Method and apparatus for facilitate communications using surrogate and care-of-internet protocol addresses

摘要

A wireless access point (300A, 300B, 300C) provides (101) a surrogate Internet Protocol address to use on behalf of a mobile station (401). That wireless access point then uses (102) that surrogate Internet Protocol address along with its own Internet Protocol address to facilitate establishing one or more data tunnels as necessary to support the communication needs of the mobile station.

主权项

1. A method for use by a wireless access point in a communication system to facilitate at least one communication need of a mobile station, wherein the communication system comprises a plurality of hierarchically layered mobility management agents, the method comprising:
providing, by the wireless access point, a plurality of surrogate Internet Protocol addresses including a first surrogate Internet Protocol address acquired for use on behalf of the mobile station for a first level of the plurality of hierarchically layered mobility management agents and a second surrogate Internet Protocol address acquired for use on behalf of the mobile station for a second level of the plurality of hierarchically layered mobility management agents; using, by the wireless access point when interacting with a first mobility management agent of the plurality of hierarchically layered mobility management agents, the first acquired surrogate Internet Protocol address as a surrogate Internet Protocol address for the mobile station and one of the plurality of surrogate Internet Protocol addresses as was acquired for a next lower level of the plurality of hierarchically layered mobility management agents as a care-of address for the mobile station to support the communication need of the mobile station, wherein the first mobility management agent is associated with a subnet that includes the wireless access point; and using, by the wireless access point, one of the first and second acquired surrogate Internet Protocol addresses as a care-of address and a home Internet Protocol address of the mobile station as a home address for the mobile station when interacting with a second mobility management agent of the plurality of hierarchically layered mobility management agents to support the communication need of the mobile station, wherein the second mobility management agent is remote to the subnet.