPN client to a second VPN terminator on a second remote network, the method further comprising:

the wireless access point receiving a second wireless-network identifier from a second terminal via the air interface;

the wireless access point using the second network identifier as a basis to select the second VPN tunnel from the plurality of VPN tunnels; and

routing a communication from the second terminal along the second VPN tunnel.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the first network identifier comprises a first wireless local area network (WLAN) service set identifier (SSID) and the second network identifier comprises a second SSID different than the first SSID.

34. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

the wireless access point forwarding a second dynamic host control protocol (DHCP) request from the second terminal over the selected second VPN tunnel.