Application Mobility Management Entity for Mobile Network Handover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile networks experience inefficiencies when a device moves between base-transceiver stations, leading to packet loss and re-transmission, as existing systems operate at the transport level and do not manage user-level TCP/UDP/IP sessions, resulting in increased inefficiency as the common point of handover moves upstream.
Innovation Solution
Implementing an application mobility-management entity (AME) that tracks and routes user-application-level data streams, using mechanisms like transit buffers and content caching, to maintain session continuity and reduce packet loss by identifying user applications, detecting movement, and establishing connections between AMEs to reroute data streams at the user-application level.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the network operates as a transport network with handover at the transport level, then the network architecture remains simple and standardized, but packets are dropped during base-transmitter station transitions and must be re-transmitted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an Application Mobility Management Entity (AME) as an intermediary component that sits between the transport network and user applications. The AME intercepts application-layer data streams, tracks them through the network, and actively manages handover between base-transmitter stations at the application level rather than relying solely on transport-level handover. This intermediary maintains session continuity and prevents packet loss during transitions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by establishing application-level session tracking and data stream monitoring before handover occurs. The AME proactively identifies upcoming handover events and prepares session state information in advance, allowing seamless transition without packet loss. This includes pre-establishing session context and maintaining buffered data ready for transmission to the new base station.
2Productivity
If handover common point is moved upstream in the network hierarchy, then network management becomes more centralized, but more packets are dropped during base-transmitter station transitions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the handover management function into multiple levels: transport-level handover handling by existing network elements and application-level session management by the AME. This segmentation allows the system to maintain centralized control benefits while simultaneously preserving application session state at a lower network level, thereby preventing packet loss even when handover common points are positioned upstream in the network hierarchy.
Data Source
AI summary
An application mobility-management entity (“AME”) in a radio-access network detects movement of a mobile device and routes application data for already-active application streams associated with the mobile device to the device's new location by establishing a connection to a second AME in the radio-access network. The second AME merges forwarded application data from/to the first AME for previously active application streams with the new application streams (e.g., new TCP connections) locally and forwards to/from the mobile device through the radio access network elements.