Using standard cellular handsets with a general access network

• US 8,543,105 B2
• Filed: 10/16/2006
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Tariq, Ahmed, Hoole, Elliott, Sukumaran, Jayesh, Zhang, Yan
• Primary Examiner(s): VIANA DI PRISCO, GERMAN
• Application Number:
  US11/582,123
• Publication Number:
  US 20070191001A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,535 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352
• US Class Current: 455/426.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/155 Ground-based stations H04B7/204 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/26 Cell enhancers or enhancement, e.g. for tunnels, building shadow
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/12 Setup of transport tunnels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/12 between access points and access point controllers

Abstract

Mobile communication is disclosed. A standard cellular mobile station at is communicated with at least in part via a standard cellular air link. A mobile communication between the standard cellular mobile station and a core mobile network is relayed via a generic access network. In some embodiments, translation between the standard cellular air link and a generic access network uplink interface is performed.

Claims

1. A method for mobile communication, comprising:

communicating with a standard cellular mobile station at least in part via a standard cellular air link, wherein the standard cellular air link comprises an Um interface, wherein the standard cellular mobile station is configured to communicate wirelessly over the Um interface and is not configured to communicate wirelessly over an Up interface;

relaying a mobile communication from the standard cellular mobile station to a gateway over an IP network, wherein the gateway processes the mobile communication received from the IP network and sends the mobile communication over the Up interface to a Generic Access Network controller (GANC);

relaying the mobile communication from the GANC to a mobile switching center (MSC) via an A interface;

connecting the GANC and a GANC adjunct through the A interface, a Gb interface and a Wm interface; and

connecting the gateway and the GANC adjunct through an interface that bypasses the GANC.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein relaying the mobile communication from the GANC comprises:

providing connectivity to a core mobile network via the GANC.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein providing connectivity to the core mobile network via the GANC comprises:

establishing on behalf of the standard cellular mobile station a connection to the GANC.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the standard cellular mobile station comprises a single mode device configured to communicate only via the standard cellular air link.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the standard cellular mobile station is not configured to communicate with the GANC except via the standard cellular air link.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the standard cellular mobile station comprises a GSM phone.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein communicating with the standard cellular mobile station at least in part via the standard cellular air link comprises:

receiving, via a packet data network, call data received from the sandard cellular mobile station at a base transceiver station configured to communicate with the standard cellular mobile station via the standard cellular air link.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

using a secret data not associated with the standard cellular mobile station to provide, a core mobile network, an authentication data required to establish, on behalf of the standard cellular mobile station, a secure connection to a node associated with the GANC.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the standard cellular mobile station comprises:

a first standard cellular mobile station included in a plurality of standard cellular mobile stations for which connectivity to the core mobile network is being provided via the GANC and further comprising;

establishing, for each standard cellular mobile station in the plurality of standard cellular mobile stations, a corresponding secure connection to the node associated with the GANC.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein relaying the mobile communication from the standard cellular mobile station and the gateway over the IP network comprises:

translating between the standard cellular air link and a generic access network uplink interface.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the standard cellular air link comprises the Um interface and the generic access network uplink interface comprises the Up interface.

12. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

connecting the gateway to a base transceiver station via an IP network interface; and

connecting the base transceiver station and the standard cellular mobile station via the Um interface.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

establishing a single security tunnel between the base transceiver station and the gateway, wherein the single security tunnel aggregates mobile communications from multiple standard cellular mobile stations communicating with the base transceiver station over the Um interface; and

establishing, by the gateway, multiple security tunnels, based on the single security tunnel, to the GANC, wherein each standard cellular mobile station corresponds to a respective security tunnel between the gateway and the GANC.

14. A mobile network element, comprising:

a communication interface; and

a processor coupled to the communication interface and configured to;

communicate with a standard cellular mobile station at least in part via a standard cellular air link and an IP network, wherein the standard cellular air link comprises an Um interface, wherein the standard cellular mobile station is configured to communicate wirelessly over the Um interface and is not configured to communicate wirelessly over an Up interface, wherein the communication interface is connected to the IP network, wherein the communication interface receives, from the IP network, a mobile communication from the standard cellular mobile station; and

process the mobile communication from the standard cellular mobile station and send the mobile communication over the Up interface to a Generic Access Network controller (GANC), wherein the mobile communication is then relayed from the GANC to a mobile switching center (MSC) via an A interface, wherein the GANC and a GANC adjunct are connected through the A interface, a Gb interface and a Wm interface, and wherein the mobile network element and the GANC adjunct are connected by a second interface that bypasses the GANC.

15. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the communication interface comprises an IP network interface.

16. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the communication interface is connected to the Up interface and is configured to communicate over the Up interface.

17. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the mobile network element comprises a base transceiver station.

18. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the mobile network element comprises:

a gateway configured to communicate with a base transceiver station via the IP network.

19. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to relay the mobile communication between the standard cellular mobile station and a core mobile network via the GANC at least in part by establishing on behalf of the standard cellular mobile station a secure tunnel to a generic access network element.

20. The mobile network element according to claim 19, wherein the generic access network element comprises the GANC.

21. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the processor is configured to relay the mobile communication between the standard cellular mobile station and a core mobile network via the GANC at least in part by translating between the standard cellular air link and a generic access network uplink interface.

22. The mobile network element according to claim 14, wherein the standard cellular mobile station comprises a GSM phone.

23. A computer program product for mobile communication, the computer program product being embodied in a non-transitory computer readable medium and comprising computer instructions for:

communicating with a standard cellular mobile station at least in part via a standard cellular air link and an IP network, wherein the standard cellular air link comprises an Um interface, wherein the standard cellular mobile station is configured to communicate wirelessly over the Um interface and is not configured to communicate wirelessly over an Up interface, wherein a communication interface is connected to the IP network, wherein a mobile communication from the standard cellular mobile station is received from the IP network; and

processing the mobile communication from the standard cellular mobile station and sending the mobile communication over the Up interface to a Generic Access Network controller (GANC), wherein the mobile communication is then relayed from the GANC to a mobile switching center (MSC) via an A interface, wherein the GANC and a GANC adjunct are connected through the A interface, a Gb interface and a Wm interface, and wherein the gateway and the GANC adjunct are connected by a second interface that bypasses the GANC.