METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR EFFICIENTLY ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING A DATA CONNECTION BETWEEN A MOBILE STATION AND A WIRELESS NETWORK

摘要

A method for efficiently establishing a data connection, such as a Packet Data Protocol (PDP) Context, between a mobile station and a wireless communication network. The method includes transmitting a data connection request to the wireless network to attempt to establish a data connection between the mobile station and the wireless network; setting a delay timer to an initial value and running the delay timer. If the data connection has not been established in response to the data connection request, a subsequent data connection request is transmitted after expiration of the delay timer, and the delay timer is set to a subsequent initial value greater than the initial value. If the data connection has not been established in response to the subsequent data connection request, another subsequent data connection request is transmitted after expiration of the delay timer. This technique continues until the data connection is established with the wireless network, if at all. If a new wireless network is selected during the process, the process is reset to the first initial value. Preferably, the technique works in combination with relatively quicker retries implemented in lower radio layer(s) (i.e. the physical, data link, or network layer). Thus, each data connection request may be a plurality of data connection retries which are performed closer together in time than other retry attempts.