Method and system for optimising routing between two network nodes, at least one of which is mobile

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9480090-B2
Application number	US-201113825498-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 21, 2011
Priority date	Sep 23, 2010
Publication date	Oct 25, 2016
Grant date	Oct 25, 2016

Abstract

A method is disclosed for routing packets in an intermediate node between a mobile node and a correspondent node in a packet-switched network, only one of said nodes being macro-mobility enabled, comprising at the intermediate node: —exchanging lower-layer-address-update-related messages with said macro-mobility enabled node; —mapping source address, destination address and potentially protocol parameters of lower-layer packets exchanged between the mobile node and the correspondent node in such a way that the macro-mobility enabled node can communicate with the other node as if the other node is also macro-mobility enabled, and such that the other node can communicate with the intermediate node as if the intermediate node is a non-macro-mobility-enabled node. Also associated devices, update methods for devices, and servers are disclosed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for routing packets in an intermediate node between correspondent nodes in a packet-switched network, said packet-switched network having a protocol stack comprising an upper layer and a lower layer and comprising an upper-layer session between a correspondent node and a mobile node in which packets are transmitted between the correspondent node and the mobile node via the packet-switched network; and wherein only one of said correspondent node and said mobile node, called a macro-mobility enabled node, is configured to maintain the upper-layer session with the other node, when said mobile node is switching from a first lower-layer-address to a second lower-layer-address, different from the first lower-layer-address, by exchanging suitable lower-layer address update related messages with said other node, comprising at said intermediate node:
exchanging lower-layer-address-update-related messages with said macro-mobility enabled node;
mapping source address, destination address and potentially protocol parameters of lower-layer packets exchanged between said mobile node and said correspondent node in such a way that the macro-mobility enabled node can communicate with said other node as if said other node is also macro-mobility enabled, and such that said other node can communicate with said intermediate node as if said intermediate node is a non-macro-mobility-enabled node;
wherein said intermediate node is embodied as a user-level application installed on a non-macro-mobility enabled user device, said non-macro-mobility enabled user device corresponding to said mobile node;
wherein exchanging lower-layer-address-update related messages comprises receiving lower-layer-address update related messages from said correspondent node and sending lower-layer-address update related messages to said correspondent node and wherein mapping source address, destination address and potentially protocol parameters of lower-layer packets exchanged between said mobile node and said correspondent node comprises:
for packets sent from said mobile node to said correspondent node: replacing the lower layer source address, assigned by said intermediate node to said mobile node, by the lower layer address of said intermediate node, and potentially replacing protocol parameters;
for packets sent from said correspondent node to said mobile node:

replacing the destination address corresponding to the lower-layer address of said intermediate node by the lower-layer address of said mobile node assigned by said intermediate node, and potentially replacing protocol parameters.

2. Method according to claim 1 , further comprising
performing DHCP, or other layer-2 IP address requesting functions.

3. A method according to claim 1 , wherein said lower-layer address update related messages are messages used in methods according to the NMIP protocol.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the upper layer is a transport layer or an application layer; and the lower layer is a network layer.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein said network layer is an IP layer.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said mobile node is not assigned a permanent lower-layer address corresponding to a home-network lower-layer address.

7. A method according to claim 1 , wherein said intermediate node adopts one or more of the original lower-layer addresses of the mobile node and assigns a new lower-layer address to the mobile node during installation.

8. A method according to claim 1 , wherein said lower-layer address update related messages are messages used in methods according to the NMIP protocol;
wherein the NMIP protocol is an end-host-based signaling protocol that enables Mobile Nodes and Correspondent Nodes to update each other with IP address changes at mobility events and to reroute traffic for established upper-layer sessions using newly obtained IP addresses without breaking connections.

9. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the intermediate node does not perform tunneling between the macro-mobility enabled node and the other node.

10. A method for routing packets in an intermediate node between correspondent nodes in a packet-switched network, said packet-switched network having a protocol stack comprising an upper layer and a lower layer and comprising an upper-layer session between a correspondent node and a mobile node in which packets are transmitted between the correspondent node and the mobile node via the packet-switched network; and wherein only one of said correspondent node and said mobile node, called a macro-mobility enabled node, is configured to maintain the upper-layer session with the other node, when said mobile node is switching from a first lower-layer-address to a second lower-layer-address, different from the first lower-layer-address, by exchanging suitable lower-layer address update related messages with said other node, comprising at said intermediate node:
exchanging lower-layer-address-update-related messages with said macro-mobility enabled node;
mapping source address, destination address and potentially protocol parameters of lower-layer packets exchanged between said mobile node and said correspondent node in such a way that the macro-mobility enabled node can communicate with said other node as if said other node is also macro-mobility enabled, and such that said other node can communicate with said intermediate node as if said intermediate node is a non-macro-mobility-enabled node;
wherein said intermediate node is embodied by a network server, which communicates with said non-macro-mobility enabled correspondent node;
wherein exchanging said lower-layer-address-update related messages comprises receiving lower-layer-address update-related messages from said mobile node and sending lower-layer-address update related messages to said mobile node, and wherein mapping source address, destination address and potentially protocol parameters of lower-layer packets exchanged between said mobile node and said correspondent node comprises:
for packets sent from said correspondent node to said mobile node: replacing the lower layer source address, assigned by said intermediate node to said mobile node, by the lower layer address of said intermediate node, and potentially replacing protocol parameters;
for packets sent from said mobile node to said correspondent node: replacing the destination address corresponding to the lower-layer address of said intermediate node by the lower-layer address of said mobile node assigned by said intermediate node, and potentially replacing protocol parameters.

11. A mobile device for use in data communication in a packet-switched network, said network having a protocol stack comprising an upper layer and a lower layer, and said mobile device being configured to participate in an upper-layer session between a mobile node comprised in said mobile device and a correspondent node in said network, wherein only the correspondent node, called a macro-mobility enabled node, is configured to maintain the upper-layer session with the mobile node when said mobile node is switching from a first lower-layer-address to a second lower-layer-address, different from the first lower-layer-address, by exchanging suitable lower-layer address update related messages with the mobile node said mobile device comprising a storage means for storing and a processor for running a user level application embodying an intermediate node of said network, said intermediate node being configured to:
exchange lower-layer-address-update-related messages with said correspondent node;
map source and destination address and potentially protocol parameters of lo

Assignees

• Bosch Peter
• Mullender Sape
• Polakos Paul
• Evans Noah
• Hampel Georg
• Mckie Jim
• Alcatel Lucent

Inventors

• Bosch Peter
• Mullender Sape
• Polakos Paul
• Evans Noah
• Hampel Georg
• Mckie Jim

Classifications

• H04L12/66

  Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways · CPC title

• H04L61/2503

  Translation of Internet protocol [IP] addresses · CPC title

• H04L12/4633 Primary

  Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling · CPC title

• H04L29/12339

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04L29/12301

  Electricity · mapped topic