Frank Pittmann

NetCAPE: Enabling Seamless IMS Service Delivery across Heterogeneous Mobile Networks

An evolving wireless world is constantly providing users with a wider set of access technologies to choose from, each with different capabilities and properties. In this world, IMS as defined by 3GPP provides an enabling, standardized multimedia architecture that is access independent, hence, providing service convergence. This trend is accompanied by an increasing number of multimode terminals so that inter-access- system-service continuity gains relevance. This article presents the architectural framework of NetCAPE (networking context aware policy environment), which addresses the optimization of mobility management in such a heterogeneous environment while interacting with IMS applications to enable seamless service delivery across heterogeneous mobile networks; even as the mobility offered by the underlying network remains transparent to IMS applications. Although the focus is on 3GPP-based mobile networks, the framework also incorporates wired access technologies, hence, taking a further step toward fixed mobile convergence (FMC). First results are presented highlighting the improvements gained by applying NetCAPE concepts.

Realization of multiple access interface management and flow mobility in IPv6

Internet capable mobile or portable devices are already a modern commodity while it is becoming more and more common that such devices are hosts to more than one wireless network interface. The aim of this work is to show from a users perspective how such a portable device may make best use of this property by using multiple wireless and wired network interfaces simultaneously. This would incline that the intelligent control logic can distribute active flows across the available network interfaces and that it is also able to seamlessly transfer them between the network interfaces in mid-session without interruption. Focus of this work is on the inclusion of user preferences in the decision process, recognizing that future telecommunication systems may include also network conditions and operator preferences.

LINE: link information normalization environment

Today, there exists a large variety of wireless networking technologies. However, the question is how to use all these technologies and the available services together to obtain the best possible advantage for the user and network operators. Currently research is going on over handover techniques that allow the user to seamlessly handover from one access to another. To optimize this process there is a need for a standard interface between link layer and upper layers as well as an information normalization mechanism that provides the link information independent of the access network and technology in use. This normalized link information then can be used to decide about switching from one access to another. This paper discusses a Link Information Normalized Environment (LINE) that can be used by upper layers for making decisions.