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

• US 7,933,225 B2
• Filed: 10/30/2007
• Issued: 04/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rice, Christopher W., Murray, John F., Miller, Robert R., Chow, Albert T.
• Primary Examiner(s): HSU, ALPUS
• Application Number:
  US11/928,409
• Publication Number:
  US 20080075055A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,274 Days
• Field of Search: 370/259, 370/338, 370/353, 370/390, 370/401, 370/432, 379/88.17, 379/93.07, 379/201.01, 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. A system comprising:

a broadband access network terminal configured to interact with an access point;

a multicast-enabled network coupled to, and configured to interact with, the broadband access network terminal;

an internet protocol network coupled to, and configured to interact with, the multicast-enabled network via an edge router; and

a wireless local area network mobile radio service controller coupled to, and configured to interact with, the internet protocol network via a multicast-enabled router.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the internet protocol network is further coupled to, and configured to interact with, a public switched telephone network via a public switched telephone network gateway.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the internet protocol network is further coupled to, and configured to interact with, an SS7 network via an SS7 gateway.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the internet protocol network is further coupled to, and configured to interact with, a public cellular network via a public cellular network gateway.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the internet protocol network is further coupled to, and configured to interact with, a content service provider via a content service provider gateway.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the Internet protocol network is further coupled to, and configured to interact with, an internet service provider via a router.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the broadband access network terminal interacts with the access point via a local area network, wherein the local area network is Ethernet 10/100 base-T.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the broadband access network terminal interacts with the access point via a wireless local area network, wherein the wireless local area network uses a quality-of-service protocol capable wireless local area network.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the broadband access network terminal interacts with the access point via a wireless local area network, wherein the wireless local area network utilizes a small-cell architecture.

10. A method comprising:

receiving packetized information and control signaling from an access point at a broadband access network terminal via a local area network;

sending the packetized information and the control signaling from the broadband access network terminal to a multicast-enabled network via a broadband access network;

routing the packetized information and the control signaling between the multicast-enabled network and an internet protocol network via an edge router; and

directing the packetized information and the control signaling to a wireless local area network mobile radio system controller via a multicast-enabled router.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

sending the packetized information and control signaling over the air from the access point to a subscriber terminal via the local area network.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the broadband access network terminal supports media stream mixing and multicasting of the packetized information associated with internet protocol push-to-talk services.