Patent ID: 9338714
Filing Date: 2016-05-10
CPC Classification: H04L,H04W

Claim Text:
1. A method for managing in-vehicle small cell gateway (IV-SCG) connections with a mobile wireless device supporting multiple data communications data paths to a broadband network data resource, the method comprising: establishing, by a home IV-SCG via a low-power short-range interface, a connection on a low-power link supporting communications between the home IV-SCG with a mobile wireless device co-located with a vehicle containing the home IV-SCG; registering, by the home IV-SCG, the mobile wireless device and thereafter operating the home IV-SCG as a mobile agent for the mobile wireless device; maintaining, by the home IV-SCG, a neighboring SCG list identifying a set of neighboring SCG nodes, wherein each one of the set of neighboring SCG nodes is a potential candidate for establishing a connection with the home IV-SCG forming a link along a data communications path, comprising serially connected communications links, between the mobile wireless device and the broadband network data resource; detecting, for an existing session between the home IV-SCG and a mobile wireless device using a current data communications path between the home IV-SCG and the broadband network data resource, a triggering condition potentially causing the home IV-SCG to seek out an alternative data communications path for the current data communications path, wherein the alternative data communications path between the home IV-SCG and the broadband network data resource includes a link between the home IV-SCG and one of the set of neighboring SCG nodes; determining, after the detecting, a need to seek out an alternative data communication path; selecting, by the home IV-SCG in response to the determining, a partner neighboring SCG from the neighboring SCG list, through which the alternative communications path passes; and initiating building, by the home IV-SCG in response to the selecting, the alternative data communications path made up of a set of serially connected links, wherein the set of serially connected links of the alternative data communications path always includes: