Patent ID: 8204063

Claim:
A system for transmitting an IP packet between IP devices via a network including a plurality of routers comprising: an overlaid IP interface over routers connected to a first IP device and a second IP device, where the first and second IP devices run a first communications protocol and the routers run a second communications protocol that is different from the first communications protocol, and wherein the router connected to said first IP device comprises a first gateway, and the router connected to said second IP device a second gateway, wherein the overlaid IP interface co-exists with said second communications protocol in said first gateway and said second gateway, said overlaid IP interface comprising: a bi-directional IP tunnel interface comprising a network address for uniquely identifying the second gateway in the second communications protocol, an interface number for reaching said network address, and an IP address for said IP device to transmit the IP packet, wherein the router having the first gateway and the router having the second gateway each comprise an OSI protocol stack having a Connectionless Network Layer Protocol (CLNP) layer, and an IP protocol stack placed over the OSI protocol stack, wherein the IP protocol stack includes an IP layer and the bi-directional IP tunnel interface which interfaces the IP layer with a CLNP layer of the OSI protocol stack.