Patent ID: 8520694

Claim:
A method of using connection-release buffering, the method comprising: (a) a connection-release buffer monitoring application-data packets sent between a mobile station and a server, wherein the connection-release buffer is situated in a communication path between the mobile station and the server, wherein the communication path includes a wireless link between the mobile station and at least one base station; (b) while monitoring the application-data packets, the connection-release buffer resetting a timer in response to detecting each such application-data packet; (c) while monitoring the application-data packets, the connection-release buffer receiving from the server a final packet; and responsively: (i) checking the timer; (ii) if the timer has expired, buffering the final packet until detecting that the mobile station is in a connected mode, at which point the connection-release buffer responsively forwards the final packet to the mobile station; and (iii) if the timer has not expired, forwarding the final packet to the mobile station without first buffering the final packet pending detection of the mobile station being in the connected mode.