Patent ID: 8605655

Claim:
A method of mapping precedence domains between a network device of an access network and a wireless communication device, the method comprising: receiving, with the network device, a rule for the wireless communication device that defines a first packet filter and a rule precedence value for a rule precedence supported by the network device, wherein the rule precedence value defines an order of the rule within the network device with respect to other rules for the wireless communication device defined within the network device; receiving, with the network device, a minimum rule precedence value and a maximum rule precedence value; computing, with the network device, a relative position of the rule precedence value within a rule precedence range defined by the minimum rule precedence value and the maximum rule precedence value; mapping, with the network device and based on the relative position of the rule precedence value within the rule precedence range, the rule precedence value to a filter precedence value for a filter precedence supported by the wireless communication device by determining the filter precedence value within a filter precedence range, wherein the filter precedence value is an integer value that is a multiple of a filter gap value and a rule gap value that is nearest to a value that has a relative position within the filter precedence range that matches the relative position of the rule precedence value within the rule precedence range, wherein the wireless communication device does not support the rule precedence supported by the network device, wherein a number of rule precedence levels with which to specify a rule precedence value exceeds a number of filter precedence levels with which to specify a filter precedence value, and wherein the filter precedence value defines an order of the first packet filter within the wireless communication device with respect to other packet filters defined within the wireless communication device; and outputting, with the network device, a message specifying the first packet filter and the filter precedence value to the wireless communication device.