Patent ID: 7519063

Claim:
In a communications system having a gateway containing a group of interface devices each configured with the same functionality for assembling messages transmitted as sequences of data packets from within a coverage area of a wireless communications network, a method for assembling a message from a sequence of data packets, including: receiving at one interface device of the group of interface devices within a gateway, each configured with the same functionality, from the wireless communications network at least one data packet of a sequence of data packets that collectively form a message; determining if the at least one data packet meets a predetermined criteria based on the location of the at least one data packet in the sequence of data packets, and if so claiming ownership of the sequence of data packets by sending out a request to the other” interface devices of the group for any data packets of the sequence received by the other interface devices and receiving at the one interface device any data packets sent by the other interface devices in response to the request; and assembling the data packets of the sequence into the message at the one interface device.