Patent ID: 8644247

Claim:
A method of continuing a mobile IP session for a User Equipment (UE) through a handover of the UE from a first radio network to a second radio network, wherein one of the first and second radio networks is an LTE network and the other one is an HRPD network and wherein the method is implemented at a combined gateway that provides mobile IP services in both the first and second networks and comprises: receiving a first connection request for the UE in the first radio network and correspondingly establishing the mobile IP session for the UE, said first connection request including a UE ID identifying the UE in the first radio network; subsequently receiving a second connection request for the UE in the second radio network while the mobile IP session established in the first radio network remains at the combined gateway, said second connection request including a UE ID identifying the UE in the second radio network; determining that the UE is handed over from the first radio network to the second radio network based on recognizing that the UE ID associated with the second connection request is the same UE ID that was associated with the first connection request; in response to determining the UE is handed over from the radio network to the second radio network, continuing the mobile IP session for the UE in the second radio network; and indicating to the UE that the mobile IP session has been continued through the handover from the first to the second radio networks by sending a routing advertisement message to the UE in the second radio network that includes a same routing prefix as was used to identify the combined gateway to the UE in the first radio network.