Public safety network relay service management

摘要

A method and mobile device are provided that manage a relay service in a public safety wireless communication system. When the mobile device determines one or more of: another mobile device has exited or is exiting a public safety vehicle or another first mobile device is not receiving a signal from a wide area network of acceptable signal quality, the mobile device activates a relay service. In response to activating the relay service, the mobile device announces an availability of the relay service at the mobile device, receives a registration of the another mobile device for the relay service, and, in response to receiving the registration, relays communications between the another mobile device and an access node. In another embodiment, a method is provided for negotiating a provision of a relay service among multiple mobile devices, wherein each such mobile device currently is providing a relay service.

主权项

1. A method for managing a relay service in a public safety wireless communication system, the method comprising:
determining, at a second mobile device, a first mobile device is not receiving a signal from a wide area network of acceptable signal quality; activating a relay service at the second mobile device; in response to activating the relay service, announcing, by the second mobile device, an availability of the relay service at the second mobile device; in response to announcing the availability of the relay service, receiving, by the second mobile device, a registration of the first mobile device for the relay service; in response to receiving the registration, relaying, by the second mobile device, communications between the first mobile device and an access node; wherein determining that the first mobile device is not receiving a signal from a wide area network (WAN) of acceptable signal quality comprises: determining a strength of a signal received by the second mobile device from the WAN; and based on the determined strength of the signal, estimating a strength of a signal received by the first mobile device from the WAN.