Mobile data rate enhancement via foreign agent load balancing

• US 6,549,522 B1
• Filed: 06/05/2000
• Issued: 04/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: British Telecommunications (BT Group Plc) (BT Group PLC), Marconi Data Systems Incorporated (Danaher Corporation)
• Original Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Inventors: Flynn, Jason Stuart
• Primary Examiner(s): Kizou, Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): LY, ANH VU H
• Application Number:
  US09/555,740
• Time in Patent Office: 1,044 Days
• Field of Search: 370/313, 370/389, 370/902, 370/912, 370/913, 370/351, 370/400, 370/229, 370/235, 370/236, 370/237, 370/238, 370/310, 709/226, 709/238, 709/239
• US Class Current: 370/313
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/22 Alternate routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/24 Multipath
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/101 based on network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1012 based on compliance of requirements or conditions with available server resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1017 based on a round robin mechanism
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1036 Load balancing of requests to servers for services different from user content provisioning, e.g. load balancing across domain name servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/088 among core entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/00 Communication routing or communication path finding
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/12 based on transmission quality or channel quality
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/30 for proactive routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/36 due to handover
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Data is routed through the Internet to a mobile node by using home agents and foreign agents to provide mobility functions. Data transfer rates to the mobile node are improved by providing for transfer of data from the home agent to a plurality of foreign agents on a round-robin basis, which can be enhanced by checking the quality of the connection between the foreign agent and the mobile node and re-routing the data through another foreign agent if certain predetermined quality criteria are not met.

Claims

1. A method of routing data from a home agent of a home communications network to a mobile node associated with the home communications network but currently connected to a foreign communications network away from the home communications network, the method comprising:

determining the location of a plurality of foreign agent nodes associated with the foreign communications network from which data may be transmitted to the mobile node; and

transmitting from the home agent successive data units from a received stream of data units intended for the mobile node to different respective ones of the foreign agent nodes.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein next successive ones of the data units are transmitted to the foreign agent nodes on a round-robin basis.

3. A method according to claim 1, further comprising assessing the quality of the connection between each foreign agent node and the mobile node prior to transmitting a data unit to the foreign agent node.

4. A method according to claim 3, including re-routing the data unit to a different one of the foreign agent nodes if the connection quality does not meet predetermined criteria.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined criteria include a minimum bandwidth for the connection between one of the foreign agent nodes and the mobile node.

6. A method according to claim 3, wherein the available bandwidth for data transfer across the connection is a measure of the quality of the connection.

7. A method according to claim 3, wherein the foreign agent nodes include data buffers and the level of buffer use is a measure of the quality of the connection.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein each data unit is an encapsulated IP datagram.

9. A method of routing data to a mobile node within a communications network, comprising:

determining the location of a location of a plurality of agent nodes from which data may be transmitted to the mobile node; and

transmitting successive data units from a stream of data units intended for the mobile node to different respective ones of the agent nodes;

wherein the agent nodes are foreign agents within a Mobile IP based network.

10. A communications system for mobile data transfer comprising:

a mobile node connectable to a foreign network away from its home network;

a home agent node associated with the home network for receiving a stream of data units intended for the mobile node; and

a plurality of foreign agent nodes associated with the foreign network for forwarding data units received from the home agent node to the mobile node;

wherein the home agent node is configured to transmit different data units from the received stream of data units to different respective ones of the foreign agent nodes.

11. A communications system according to claim 10, wherein successive ones of the different data units are transmitted to the different agent nodes on a round-robin basis.

12. A communications system for mobile data transfer, the system comprising:

a correspondent node;

a mobile node;

a first agent node and a second agent node for respectively receiving successive ones of data units transmitted from the correspondent node, the first agent node having a first individual data transfer rate to the mobile node and the second agent node having a second individual data transfer rate to the mobile node;

wherein the correspondent node is capable of transferring data to the mobile node at a composite data transfer rate which is the sum of the first and second individual data transfer rates.

13. A system according to claim 12, wherein successive ones of data units transmitted from the correspondent node to the first and second agent nodes are done so on a round-robin basis.

14. A method of transmitting successive data units from a stream of data units from a correspondent node of a home communications network to a mobile node through different respective ones of foreign agent nodes, wherein each of the foreign agent nodes is capable of transferring data to the mobile node at a respective individual data transfer rate, the mobile node being associated with the home communications network but currently connected to a foreign communications network away from the home communications network, wherein the method comprises:

transmitting from the correspondent node successive data units from a stream of data units to the mobile node using different respective ones of the foreign agent nodes associated with the foreign network at an aggregate data transfer rate, the aggregate data transfer rate being the sum of the individual data transfer rates.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein successive ones of the data units are transmitted.to the different foreign agent nodes on a round-robin basis.

16. A communications system for mobile data transfer, the system comprising:

a correspondent node of a home communications network;

a mobile node associated with the home communications network but currently connected to a foreign communications network away from the home communications network; and

a plurality of foreign agent nodes associated with the foreign communications network for respectively receiving successive ones of data units transmitted from the correspondent node, each of the foreign agent nodes being capable of transferring data to the mobile node at a respective individual transfer rate;

wherein the correspondent node is capable of transferring data to the mobile node at a composite data transfer rate which is the sum of the individual data transfer rates.

17. A system according to claim 16, wherein successive ones of the data units transmitted from the correspondent node to the respective foreign agent nodes are done so on a round-robin basis.