Mobile Router Cellular Network Interface for Continuous Internet Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wireless local area networks (WLANs) configured devices, such as laptops, face challenges in accessing the internet when they leave the WLAN zone, as they lack cellular network interfacing capabilities, preventing continuous internet access for routine computer tasks while traveling or in areas without network coverage.
Innovation Solution
A mobile network router equipped with a CPU, memory, and wireless and cellular network interface devices, capable of establishing connections with cellular networks, assigning IP addresses, and translating data packets to facilitate communication between locally reachable devices and the cellular network, thereby providing continuous internet access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If WLAN configured devices are used, then network access is available within WLAN zone, but network access is lost when leaving the WLAN zone
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile router integrates multiple network interface functions into a single device, supporting both WLAN and cellular network interfaces. This allows the device to adapt to different network environments (WLAN or cellular) and maintain continuous network access regardless of location, resolving the contradiction between network access reliability and adaptability.
2Reliability
If cellular network interface is added to portable computers, then continuous network access is enabled, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the cellular network interface, WLAN interface, and routing functionality into a single integrated mobile router device. This merging approach enables continuous network access for multiple devices without requiring each portable computer to have its own cellular interface, thus maintaining reliability while avoiding increased device complexity for end-user devices.
3Reliability
If mobile router with multiple cellular network interfaces is used, then network redundancy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile router acts as an intermediary device that manages multiple cellular network interfaces and WLAN interfaces, providing network redundancy and load balancing. By centralizing the management of multiple interfaces in a dedicated router device rather than embedding them in each portable computer, the system achieves improved reliability through redundancy while keeping individual client devices simple.
Data Source
AI summary
A wireless mobile router (300) includes a CPU (222) and one or more network interfaces for hosting locally reachable devices. The router (300) includes one or more cellular network interface devices (316) configured to make a network connection with a cellular network. The router (300) operates to translate data packets received from locally reachable devices and to direct the translated data packets to public IP address over the cellular network. In addition, a stack of mobile routers (400) includes two or more mobile routers (300) interfaced together to make two or more network connections with a cellular network for increasing bandwidth and for load balancing network traffic passing from the router (300) to the cellular network. The wireless mobile router (300) and the stack (400) are suitable for use in a moving vehicle.