Patent ID: 8213424

Claim:
A cellular network comprising: (a) at least one base station, said at least one base station configured to use wireless technology to communicate with mobile terminals, said wireless technology using a protocol layer architecture including at least one of the following: (1) a wireless physical layer; (2) a wireless medium access control protocol layer; (3) a radio link control layer; and (4) a network layer; (b) at least one connecting device, said connecting device including: (1) a first interface configured to connect to said at least one base station; (2) a second interface configured to connect to said at least one cellular label switched network; and (3) a label forwarding layer configured to: (i) forward packets between said at least one base station and a cellular label switched network; (ii) attaching a label to at least some of said packets, said label including: (1) a label switched path identifier, the label switched path identifier configured to identify a label switched path for directing packets between a pair of locations, said pair of locations consisting of: (a) nodes; and (b) said connecting device; and (2) control information; and (iii) remove said label from at least some of said packets; (c) said at least one cellular label switched network, said at least one cellular label switched network including a plurality of nodes, said plurality of nodes: (1) topologically connected; and (2) including at least one label switching node, said at least one label switching node configured to: (i) interpret said label; and (ii) forward said packets along said label switched path, wherein said connecting device and said at least one base station reside outside of said at least one cellular label switched network; and (d) at least one service area divided into a multitude of cells through which one or more of said mobile terminals can move through, said at least one base station configured to communicate with said mobile terminals deployed in said at least one service area for forwarding packets between said base station and said mobile terminals.