Patent ID: 8254364

Claim:
A method for creating a tunnel relationship between a mobile device and a base station, comprising: selecting at least one base station for establishment of communication through a tunnel; transmitting a message that includes a Route Creation Header to the at least one base station, the Route Creation Header comprises one or more parameters associated with defining the tunnel; waiting for a confirmation of the Route Creation Header; transitioning out of a Waiting to Open state if the confirmation is received, wherein the confirmation indicates creation of the tunnel relationship; including an access terminal identifier (ATI) in the Route Creation Header if the ATI has recently changed; and wherein transmitting the message that includes the Route Creation Header to the at least one base station further comprises: determining that two or more Packet Consolidation Protocol packets will be carried in a single media access control (MAC) packet, each Packet Consolidation Protocol packet includes a Header Element record; and omitting the Header Element record from all but one of the Packet Consolidation Protocol packets.