Abstract: A network element or server that manages name, address and identifying information of network devices that contain at least one Bluetooth interface is described. A Bluetooth Device Address may be queried by a first network device of a second network device to the server and the server may provide additional name, address and identifying information on the queried second network device to the first network device such that the first network device may establish a preferred connection with the second network device.

Abstract: A multicast address method for facilitating communication between nodes in “all IP” architectures that support CDMA soft handoff via IP multicasting wherein a multicast DHCP server allocates IP multicast addresses to mobile terminals from administratively scoped IP multicast addresses. IP multicast addresses are allocated to mobile terminals by offering, assigning, and distributing IP multicast addresses to the mobile terminals in response to IP multicast address requests from the mobile terminals to the multicast DHCP servers, which use unique mobile terminal identifiers to correlate mobile terminals with their prior and current IP multicast addresses. A multicast agent generates unicast IP address tables that map each of the unicast IP addresses, and edge routers use the unicast IP address tables to replace unicast IP addresses with their corresponding IP multicast address.

Abstract: The present invention provides a network communication device and method for simultaneous connection establishment and traffic delivery in a network. The network communication device comprises a first interface for exchanging information with a network device, a second interface connected to the first interface for establishing a connection with the network device, and middleware logic for coordinating information exchange between the first interface and the second interface. The second interface comprises a clock and a clock value that may be dynamically altered. The network communication device may be a Bluetooth device or a Bluetooth Access Point and is capable of functioning in a scan state and a connect state simultaneously.

Abstract: Method and system for discrete soft handoff of mobile terminals in a wireless CDMA network. Mobile terminal-base station channels perform soft handoff in a discrete fashion by predicting which reserved channels will be “strong” and “weak” for CDMA data frame transmission. At least one of the strong channels is included in the active set of handoff legs used to transmit the CDMA data frame, and the invention transmits the CDMA data frame only through channels within the active set.

Abstract: An efficient method and apparatus for rapidly and flexibly setting, on a remote basis, the value of a selected IP parameter(s) in each of a plurality of networked computing devices within a local proximity to support transmission using the IP protocol. In an illustrative embodiment wherein each device is connectable to a common backbone network, each device is also provided with an interface that supports radio transmission using Bluetooth protocols. The desired setting of the selected IP parameter for each device is implemented by means of a prescribed sequence of suitable Bluetooth messages transmitted by a common remote Bluetooth terminal.

Abstract: An arrangement including a scannable matrix for predicting the occurrence of a future collision of frequency hops of the channel hopping patterns on the respective activated first paths of a Bluetooth packet transmission system is described. A first coordinate of the matrix defines columns representative of a selectable window of N successive future time slots of the channel hopping patterns, and a second coordinate of the matrix defines rows each exhibiting the successive frequency hops of the patterns segments transmitted on a separate one of the activated channels during such window. The first coordinate is scanned to detect the occurrence, if any, of identical frequency hops appearing at an intersection of the then-scanned column and at least a pair of the rows.

Abstract: A method and associated apparatus for rapidly and efficiently updating, from a remote location, selected software that is resident on a plurality of networked computing devices that may be dissimilar. In an illustrative embodiment, in which the updated version is resident at a prescribed address on an Internet web server that is accessible through the backbone network, each of the computing devices is provided with an additional radio interface adapted for Bluetooth transmission. Bluetooth messages may be sent to each of the devices from a suitable command source, illustratively a handheld Bluetooth terminal. After the terminal has determined, through conventional Bluetooth inquiries, which of the networked computing devices contains the relevant software, the terminal issues a suitable Bluetooth service request message to discover a first subset of such devices that contains an outdated version of such software.

Abstract: An arrangement is described for aborting predicted collisions between independent FH-CDMA channel hopping patterns on separate Bluetooth transmission paths in close proximity. Facilities are provided for muting all but a selected one of the activated channels during the time slot(s) when such collision is predicted to occur. Advantageously, such selection favors real-time or other high-priority traffic. The packets that would otherwise be transmitted over the muted channel(s) during the time slot (s) predicted for collision are locally buffered and thereafter selectively released when the muted channels are reactivated. Priority of resumption of transmission on the muted channels may be afforded on the basis of the relative ages or sizes of the packet content in their associated buffers.

Abstract: A multiple-interface radio terminal is provided with facilities which dynamically assign a stream of packet data to be transmitted to a selected one of a plurality of interface(s). The interfaces respectively support channels that share a common frequency spectrum but that operate with different transmission protocols, for example the Bluetooth and 802.11 protocols. The terminal is provided with an interface manager that periodically transmits query signals to the respective channels to obtain and store refreshable inputs representative of a selected transmission condition(s) on such channels. Upon the occurrence of a connection request at the terminal, the interface manager compares the latest stored samples from the respective channels with a reference metric to generate an indication which represents the relative states of the channels with regard to the selected transmission condition.

Abstract: A Bluetooth-enabled terminal having a radio manager for minimizing frequency collisions between channel hopping patterns transmitted over plural channels established between such terminal and correspondent Bluetooth devices is described. The radio manager extracts successive sets of projected future N-time slot segments of the respective Bluetooth channel hopping patterns. Each extracted set is tested to detect a time slot, if any, where frequency hops of the segments of the set coincide, indicating a frequency collision. When a collision time slot is detected, the radio manager generates a marker which triggers an alteration of the frequency hops that would otherwise be exhibited by a subset of the generated channel hopping patterns in such detected time slot. Such terminal may optionally be provided with an additional network interface to define a collision-resistant Bluetooth access point.

Abstract: A method and system is provided for periodically and dynamically updating allocation pools of IP address which are reserved for wireless or wireline hosts. A system IP address server controls an entire address pool, contains predictive analysis logic, performs a predictive analysis, partitions the IP addresses into distinct address pools, and maintains “wireless guard bands” of IP addresses for wireless users to ensure that a higher priority address pool is never exhausted before an address pool which has a lower priority.

Abstract: A method and system is provided for periodically and dynamically updating allocation pools of IP address which are reserved for wireless or wireline hosts. A system IP address server controls an entire address pool, contains predictive analysis logic, performs a predictive analysis, partitions the IP addresses into distinct address pools, and maintains “wireless guard bands” of IP addresses for wireless users to ensure that a higher priority address pool is never exhausted before an address pool which has a lower priority.

Abstract: Method for selecting IP data packet segments in an all-IP architecture that supports CDMA soft handoff via IP multicasting, wherein both the mobile terminal and IP backbone network receive a plurality of identical, redundant CDMA IP data packets. A best IP data packet is created by first, receiving a plurality of IP data packets from a plurality of corresponding base stations, second, separating those IP data packets into data packet segments comprising separate time intervals, and third, employing different metric standards to determine which of those data packet segments received for each time interval is the best data packet segment. The best data packet segments are determined by creating a quality matrix that represents the quality of each data packet segment for each time interval. A quality function is then computed for each time interval to determine which data segment is the best for that particular time interval.

Abstract: A multicast address method for facilitating communication between nodes in “all IP” architectures that support CDMA soft handoff via IP multicasting wherein a multicast DHCP server allocates IP multicast addresses to mobile terminals from administratively scoped IP multicast addresses. IP multicast addresses are allocated to mobile terminals by offering, assigning, and distributing IP multicast addresses to the mobile terminals in response to IP multicast address requests from the mobile terminals to the multicast DHCP servers, which use unique mobile terminal identifiers to correlate mobile terminals with their prior and current IP multicast addresses. A multicast agent generates unicast IP address tables that map each of the unicast IP addresses, and edge routers use the unicast IP address tables to replace unicast IP addresses with their corresponding IP multicast address.

Abstract: Entity identity information and location identity information are sensed and made available to subscriber applications through a secure location-aware services infrastructure, thereby allowing for the creation of location-based services. Information detected by a sensor is passed to an interface aggregator for conversion to a standardized format and then forwarded to location registers for the domain of the sensors. Subscriber applications query the registers to determine which entities are in a particular location and to determine the location of entities. By unifying diverse sensing technologies, location information can be simultaneously obtained on varying degrees of granularity. In addition, the system is scalable to large scenarios by using a plurality of sensors, interface aggregators, and registers.

Abstract: We present a novel method, Virtual Soft Hand-off for wireless IP-centric CDMA networks whose routers, hosts and mobile stations have small group multicast (SGM) capability. The underlying ideas of the virtual soft hand-off method are that it views soft hand-off support as setting up an explicit synchronous multicast session among a small group of participants with dynamic group membership, the packets transmitted over the multicast session are time stamped to help maintain synchronization and the receivers recover multiple the packet flows from the multiple received signals concurrently, and combine them to create a single packet flow at higher layers.

Abstract: Encoding a real-time and non-real-time video stream, encapsulating the encoded video stream along with the decoding software corresponding to the encoding program into active packets at the Application and Services layer, and transmitting active the packets to the receiving terminal, which then supplies the receiver with the necessary decoding software to play any type of encoded video stream without having the associated decoding software pre-loaded.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for dynamically allocating IP addresses in a wireless IP network. IP address servers determine the requisite IP address pools and guard bands for individual network cells to guarantee fair access to the network and facilitate handoff host handoff from a prior cell to a new cell. IP address servers also prioritize handoff and resident hosts that request an IP address from the IP address server. In particular, IP address servers assign a higher priority to handoff hosts over resident hosts that request an IP address from an IP address server in order to maintain a preestablished handoff host network connection instead of dropping a handoff host connection in favor of a new resident host network connection. Finally, each cell is allocated a minimum number of IP addresses to ensure a certain level of fair access to the network regardless of the cell wherein a handoff or resident host resides.

Abstract: Method and system for soft handoff of a mobile terminal in a wireless CDMA IP network which utilize IP multicasting to a plurality of multicast network interface participants that reside at the mobile terminal. A soft handoff multicast protocol is used to assign a unique IP multicasting address to the mobile terminal and establish a plurality of multicast participants that reside at the mobile terminal, thereby creating corresponding multicast network connections between the IP network and the mobile terminal. The IP network simultaneously transmits information to the mobile terminal via the multicast network connections by broadcasting the information as a multicast message to the mobile terminal's multicast group. The mobile terminal simultaneously transmits information to the IP network via the multicast network connections by instructing its multicast participants residing at the mobile terminal to respond to the sender of the multicast message.