Patent ID: 7881262

Claim:
In a mobile IP network, comprising an access network with which a mobile terminal is currently associated and wherein said access network is other than a native access network of said mobile terminal, a first mobile network associated with said access network and operative to provide mobile services therefore and a second mobile network that is a native mobile network of said mobile terminal, a method for providing secured mobile IP services to said mobile terminal, said method comprising creating a virtual mobile node at an access network server representing said mobile terminal and associated with said access network, and wherein said virtual mobile node is operative to communicate with at least one Home Agent associated with said second mobile network and to store two sets of authentication information that characterize said mobile terminal, wherein a first set of the two sets of authentication information is for enabling secured communications between said access network and said mobile terminal, and a second set of the two sets of authentication information is for enabling secured communications between said virtual mobile node and said second mobile network via a first foreign agent; and wherein when said mobile terminal which roams within said first mobile network is handed over from being serviced by said first foreign agent to be serviced by a second foreign agent, all communications destined to said mobile terminal will be forwarded via said second foreign agent without re-authenticating said mobile terminal at said second mobile network when replacing the first foreign agent with the second foreign agent, and wherein said method comprising the steps of: initiating a request for receiving IP services by said mobile terminal; initiating an authentication process carried between said mobile terminal and an access authentication and authorization server associated with said second mobile network; upon completing successfully the authenticating process, creating a virtual mobile node entity on behalf of the authenticated mobile terminal; sending a Registration Request to said at least one Home Agent; sending a Registration Reply by said at least one Home Agent to said virtual mobile node; at the network access server, allowing traffic transmitted to and received from said mobile terminal, to pass via a selected access point.