Patent ID: 7139587

Claim:
In a wireless communication device which is transportable between plural geographic region, wherein each geographic region has preferred and non-preferred communication systems for the wireless communication device, a method of selecting an appropriate communication system, comprising: providing the wireless communication device with a non-volatile memory having therein a most recently used table, a roaming list system table, and an unknown system table for storing acquisition parameters of unknown systems when an unknown system is first encountered, including a communication system identification, a band class designation for a band class, a channel designation for a channel in the band class, and geographic region identification wherein the unknown system table is distinct from the most recently used table and the roaming list system table; making entries in the unknown system table when the wireless communication device first acquires an appropriate channel in a geographic region; searching the unknown system table when the wireless communication device next changes geographic regions; and selecting a communication system based on the acquisition parameters in the unknown system table as a result of said searching.