Mobile Agent Encapsulation for Seamless Network Mobility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional Mobile IP techniques require a Foreign Agent (FA) in the visit destination network and cannot be easily implemented in devices like copy machines or POS registers, limiting their ability to maintain communication across networks without special functions.
Innovation Solution
A communication method involving a user terminal, a mobile agent apparatus, and a home agent apparatus that registers layer 3 addresses and encapsulates/decapsulates layer 2 frames to enable seamless packet transfer between networks without requiring special functions on the terminal or visit destination network.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If Mobile IP function is installed on the terminal, then communication continuity is maintained during network movement, but device complexity increases and implementation becomes difficult in simple devices
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a mobile agent as an intermediary component that resides on the terminal but performs simplified functions compared to full Mobile IP implementation. The mobile agent acts as a mediator between the terminal and the home agent, handling registration and packet forwarding tasks. This allows terminals with limited capabilities to maintain communication continuity without implementing the complete Mobile IP protocol stack, thus resolving the contradiction between reliability and device complexity.
2Reliability
If Foreign Agent is deployed in visit destination network, then terminal can register and communicate while mobile, but network infrastructure complexity increases and FA cannot be present in all networks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the Foreign Agent functionality from the visit destination network infrastructure and consolidates it into the terminal device itself through the mobile agent. Instead of requiring a network-based FA to be deployed in every visit network, the terminal's mobile agent directly communicates with the home agent. This eliminates the need for complex network infrastructure deployment while maintaining mobile communication availability, resolving the contradiction between reliability and network infrastructure complexity.
3Stability of the object's composition
If conventional Mobile IP is used, then IP address remains fixed during movement, but special functions must be installed on both terminal and visit destination network
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-service mechanism where the mobile agent on the terminal autonomously performs registration with the home agent and handles packet forwarding without requiring special functions or software installation on the visit destination network. The terminal's mobile agent independently manages its own mobility tasks, including maintaining IP address stability and routing packets through the home agent. This approach preserves IP address stability while significantly improving adaptability to various terminal types and network environments.
Data Source
AI summary
In a communication system including a MN, a MFA connected to the MN, and a HA connected to a home network of the MN, the HA holds a layer 3 address of the HA and a source layer 3 address of a registration request by associating them with each other. The MFA transmits a layer 2 frame from the MN to the HA by encapsulating it. The HA decapsulates the frame to transmit it to the home network. When the HA receives a layer 2 frame from the home network, the HA checks that the destination layer 3 address is registered, and encapsulates the layer 2 frame to transmit it to a source layer 3 address of the registration request that is registered being associated with the destination layer 3 address. The MFA decapsulate the encapsulated layer 2 frame to transmit the layer 2 frame to the MN.