System and method of authenticating mobile devices

• US 7,787,402 B2
• Filed: 08/16/2007
• Issued: 08/31/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WiFi Rail, Inc.
• Original Assignee: WiFi Rail, Inc.
• Inventors: Lee, Cooper G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham; Brenda
• Application Number:
  US11/840,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20080043655A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,111 Days
• Field of Search: 370/310.2, 370/331, 370/349, 370/324, 370/328, 370/332, 370/333, 370/338, 370/350
• US Class Current: 370/310.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/28 using the near field of leaky cables, e.g. of leaky coaxial cables
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4641 Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/069 using certificates or pre-shared keys
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/005 Moving wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/20 Information technology specific aspects, e.g. CAD, simulation, modelling, system security

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing network access to mobile devices that travel with a vehicle, such as a train, a bus, a boat, etc. along or adjacent to a relatively fixed path that may extend over a large geographic area. Mobile devices access the network through stationary access points arranged along or adjacent to the path and communicate with a communication network. The communication network may be arranged as an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) local area network emulation (LANE) network. One of the mobile devices may be a mobile access point which can couple other mobile devices to the network and record authentication information of other mobile devices so that fast transitions can be made from one stationary access point to another as the vehicle moves along the path.

Claims

1. A mobile communication system comprising:

a first communication system configured to communicate with at least one host device; and

a second communication system configured to communicate with a plurality of stationary access points and the first communication system, wherein the mobile communication system is configured to authenticate the second communication system with a first stationary access point of the plurality of stationary access points by authenticating the second communication system with an authentication server, and wherein the mobile communication system is further configured to authenticate the second communication system with a second stationary access point of the plurality of stationary access points without reauthenticating the second communication system with the authentication server;

wherein the second communication system is configured to couple to a communication network through a different respective one of the plurality of stationary access points as the mobile communication system moves; and

wherein the second communication system is configured to select a current one of the plurality of station access points through which to couple to the communication network based, at least in part, on a signal strength of a communication signal between the second communication system and the plurality of stationary access points.

2. The mobile communication system of claim 1, wherein the mobile communication system is configured to authenticate the second communication system with the second stationary access point by accessing an authentication cache indicative of whether the second communication system has previously been authenticated by the authentication server.

3. The mobile communication system of claim 1, wherein the second communication system and the plurality of stationary access points communicate wirelessly.

4. The mobile communication system of claim 1, wherein the first communication system is configured to provide, to the at least one host device, access to a communication network coupled to the plurality of stationary access points.

5. The mobile communication system of claim 4, wherein the first communication system is configured to communicate with the at least one host device using a wireless communication network.

6. The mobile communication system of claim 4, wherein the first communication system is configured to communicate with the at least one host device through at least one mobile forwarding device.

7. The mobile communication system of claim 1, wherein the second communication system is configured to communicate with the plurality of stationary access points without address renegotiation of the second communication system.

8. The mobile communication system of claim 1, wherein the mobile communication system is coupled to a vehicle.

9. The mobile communication system of claim 8, wherein the vehicle includes at least one of a boat, a train, a bus, and a car.

10. The mobile communication system of claim 1, wherein the at least one host device includes at least one of a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant, and a cellular telephone.

11. A method of authenticating a mobile device, the method comprising:

receiving an authentication request from the mobile device at a first stationary access point;

authenticating the mobile device to the first stationary access point by requesting authentication from an authentication server;

storing authentication information identifying the mobile device in an authentication cache associated with the first stationary access point and at least one secondary stationary access point;

receiving an authentication request from the mobile device at the at least one second stationary access point; and

authenticating the mobile device to the second stationary access point by referencing the stored authentication information;

wherein the mobile device traverses a path proximate the first stationary access point and the at least one second stationary access point at an average rate of travel, and wherein storing the authentication information includes storing the authentication information for a period of time sufficient to allow the mobile device to traverse the path at the average rate of travel.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein authenticating the mobile device to the at least one second stationary access point takes less than about 2 milliseconds.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising grouping the first stationary access point and the at least one second stationary access point so that the stored authentication information identifying the mobile device can be provided to each at least one second stationary access point in the group by referencing the stored authentication information and without requesting further authentication from the authentication server.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein grouping includes maintaining the authentication cache in a WLCCP controller and permitting authentication access to the WLCCP controller by each of the first stationary access point and each at least one second stationary access point.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising providing access to a communication network coupled to the first stationary access point and the at least one second stationary access point to the mobile device.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein providing access to the communication network includes maintaining forwarding information for the mobile device based on a data link layer address of the mobile device.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising forwarding information addressed to a network layer address of the mobile device to the mobile device based on the maintained forwarding information.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein providing access includes providing access without address renegotiation by the mobile device.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein requesting authentication from the authentication server includes requesting authentication from a RADIUS server.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein authenticating the mobile device with the authentication server takes less than about 100 milliseconds.

21. The method of claim 11, further comprising providing access to a communication network coupled to the first stationary access point and the at least one second stationary access point to a plurality of host devices coupled to the mobile device.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein providing access to the communication network includes maintaining forwarding information corresponding to each respective host device of the plurality of host devices based on data link layer addresses of the respective host device.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising forwarding information addressed to a network layer address of a first host device of the plurality of host devices to the first host device based upon the maintained forwarding information corresponding to the first host device.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein providing access includes providing access without address renegotiation by the mobile device.