A METHOD FOR CANDIDATE ACCESS ROUTER CAPABILITY DISCOVERY

摘要

A method of retrieving candidate access router discovery (CARD) information in a user terminal which is present in a many access systems. CARD information is exchanged on an IP control plane between access routers in the access systems, but the user terminal has no IP control plane. In accordance with the invention CARD protocol information is translated into L2 information messages which are transmitted to the user terminal either as extensions to the conventional protocol used for bearer service set up between the user terminal and an access router or as extensions to the conventional protocol used by the individual access system for broadcasting of its system characteristics. In the former case the translated CARD information is transmitted on an L2 bearer service between the current access router and the user terminal and in the latter case the translated information is broadcasted by each access router. The invention also relates to a radio access router and a terminal. (FIG. 3 for publication).