System, apparatus, and methods for proactive allocation of wireless communication resources

• US 7,697,508 B2
• Filed: 08/02/2004
• Issued: 04/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mobility Workx, LLC, Abdelsalam Ali Helal
• Original Assignee: University of Florida Research Foundation, Incorporated (State University System of Florida)
• Inventors: Hernandez-Mondragon, Edwin A., Helal, Abdelsalam G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Minh D
• Application Number:
  US10/909,818
• Publication Number:
  US 20050058099A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,080 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352, 370/332, 370/238, 370/235, 370/401, 370/351, 370/329, 709/239, 455/432.1, 455/433, 455/439
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/044 comprising hierarchical management structures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/048 mobile agents
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0019 adapted for mobile IP [MIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/08 Access restriction or access information delivery, e.g. discovery data delivery signalling during connection H04W76/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/182 Network node acting on behalf of an other network entity, e.g. proxy

Abstract

A system for communication between a mobile node and a communications network is provided for use with a communications network having one or more communications network nodes that define a foreign agents and that communicate with the mobile node in a predefined region. The system includes a ghost-foreign agent that advertises a foreign agent so that the mobile node is aware of the foreign agent when the mobile node is located outside the predefined region. The system further includes a ghost-mobile node that signals the foreign agent in response to the foreign agent advertising and based upon a predicted future state of the mobile node.

Claims

1. A system for handling mobile devices in a wireless communications network, the system comprising:

a mobile node communicatively linked to the wireless communications network, wherein the mobile node has a corresponding geographical current state and one or more predicted geographical future states;

at least one foreign agent identified for each of the geographical future states;

at least one ghost mobile node associated with the mobile node, wherein said ghost mobile node can announce to said foreign agent the presence of said ghost mobile node;

a ghost-foreign agent associated with said foreign agent, wherein said ghost foreign agent can announce to said mobile node or said ghost mobile node associated with the mobile node, the presence of said ghost foreign agent;

means for registering said ghost mobile node or mobile node with the associated ghost foreign agent or foreign agent, while the mobile node remains in the geographical current state; and

means for linking the mobile node with a foreign agent associated with said ghost foreign agent when the mobile node enters a respective geographical future state associated with said foreign agent.

2. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the ghost mobile node comprises a transceiver for communicating with the mobile node.

3. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the wireless communications network can allocate communications network resources to relaying communications between the wireless communications network and the mobile node, wherein the predicted geographical future state comprises a geographic region, and wherein the mobile node establishes another ghost mobile node in the geographic region, the ghost-mobile node configured to predict the geographical future states based upon Global Positioning System (GPS) data obtained from a GPS unit communicatively linked to the mobile node.

4. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the predicted future state is based upon at least one of a trajectory of the mobile node, a speed of the mobile node, and an estimated location of the mobile node.

5. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the ghost-foreign agent is responsive to at least one of instructions from the foreign agent and a predetermined threshold.

6. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the ghost mobile node utilizes data associated with a home agent of the mobile node for structuring messages, the data comprising at least one of an P source and an P destination buffers communications communicated to the mobile node from a correspondent node of the communications network.

7. A wireless node pair comprising:

a mobile node for communicating with a wireless communications network, wherein the mobile node has a corresponding geographical current state and one or more predicted geographical future states; and

a ghost mobile node associated with the mobile node, wherein the ghost mobile node can announce to a foreign agent identified for each of the geographical future states, the presence of said ghost mobile node for signaling the foreign agent based upon each of one of the predicted future states of the mobile node, wherein the ghost mobile node is configured to predict the future state based upon Global Positioning System (GPS) data obtained from a GPS unit communicatively linked to the mobile node, wherein the ghost-mobile node is remote from the mobile node, wherein each of the predicted future states comprises a geographic region that includes the foreign agent, and wherein the mobile node establishes another ghost mobile node in the geographic region based at least in part on the GPS data.

8. The wireless node pair as defined in claim 7, wherein the signaling comprises registering the mobile node with the foreign agent, and wherein the ghost-mobile node utilizes data associated with a home agent of the mobile node for structuring messages, the data comprising at least one of an P source and an P destination.

9. The wire node pair as defined in claim 7, wherein the signaling causes the communications network to allocate communications network resources to relaying communications between the communications network and the mobile node.

10. The wireless node pair as defined in claim 7, wherein the predicted future state is based upon at least one of a trajectory of the mobile node, a speed of the mobile node, and an estimated location of the mobile node.

11. The wireless node pair as defined in claim 7, wherein the ghost-mobile node buffers communications communicated to the mobile node from a correspondent node of the communications network.

12. The wireless node pair as defined in claim 7, wherein the ghost-mobile node comprises a transceiver for communicating with the mobile node.

13. The wireless node pair as defined in claim 7, wherein the at least one network communications node comprises a plurality of network communication nodes, and wherein ghost-mobile node determines a closest communications network node from among the plurality of communications network nodes.

14. A computer-implemented method for handling mobile devices in a wire communications network, the method comprising the computer-executable steps of:

identifying a mobile node communicatively linked to the wireless communications network;

determining a geographical current state of the mobile node;

predicting one or more geographical future states of the mobile node, based upon Global Positioning System (GPS) data obtained from a GPS unit communicatively linked to the mobile node;

identifying at least one foreign agent for each of said geographical future states;

creating at least one ghost foreign agent for each of said foreign agents, wherein said ghost foreign agent can announce to said mobile node or said ghost mobile node associated with the mobile node, the presence of said ghost foreign agent;

while the mobile node remains in the geographical current state, registering said ghost mobile node or mobile node with the associated ghost foreign agent or foreign agent; and

linking the mobile node with a foreign agent associated with at least one of said ghost foreign agents when the mobile node enters a respective geographical future state associated with said foreign agent.

15. The method as defined in claim 14, wherein the step of predicting is further based upon at least one of a trajectory of the mobile node, a speed of the mobile node, and an estimated location of the mobile node, and wherein the ghost-mobile agent utilizes data associated with a home agent of the mobile node for structuring messages, the data comprising at least one of an P source and an P destination.

16. The method as defined in claim 14, wherein the step of registering causes the communications network to allocate communications network resources to relaying communications between the communications network and the mobile node.

17. The method as defined in claim 14, further comprising the step of buffering communications communicated to the mobile node from a correspondent node of the communications network.

18. The method as defined in claim 17, further comprising a pair of network communication nodes defining a first and a second foreign agent, and estimating which foreign agent is closest to the mobile node.

19. The method as defined in claim 14, further comprising the step of advertising the foreign agent so that the mobile node is aware of the foreign agent when the mobile node is located outside the predefined region.