Systems and methods for optimizing handovers for better quality of service for users in a network of moving things

BACKGROUND

Current communication networks are unable to adequately support communication environments involving mobile and static nodes. As a non-limiting example, current communication networks are unable to adequately support a network comprising a complex array of both moving and static nodes (e.g., the Internet of moving things). Limitations and disadvantages of conventional methods and systems will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such approaches with some aspects of the present methods and systems set forth in the remainder of this disclosure with reference to the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a communication network, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a communication network, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 3 shows a diagram of a metropolitan area network, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a communication network, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIGS. 5A-5C show a plurality of network configurations illustrating the flexibility and/or and resiliency of a communication network, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of an example communication network, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 shows an example scenario for a pedestrian with a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 8 shows an example scenario for a stationary person with a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 9 shows an example scenario for a person with a mobile device who exited from a vehicle in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 10 shows an example scenario for a person with a mobile device in a vehicle in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 11 shows an example flowchart for handling a handoff of a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 12 shows an example flowchart for handling a request to connect from a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 13 shows an example high-level block diagram of an access point, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure.

SUMMARY

Various aspects of this disclosure provide communication network architectures, systems and methods for supporting a network of mobile and/or static nodes. As a non-limiting example, various aspects of this disclosure provide communication network architectures, systems, and methods for supporting a dynamically configurable communication network comprising a complex array of both static and moving communication nodes (e.g., the Internet of moving things). For example, a communication network implemented in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure may operate in one of a plurality of modalities comprising various fixed nodes, mobile nodes, and/or a combination thereof, which are selectable to achieve any of a variety of system goals.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS ASPECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE

As utilized herein the terms “circuits” and “circuitry” refer to physical electronic components (i.e., hardware) and any software and/or firmware (“code”) that may configure the hardware, be executed by the hardware, and or otherwise be associated with the hardware. As used herein, for example, a particular processor and memory (e.g., a volatile or non-volatile memory device, a general computer-readable medium, etc.) may comprise a first “circuit” when executing a first one or more lines of code and may comprise a second “circuit” when executing a second one or more lines of code. Additionally, a circuit may comprise analog and/or digital circuitry. Such circuitry may, for example, operate on analog and/or digital signals. It should be understood that a circuit may be in a single device or chip, on a single motherboard, in a single chassis, in a plurality of enclosures at a single geographical location, in a plurality of enclosures distributed over a plurality of geographical locations, etc.

As utilized herein, circuitry is “operable” to perform a function whenever the circuitry comprises the necessary hardware and code (if any is necessary) to perform the function, regardless of whether performance of the function is disabled, or not enabled (e.g., by a user-configurable setting, factory setting or trim, etc.).

As utilized herein, “and/or” means any one or more of the items in the list joined by “and/or”. As an example, “x and/or y” means any element of the three-element set {(x), (y), (x, y)}. That is, “x and/or y” means “one or both of x and y.” As another example, “x, y, and/or z” means any element of the seven-element set {(x), (y), (z), (x, y), (x, z), (y, z), (x, y, z)}. That is, “x, y, and/or z” means “one or more of x, y, and z.” As utilized herein, the terms “e.g.,” and “for example,” “exemplary,” and the like set off lists of one or more non-limiting examples, instances, or illustrations.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular examples only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. As used herein, the singular forms are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises,” “includes,” “comprising,” “including,” “has,” “have,” “having,” and the like when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. Thus, for example, a first element, a first component or a first section discussed below could be termed a second element, a second component or a second section without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure. Similarly, various spatial terms, such as “upper,” “lower,” “side,” and the like, may be used in distinguishing one element from another element in a relative manner. It should be understood, however, that components may be oriented in different manners, for example an electronic device may be turned sideways so that its “top” surface is facing horizontally and its “side” surface is facing vertically, without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure.

With the proliferation of the mobile and/or static things (e.g., devices, machines, people, etc.) and logistics for such things to become connected to each other (e.g., in the contexts of smart logistics, transportation, environmental sensing, etc.), a platform that is for example always-on, robust, scalable and secure that is capable of providing connectivity, services and Internet access to such things (or objects), anywhere and anytime is desirable. Efficient power utilization within the various components of such system is also desirable.

Accordingly, various aspects of the present disclosure provide a fully-operable, always-on, responsive, robust, scalable, secure platform/system/architecture to provide connectivity, services and Internet access to all mobile things and/or static things (e.g., devices, machines, people, access points, end user devices, sensors, etc.) anywhere and anytime, while operating in an energy-efficient manner.

Various aspects of the present disclosure provide a platform that is flexibly configurable and adaptable to the various requirements, features, and needs of different environments, where each environment may be characterized by a respective level of mobility and density of mobile and/or static things, and the number and/or types of access to those things. Characteristics of various environments may, for example, include high mobility of nodes (e.g., causing contacts or connections to be volatile), high number of neighbors, high number of connected mobile users, mobile access points, availability of multiple networks and technologies (e.g., sometimes within a same area), etc. For example, the mode of operation of the platform may be flexibly adapted from environment to environment, based on each environment's respective requirements and needs, which may be different from other environments. Additionally for example, the platform may be flexibly optimized (e.g., at design/installation time and/or in real-time) for different purposes (e.g., to reduce the latency, increase throughput, reduce power consumption, load balance, increase reliability, make more robust with regard to failures or other disturbances, etc.), for example based on the content, service or data that the platform provides or handles within a particular environment.

In accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, many control and management services (e.g., mobility, security, routing, etc.) are provided on top of the platform (e.g., directly, using control overlays, using containers, etc.), such services being compatible with the services currently deployed on top of the Internet or other communication network(s).

The communication network (or platform), in whole or in part, may for example be operated in public and/or private modes of operation, for example depending on the use case. The platform may, for example, operate in a public or private mode of operation, depending on the use-case (e.g., public Internet access, municipal environment sensing, fleet operation, etc.).

Additionally for example, in an implementation in which various network components are mobile, the transportation and/or signal control mechanisms may be adapted to serve the needs of the particular implementation. Also for example, wireless transmission power and/or rate may be adapted (e.g., to mitigate interference, to reduce power consumption, to extend the life of network components, etc.

Various example implementations of a platform, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, are capable of connecting different subsystems, even when various other subsystems that may normally be utilized are unavailable. For example, the platform may comprise various built-in redundancies and fail-recovery mechanisms. For example, the platform may comprise a self-healing capability, self-configuration capability, self-adaptation capability, etc. The protocols and functions of the platform may, for example, be prepared to be autonomously and smoothly configured and adapted to the requirements and features of different environments characterized by different levels of mobility and density of things (or objects), the number/types of access to those things. For example, various aspects of the platform may gather context parameters that can influence any or all decisions. Such parameters may, for example, be derived locally, gathered from a neighborhood, fixed APs, the Cloud, etc. Various aspects of the platform may also, for example, ask for historical information to feed any of the decisions, where such information can be derived from historical data, from surveys, from simulators, etc. Various aspects of the platform may additionally, for example, probe or monitor decisions made throughout the network, for example to evaluate the network and/or the decisions themselves in real-time. Various aspects of the platform may further, for example, enforce the decisions in the network (e.g., after evaluating the probing results). Various aspects of the platform may, for example, establish thresholds to avoid any decision that is to be constantly or repeatedly performed without any significant advantage (e.g., technology change, certificate change, IP change, etc.). Various aspects of the platform may also, for example, learn locally (e.g., with the decisions performed) and dynamically update the decisions.

In addition to (or instead of) failure robustness, a platform may utilize multiple connections (or pathways) that exist between distinct sub-systems or elements within the same sub-system, to increase the robustness and/or load-balancing of the system.

The following discussion will present examples of the functionality performed by various example subsystems of the communication network. It should be understood that the example functionality discussed herein need not be performed by the particular example subsystem or by a single subsystem. For example, the subsystems present herein may interact with each other, and data or control services may be deployed either in a centralized way, or having their functionalities distributed among the different subsystems, for example leveraging the cooperation between the elements of each subsystem.

Various aspects of the present disclosure provide a communication network (e.g., a city-wide vehicular network, a shipping port-sized vehicular network, a campus-wide vehicular network, etc.) that utilizes vehicles (e.g., automobiles, buses, trucks, boats, forklifts, etc.) as Wi-Fi hotspots. Note that Wi-Fi is generally used throughout this discussion as an example, but the scope of various aspects of this disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, other wireless LAN technologies, PAN technologies, MAN technologies, etc., may be utilized. Such utilization may, for example, provide cost-effective ways to gather substantial amounts of urban data, and provide for the efficient offloading of traffic from congested cellular networks (or other networks). In controlled areas (e.g., ports, harbors, etc.) with many vehicles, a communication network in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure may expand the wireless coverage of existing enterprise Wi-Fi networks, for example providing for real-time communication with vehicle drivers (e.g., human, computer-controlled, etc.) and other mobile employees without the need for SIM cards or cellular (or other network) data plans.

Vehicles may have many advantageous characteristics that make them useful as Wi-Fi (or general wireless) hotspots. For example, vehicles generally have at least one battery, vehicles are generally densely spread over the city at street level and/or they are able to establish many contacts with each other in a controlled space, and vehicles can communicate with 10× the range of normal Wi-Fi in the 5.9 GHz frequency band, reserved for intelligent transportation systems in the EU, the U.S., and elsewhere. Note that the scope of this disclosure is not limited to such 5.9 GHz wireless communication. Further, vehicles are able to effectively expand their coverage area into a swath over a period of time, enabling a single vehicle access point to interact with substantially more data sources over the period of time.

In accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, an affordable multi-network on-board unit (OBU) is presented. Note that the OBU may also be referred to herein as a mobile access point, Mobile AP, MAP, etc. The OBU may, for example, comprise a plurality of networking interfaces (e.g., Wi-Fi, 802.11p, 4G, Bluetooth, UWB, etc.). The OBU may, for example, be readily installed in or on private and/or public vehicles (e.g., individual user vehicles, vehicles of private fleets, vehicles of public fleets, etc.). The OBU may, for example, be installed in transportation fleets, waste management fleets, law enforcement fleets, emergency services, road maintenance fleets, taxi fleets, aircraft fleets, etc. The OBU may, for example, be installed in or on a vehicle or other structure with free mobility or relatively limited mobility. The OBU may also, for example, be carried by a person or service animal, mounted to a bicycle, mounted to a moving machine in general, mounted to a container, etc.

The OBUs may, for example, operate to connect passing vehicles to the wired infrastructure of one or more network providers, telecom operators, etc. In accordance with the architecture, hardware, and software functionality discussed herein, vehicles and fleets can be connected not just to the cellular networks (or other wide area or metropolitan area networks, etc.) and existing Wi-Fi hotspots spread over a city or a controlled space, but also to other vehicles (e.g., utilizing multi-hop communications to a wired infrastructure, single or multi-hop peer-to-peer vehicle communication, etc.). The vehicles and/or fleets may, for example, form an overall mesh of communication links, for example including the OBUs and also fixed Access Points (APs) connected to the wired infrastructure (e.g., a local infrastructure, etc.). Note that OBUs herein may also be referred to as “Mobile APs,” “mobile hotspots,” “MAPs,” etc. Also note that fixed access points may also be referred to herein as Road Side Units (RSUs), Fixed APs, FAPs, etc.

In an example implementation, the OBUs may communicate with the Fixed APs utilizing a relatively long-range protocol (e.g., 802.11p, etc.), and the Fixed APs may, in turn, be hard wired to the wired infrastructure (e.g., via cable, tethered optical link, etc.). Note that Fixed APs may also, or alternatively, be coupled to the infrastructure via wireless link (e.g., 802.11p, etc.). Additionally, clients or user devices may communicate with the OBUs using one or more relatively short-range protocols (e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, UWB, etc.). The OBUs, for example having a longer effective wireless communication range than typical Wi-Fi access points or other wireless LAN/PAN access points (e.g., at least for links such as those based on 802.11p, etc.), are capable of substantially greater coverage areas than typical Wi-Fi or other wireless LAN/PAN access points, and thus fewer OBUs are necessary to provide blanket coverage over a geographical area.

The OBU may, for example, comprise a robust vehicular networking module (e.g., a connection manager) which builds on long-range communication protocol capability (e.g., 802.11p, etc.). For example, in addition to comprising 802.11p (or other long-range protocol) capability to communicate with Fixed APs, vehicles, and other nodes in the network, the OBU may comprise a network interface (e.g., 802.11a/b/g/n, 802.11ac, 802.11af, any combination thereof, etc.) to provide wireless local area network (WLAN) connectivity to end user devices, sensors, fixed Wi-Fi access points, etc. For example, the OBU may operate to provide in-vehicle Wi-Fi Internet access to users in and/or around the vehicle (e.g., a bus, train car, taxi cab, public works vehicle, etc.). The OBU may further comprise one or more wireless backbone communication interfaces (e.g., cellular network interfaces, etc.). Though in various example scenarios, a cellular network interface (or other wireless backbone communication interface) might not be the preferred interface for various reasons (e.g., cost, power, bandwidth, etc.), the cellular network interface may be utilized to provide connectivity in geographical areas that are not presently supported by a Fixed AP, may be utilized to provide a fail-over communication link, may be utilized for emergency communications, may be utilized to subscribe to local infrastructure access, etc. The cellular network interface may also, for example, be utilized to allow the deployment of solutions that are dependent on the cellular network operators.

An OBU, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, may for example comprise a smart connection manager that can select the best available wireless link(s) (e.g., Wi-Fi, 802.11p, cellular, vehicle mesh, etc.) with which to access the Internet. The OBU may also, for example, provide geo-location capabilities (e.g., GPS, etc.), motion detection sensors to determine if the vehicle is in motion, and a power control subsystem (e.g., to ensure that the OBU does not deplete the vehicle battery, etc.). The OBU may, for example, comprise any or all of the sensors (e.g., environmental sensors, etc.) discussed herein.

The OBU may also, for example, comprise a manager that manages machine-to-machine data acquisition and transfer (e.g., in a real-time or delay-tolerant fashion) to and from the cloud. For example, the OBU may log and/or communicate information of the vehicles.

The OBU may, for example, comprise a connection and/or routing manager that operates to perform routing of communications in a vehicle-to-vehicle/vehicle-to-infrastructure multi-hop communication. A mobility manager (or controller, MC) may, for example, ensure that communication sessions persist over one or more handoff(s) (also referred to herein as a “handover” or “handovers”) (e.g., between different Mobile APs, Fixed APs, base stations, hot spots, etc.), among different technologies (e.g., 802.11p, cellular, Wi-Fi, satellite, etc.), among different MCs (e.g., in a fail-over scenario, load redistribution scenario, etc.), across different interfaces (or ports), etc. Note that the MC may also be referred to herein as a Local Mobility Anchor (LMA), a Network Controller, etc. Note that the MC, or a plurality thereof, may for example be implemented as part of the backbone, but may also, or alternatively, be implemented as part of any of a variety of components or combinations thereof. For example, the MC may be implemented in a Fixed AP (or distributed system thereof), as part of an OBU (or a distributed system thereof), etc. Various non-limiting examples of system components and/or methods are provided in U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/222,098, filed Sep. 22, 2015, and titled “Systems and Method for Managing Mobility in a Network of Moving Things,” the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference. Note that in an example implementation including a plurality of MCs, such MCs may be co-located and/or may be geographically distributed.

Various aspects of the present disclosure also provide a cloud-based service-oriented architecture that handles the real-time management, monitoring and reporting of the network and clients, the functionalities required for data storage, processing and management, the Wi-Fi client authentication and Captive Portal display, etc.

A communication network (or component thereof) in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure may, for example, support a wide range of smart city applications (or controlled scenarios, or connected scenarios, etc.) and/or use-cases, as described herein.

For example, an example implementation may operate to turn each vehicle (e.g., both public and private taxis, buses, trucks, etc.) into a Mobile AP (e.g., a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot), offering Internet access to employees, passengers and mobile users travelling in the city, waiting in bus stops, sitting in parks, etc. Moreover, through an example vehicular mesh network formed between vehicles and/or fleets of vehicles, an implementation may be operable to offload cellular traffic through the mobile Wi-Fi hotspots and/or fixed APs (e.g., 802.11p-based APs) spread over the city and connected to the wired infrastructure of public or private telecom operators in strategic places, while ensuring the widest possible coverage at the lowest possible cost.

An example implementation (e.g., of a communication network and/or components thereof) may, for example, be operable as a massive urban scanner that gathers large amounts of data (e.g., continuously) on-the-move, actionable or not, generated by a myriad of sources spanning from the in-vehicle sensors or On Board Diagnostic System port (e.g., OBD2, etc.), external Wi-Fi/Bluetooth-enabled sensing units spread over the city, devices of vehicles' drivers and passengers (e.g., information characterizing such devices and/or passengers, etc.), positioning system devices (e.g., position information, velocity information, trajectory information, travel history information, etc.), etc.

Depending on the use case, the OBU may for example process (or computer, transform, manipulate, aggregate, summarize, etc.) the data before sending the data from the vehicle, for example providing the appropriate granularity (e.g., value resolution) and sampling rates (e.g., temporal resolution) for each individual application. For example, the OBU may, for example, process the data in any manner deemed advantageous by the system. The OBU may, for example, send the collected data (e.g., raw data, preprocessed data, information of metrics calculated based on the collected data, etc.) to the Cloud (e.g., to one or more networked servers coupled to any portion of the network) in an efficient and reliable manner to improve the efficiency, environmental impact and social value of municipal city operations and transportation services. Various example use cases are described herein.

In an example scenario in which public buses are moving along city routes and/or taxis are performing their private transportation services, the OBU is able to collect large quantities of real-time data from the positioning systems (e.g., GPS, etc.), from accelerometer modules, etc. The OBU may then, for example, communicate such data to the Cloud, where the data may be processed, reported and viewed, for example to support such public or private bus and/or taxi operations, for example supporting efficient remote monitoring and scheduling of buses and taxis, respectively.

In an example implementation, small cameras (or other sensors) may be coupled to small single-board computers (SBCs) that are placed above the doors of public buses to allow capturing image sequences of people entering and leaving buses, and/or on stops along the bus routes in order to estimate the number of people waiting for a bus. Such data may be gathered by the OBU in order to be sent to the Cloud. With such data, public transportation systems may detect peaks; overcrowded buses, routes and stops; underutilized buses, routes and stops; etc., enabling action to be taken in real-time (e.g., reducing bus periodicity to decrease fuel costs and CO₂emissions where and when passenger flows are smaller, etc.) as well as detecting systematic transportation problems.

An OBU may, for example, be operable to communicate with any of a variety of Wi-Fi-enabled sensor devices equipped with a heterogeneous collection of environmental sensors. Such sensors may, for example, comprise noise sensors (microphones, etc.), gas sensors (e.g., sensing CO, NO₂, O₃, volatile organic compounds (or VOCs), CO₂, etc.), smoke sensors, pollution sensors, meteorological sensors (e.g., sensing temperature, humidity, luminosity, particles, solar radiation, wind speed (e.g., anemometer), wind direction, rain (e.g., a pluviometer), optical scanners, biometric scanners, cameras, microphones, etc.). Such sensors may also comprise sensors associated with users (e.g., vehicle operators or passengers, passersby, etc.) and/or their personal devices (e.g., smart phones or watches, biometrics sensors, wearable sensors, implanted sensors, etc.). Such sensors may, for example, comprise sensors and/or systems associated with on-board diagnostic (OBD) units for vehicles. Such sensors may, for example, comprise positioning sensors (e.g., GPS sensors, Galileo sensors, GLONASS sensors, etc.). Such sensors may, for example, comprise container sensors (e.g., garbage can sensors, shipping container sensors, container environmental sensors, container tracking sensors, etc.).

Once a vehicle enters the vicinity of such a sensor device, a wireless link may be established, so that the vehicle (or OBU thereof) can collect sensor data from the sensor device and upload the collected data to a database in the Cloud. The appropriate action can then be taken. In an example waste management implementation, several waste management (or collection) trucks may be equipped with OBUs that are able to periodically communicate with sensors installed on containers in order to gather information about waste level, time passed since last collection, etc. Such information may then sent to the Cloud (e.g., to a waste management application coupled to the Internet, etc.) through the vehicular mesh network, in order to improve the scheduling and/or routing of waste management trucks. Note that various sensors may always be in range of the Mobile AP (e.g., vehicle-mounted sensors). Note that the sensor may also (or alternatively) be mobile (e.g., a sensor mounted to another vehicle passing by a Mobile AP or Fixed AP, a drone-mounted sensor, a pedestrian-mounted sensor, etc.).

In an example implementation, for example in a controlled space (e.g., a port, harbor, airport, factory, plantation, mine, etc.) with many vehicles, machines and employees, a communication network in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure may expand the wireless coverage of enterprise and/or local Wi-Fi networks, for example without resorting to a Telco-dependent solution based on SIM cards or cellular fees. In such an example scenario, apart from avoiding expensive cellular data plans, limited data rate and poor cellular coverage in some places, a communication network in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure is also able to collect and/or communicate large amounts of data, in a reliable and real-time manner, where such data may be used to optimize harbor logistics, transportation operations, etc.

For example in a port and/or harbor implementation, by gathering real-time information on the position, speed, fuel consumption and CO₂emissions of the vehicles, the communication network allows a port operator to improve the coordination of the ship loading processes and increase the throughput of the harbor. Also for example, the communication network enables remote monitoring of drivers' behaviors, trucks' positions and engines' status, and then be able to provide real-time notifications to drivers (e.g., to turn on/off the engine, follow the right route inside the harbor, take a break, etc.), thus reducing the number and duration of the harbor services and trips. Harbor authorities may, for example, quickly detect malfunctioning trucks and abnormal trucks' circulation, thus avoiding accidents in order to increase harbor efficiency, security, and safety. Additionally, the vehicles can also connect to Wi-Fi access points from harbor local operators, and provide Wi-Fi Internet access to vehicles' occupants and surrounding harbor employees, for example allowing pilots to save time by filing reports via the Internet while still on the water.

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a communication network 100, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. Any or all of the functionality discussed herein may be performed by any or all of the example components of the example network 100. Also, the example network 100 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, 900, and 1000, discussed herein.

The example network 100, for example, comprises a Cloud that may, for example comprise any of a variety of network level components. The Cloud may, for example, comprise any of a variety of server systems executing applications that monitor and/or control components of the network 100. Such applications may also, for example, manage the collection of information from any of a large array of networked information sources, many examples of which are discussed herein. The Cloud (or a portion thereof) may also be referred to, at times, as an API. For example, Cloud (or a portion thereof) may provide one or more application programming interfaces (APIs) which other devices may use for communicating/interacting with the Cloud.

An example component of the Cloud may, for example, manage interoperability with various multi-cloud systems and architectures. Another example component (e.g., a Cloud service component) may, for example, provide various cloud services (e.g., captive portal services, authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) services, API Gateway services, etc.). An additional example component (e.g., a DevCenter component) may, for example, provide network monitoring and/or management functionality, manage the implementation of software updates, etc. A further example component of the Cloud may manage data storage, data analytics, data access, etc. A still further example component of the Cloud may include any of a variety of third-partly applications and services.

The Cloud may, for example, be coupled to the Backbone/Core Infrastructure of the example network 100 via the Internet (e.g., utilizing one or more Internet Service Providers). Though the Internet is provided by example, it should be understood that scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The Backbone/Core may, for example, comprise any one or more different communication infrastructure components. For example, one or more providers may provide backbone networks or various components thereof. As shown in the example network 100 illustrated in FIG. 1, a Backbone provider may provide wireline access (e.g., PSTN, fiber, cable, etc.). Also for example, a Backbone provider may provide wireless access (e.g., Microwave, LTE/Cellular, 5G/TV Spectrum, etc.).

The Backbone/Core may also, for example, comprise one or more Local Infrastructure Providers. The Backbone/Core may also, for example, comprise a private infrastructure (e.g., run by the network 100 implementer, owner, etc.). The Backbone/Core may, for example, provide any of a variety of Backbone Services (e.g., AAA, Mobility, Monitoring, Addressing, Routing, Content services, Gateway Control services, etc.).

The Backbone/Core Infrastructure may comprise any of a variety of characteristics, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. For example, the Backbone/Core may be compatible with different wireless or wired technologies for backbone access. The Backbone/Core may also be adaptable to handle public (e.g., municipal, city, campus, etc.) and/or private (e.g., ports, campus, etc.) network infrastructures owned by different local providers, and/or owned by the network implementer or stakeholder. The Backbone/Core may, for example, comprise and/or interface with different Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting (AAA) mechanisms.

The Backbone/Core Infrastructure may, for example, support different modes of operation (e.g., L2 in port implementations, L3 in on-land public transportation implementations, utilizing any one or more of a plurality of different layers of digital IP networking, any combinations thereof, equivalents thereof, etc.) or addressing pools. The Backbone/Core may also for example, be agnostic to the Cloud provider(s) and/or Internet Service Provider(s). Additionally for example, the Backbone/Core may be agnostic to requests coming from any or all subsystems of the network 100 (e.g., Mobile APs or OBUs (On Board Units), Fixed APs or RSUs (Road Side Units), MCs (Mobility Controllers) or LMAs (Local Mobility Anchors) or Network Controllers, etc.) and/or third-party systems.

The Backbone/Core Infrastructure may, for example, comprise the ability to utilize and/or interface with different data storage/processing systems (e.g., MongoDB, MySql, Redis, etc.). The Backbone/Core Infrastructure may further, for example, provide different levels of simultaneous access to the infrastructure, services, data, etc.

The example network 100 may also, for example, comprise a Fixed Hotspot Access Network. Various example characteristics of such a Fixed Hotspot Access Network 200 are shown at FIG. 2. The example network 200 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, 900, and 1000.

In the example network 200, the Fixed APs (e.g., the proprietary APs, the public third party APs, the private third party APs, etc.) may be directly connected to the local infrastructure provider and/or to the wireline/wireless backbone. Also for example, the example network 200 may comprise a mesh between the various APs via wireless technologies. Note, however, that various wired technologies may also be utilized depending on the implementation. As shown, different fixed hotspot access networks can be connected to a same backbone provider, but may also be connected to different respective backbone providers. In an example implementation utilizing wireless technology for backbone access, such an implementation may be relatively fault tolerant. For example, a Fixed AP may utilize wireless communications to the backbone network (e.g., cellular, 3G, LTE, other wide or metropolitan area networks, etc.) if the backhaul infrastructure is down. Also for example, such an implementation may provide for relatively easy installation (e.g., a Fixed AP with no cable power source that can be placed virtually anywhere).

In the example network 200, the same Fixed AP can simultaneously provide access to multiple Fixed APs, Mobile APs (e.g., vehicle OBUs, etc.), devices, user devices, sensors, things, etc. For example, a plurality of mobile hotspot access networks (e.g., OBU-based networks, etc.) may utilize the same Fixed AP. Also for example, the same Fixed AP can provide a plurality of simultaneous accesses to another single unit (e.g., another Fixed AP, Mobile AP, device, etc.), for example utilizing different channels, different radios, etc.).

Note that a plurality of Fixed APs may be utilized for fault-tolerance/fail-recovery purposes. In an example implementation, a Fixed AP and its fail-over AP may both be normally operational (e.g., in a same switch). Also for example, one or more Fixed APs may be placed in the network at various locations in an inactive or monitoring mode, and ready to become operational when needed (e.g., in response to a fault, in response to an emergency services need, in response to a data surge, etc.).

Referring back to FIG. 1, the example Fixed Hotspot Access Network is shown with a wireless communication link to a backbone provider (e.g., to one or more Backbone Providers and/or Local Infrastructure Providers), to a Mobile Hotspot Access Network, to one or more End User Devices, and to the Environment. Also, the example Fixed Hotspot Access Network is shown with a wired communication link to one or more Backbone Providers, to the Mobile Hotspot Access Network, to one or more End User Devices, and to the Environment. The Environment may comprise any of a variety of devices (e.g., in-vehicle networks, devices, and sensors; autonomous vehicle networks, devices, and sensors; maritime (or watercraft) and port networks, devices, and sensors; general controlled-space networks, devices, and sensors; residential networks, devices, and sensors; disaster recovery & emergency networks, devices, and sensors; military and aircraft networks, devices, and sensors; smart city networks, devices, and sensors; event (or venue) networks, devices, and sensors; underwater and underground networks, devices, and sensors; agricultural networks, devices, and sensors; tunnel (auto, subway, train, etc.) networks, devices, and sensors; parking networks, devices, and sensors; security and surveillance networks, devices, and sensors; shipping equipment and container networks, devices, and sensors; environmental control or monitoring networks, devices, and sensors; municipal networks, devices, and sensors; waste management networks, devices, and sensors, road maintenance networks, devices, and sensors, traffic management networks, devices, and sensors; advertising networks, devices and sensors; etc.).

The example network 100 of FIG. 1 also comprises a Mobile Hotspot Access Network. Various example characteristics of such a Mobile Hotspot Access Network 300 are shown at FIG. 3. Note that various fixed network components (e.g., Fixed APs) are also illustrated. The example network 300 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, 900, and 1000, discussed herein.

The example network 300 comprises a wide variety of Mobile APs (or hotspots) that provide access to user devices, provide for sensor data collection, provide multi-hop connectivity to other Mobile APs, etc. For example, the example network 300 comprises vehicles from different fleets (e.g., aerial, terrestrial, underground, (under)water, etc.). For example, the example network 300 comprises one or more mass distribution/transportation fleets, one or more mass passenger transportation fleets, private/public shared-user fleets, private vehicles, urban and municipal fleets, maintenance fleets, drones, watercraft (e.g., boats, ships, speedboats, tugboats, barges, etc.), emergency fleets (e.g., police, ambulance, firefighter, etc.), etc.

The example network 300, for example, shows vehicles from different fleets directly connected and/or mesh connected, for example using same or different communication technologies. The example network 300 also shows fleets simultaneously connected to different Fixed APs, which may or may not belong to different respective local infrastructure providers. As a fault-tolerance mechanism, the example network 300 may for example comprise the utilization of long-range wireless communication network (e.g., cellular, 3G, 4G, LTE, etc.) in vehicles if the local network infrastructure is down or otherwise unavailable. A same vehicle (e.g., Mobile AP or OBU) can simultaneously provide access to multiple vehicles, devices, things, etc., for example using a same communication technology (e.g., shared channels and/or different respective channels thereof) and/or using a different respective communication technology for each. Also for example, a same vehicle can provide multiple accesses to another vehicle, device, thing, etc., for example using a same communication technology (e.g., shared channels and/or different respective channels thereof, and/or using a different communication technology).

Additionally, multiple network elements may be connected together to provide for fault-tolerance or fail recovery, increased throughput, or to achieve any or a variety of a client's networking needs, many of examples of which are provided herein. For example, two Mobile APs (or OBUs) may be installed in a same vehicle, etc.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the example Mobile Hotspot Access Network is shown with a wireless communication link to a backbone provider (e.g., to one or more Backbone Providers and/or Local Infrastructure Providers), to a Fixed Hotspot Access Network, to one or more End User Device, and to the Environment (e.g., to any one of more of the sensors or systems discussed herein, any other device or machine, etc.). Though the Mobile Hotspot Access Network is not shown having a wired link to the various other components, there may (at least at times) be such a wired link, at least temporarily.

The example network 100 of FIG. 1 also comprises a set of End-User Devices. Various example end user devices are shown at FIG. 4. Note that various other network components (e.g., Fixed Hotspot Access Networks, Mobile Hotspot Access Network(s), the Backbone/Core, etc.) are also illustrated. The example network 400 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, 900, and 1000, discussed herein.

The example network 400 shows various mobile networked devices. Such network devices may comprise end-user devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, laptop computers, webcams, personal gaming devices, personal navigation devices, personal media devices, personal cameras, health-monitoring devices, personal location devices, monitoring panels, printers, etc.). Such networked devices may also comprise any of a variety of devices operating in the general environment, where such devices might not for example be associated with a particular user (e.g. any or all of the sensor devices discussed herein, vehicle sensors, municipal sensors, fleet sensors road sensors, environmental sensors, security sensors, traffic sensors, waste sensors, meteorological sensors, any of a variety of different types of municipal or enterprise equipment, etc.). Any of such networked devices can be flexibly connected to distinct backbone, fixed hotspot access networks, mobile hotspot access networks, etc., using the same or different wired/wireless technologies.

A mobile device may, for example, operate as an AP to provide simultaneous access to multiple devices/things, which may then form ad hoc networks, interconnecting devices ultimately connected to distinct backbone networks, fixed hotspot, and/or mobile hotspot access networks. Devices (e.g., any or all of the devices or network nodes discussed herein) may, for example, have redundant technologies to access distinct backbone, fixed hotspot, and/or mobile hotspot access networks, for example for fault-tolerance and/or load-balancing purposes (e.g., utilizing multiple SIM cards, etc.). A device may also, for example, simultaneously access distinct backbone, fixed hotspot access networks, and/or mobile hotspot access networks, belonging to the same provider or to different respective providers. Additionally for example, a device can provide multiple accesses to another device/thing (e.g., via different channels, radios, etc.).

Referring back to FIG. 1, the example End-User Devices are shown with a wireless communication link to a backbone provider (e.g., to one or more Backbone Providers and/or Local Infrastructure Providers), to a Fixed Hotspot Access Network, to a Mobile Hotspot Access Network, and to the Environment. Also for example, the example End-User Devices are shown with a wired communication link to a backbone provider, to a Fixed Hotspot Access Network, to a Mobile Hotspot Access Network, and to the Environment.

The example network 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 has a flexible architecture that is adaptable at implementation time (e.g., for different use cases) and/or adaptable in real-time, for example as network components enter and leave service. FIGS. 5A-5C illustrate such flexibility by providing example modes (or configurations). The example networks 500-570 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 400, 600, 700, 800, 900, and 1000, discussed herein. For example and without limitation, any or all of the communication links (e.g., wired links, wireless links, etc.) shown in the example networks 500-570 are generally analogous to similarly positioned communication links shown in the example network 100 of FIG. 1.

For example, various aspects of this disclosure provide communication network architectures, systems, and methods for supporting a dynamically configurable communication network comprising a complex array of both static and moving communication nodes (e.g., the Internet of moving things). For example, a communication network implemented in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure may operate in one of a plurality of modalities comprising various fixed nodes, mobile nodes, and/or a combination thereof, which are selectable to yield any of a variety of system goals (e.g., increased throughput, reduced latency and packet loss, increased availability and robustness of the system, extra redundancy, increased responsiveness, increased security in the transmission of data and/or control packets, reduced number of configuration changes by incorporating smart thresholds (e.g., change of technology, change of certificate, change of IP, etc.), providing connectivity in dead zones or zones with difficult access, reducing the costs for maintenance and accessing the equipment for updating/upgrading, etc.). At least some of such modalities may, for example, be entirely comprised of fixed-position nodes, at least temporarily if not permanently.

For illustrative simplicity, many of the example aspects shown in the example system or network 100 of FIG. 1 (and other Figures herein) are omitted from FIGS. 5A-5C, but may be present. For example, the Cloud, Internet, and ISP aspects shown in FIG. 1 and in other Figures are not explicitly shown in FIGS. 5A-5C, but may be present in any of the example configurations (e.g., as part of the backbone provider network or coupled thereto, as part of the local infrastructure provider network or coupled thereto, etc.).

For example, the first example mode 500 is presented as a normal execution mode, for example a mode (or configuration) in which all of the components discussed herein are present. For example, the communication system in the first example mode 500 comprises a backbone provider network, a local infrastructure provider network, a fixed hotspot access network, a mobile hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5A, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the first example mode 500 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network (or any component thereof), fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via a wired link. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the backbone provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also shown in FIG. 5A, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the first example mode 500 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Also note that in various example configurations, the backbone provider network may also be communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network via one or more wireless (or non-tethered) links.

Though not shown in the first example mode 500 (or any of the example modes of FIGS. 5A-5C), one or more servers may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network and/or the local infrastructure network. FIG. 1 provides an example of cloud servers being communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network via the Internet.

As additionally shown in FIG. 5A, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the first example mode 500 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network (or any component thereof), fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the local infrastructure provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also, though not explicitly shown, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the first example mode 500 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network (or any component thereof), the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Note that the communication link shown in the first example mode 500 of FIG. 5A between the local infrastructure provider network and the fixed hotspot access network may be wired and/or wireless.

The fixed hotspot access network is also shown in the first example mode 500 to be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network, the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Additionally, the mobile hotspot access network is further shown in the first example mode 500 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Further, the end-user devices are also shown in the first example mode 500 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Note that in various example implementations any of such wireless links may instead (or in addition) comprise a wired (or tethered) link.

In the first example mode 500 (e.g., the normal mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server (e.g., a computer system) via the mobile hotspot access network, the fixed hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network. As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an end-user device and a server via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the fixed hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network, fixed hotspot access network, and/or local infrastructure provider network).

Similarly, in the first example mode 500 (e.g., the normal mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the mobile hotspot access network, the fixed hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network). As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an environment device and a server (e.g., communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network and/or backbone provider network) via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc.

For example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the fixed hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network, fixed hotspot access network, and/or local infrastructure provider network). Additionally for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network and/or fixed hotspot access network).

As discussed herein, the example networks presented herein are adaptively configurable to operate in any of a variety of different modes (or configurations). Such adaptive configuration may occur at initial installation and/or during subsequent controlled network evolution (e.g., adding or removing any or all of the network components discussed herein, expanding or removing network capacity, adding or removing coverage areas, adding or removing services, etc.). Such adaptive configuration may also occur in real-time, for example in response to real-time changes in network conditions (e.g., networks or components thereof being available or not based on vehicle or user-device movement, network or component failure, network or component replacement or augmentation activity, network overloading, etc.). The following example modes are presented to illustrate characteristics of various modes in which a communication system may operate in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The following example modes will generally be discussed in relation to the first example mode 500 (e.g., the normal execution mode). Note that such example modes are merely illustrative and not limiting.

The second example mode (or configuration) 510 (e.g., a no backbone available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the backbone provider network and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the second example mode 510 comprises a local infrastructure provider network, a fixed hotspot access network, a mobile hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5A, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the second example mode 510 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the local infrastructure provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also, though not explicitly shown, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the second example mode 510 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Note that the communication link(s) shown in the second example mode 510 of FIG. 5A between the local infrastructure provider network and the fixed hotspot access network may be wired and/or wireless.

The fixed hotspot access network is also shown in the second example mode 510 to be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network, the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Additionally, the mobile hotspot access network is further shown in the second example mode 510 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Further, the end-user devices are also shown in the second example mode 510 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Note that in various example implementations any of such wireless links may instead (or in addition) comprise a wired (or tethered) link.

In the second example mode 510 (e.g., the no backbone available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server (e.g., a computer, etc.) via the mobile hotspot access network, the fixed hotspot access network, and/or the local infrastructure provider network. As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an end-user device and a server via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the fixed hotspot access network and/or the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network and/or fixed hotspot access network).

Similarly, in the second example mode 510 (e.g., the no backbone available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the mobile hotspot access network, the fixed hotspot access network, and/or the local infrastructure provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network). As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an environment device and a server (e.g., communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network) via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc.

For example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the fixed hotspot access network and/or the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network and/or fixed hotspot access network).

The second example mode 510 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. For example, due to security and/or privacy goals, the second example mode 510 may be utilized so that communication access to the public Cloud systems, the Internet in general, etc., is not allowed. For example, all network control and management functions may be within the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., wired local network, etc.) and/or the fixed access point network.

In an example implementation, the communication system might be totally owned, operated and/or controlled by a local port authority. No extra expenses associated with cellular connections need be spent. For example, cellular connection capability (e.g., in Mobile APs, Fixed APs, end user devices, environment devices, etc.) need not be provided. Note also that the second example mode 510 may be utilized in a scenario in which the backbone provider network is normally available but is currently unavailable (e.g., due to server failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

The third example mode (or configuration) 520 (e.g., a no local infrastructure and fixed hotspots available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the local infrastructure provider network, the fixed hotspot access network, and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the third example mode 520 comprises a backbone provider network, a mobile hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5A, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the third example mode 520 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the backbone provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also shown in FIG. 5A, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the third example mode 520 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links.

The mobile hotspot access network is further shown in the third example mode 520 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Further, the end-user devices are also shown in the third example mode 520 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Note that in various example implementations any of such wireless links may instead (or in addition) comprise a wired (or tethered) link.

In the third example mode 520 (e.g., the no local infrastructure and fixed hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server (e.g., a computer, etc.) via the mobile hotspot access network and/or the backbone provider network. As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an end-user device and a server via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network).

Similarly, in the third example mode 520 (e.g., the no local infrastructure and fixed hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the mobile hotspot access network and/or the backbone provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network). As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an environment device and a server (e.g., communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network) via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network).

In the third example mode 520, all control/management functions may for example be implemented within the Cloud. For example, since the mobile hotspot access network does not have a communication link via a fixed hotspot access network, the Mobile APs may utilize a direct connection (e.g., a cellular connection) with the backbone provider network (or Cloud). If a Mobile AP does not have such capability, the Mobile AP may also, for example, utilize data access provided by the end-user devices communicatively coupled thereto (e.g., leveraging the data plans of the end-user devices).

The third example mode 520 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. In an example implementation, the third example mode 520 may be utilized in an early stage of a larger deployment, for example deployment that will grow into another mode (e.g., the example first mode 500, example fourth mode 530, etc.) as more communication system equipment is installed. Note also that the third example mode 520 may be utilized in a scenario in which the local infrastructure provider network and fixed hotspot access network are normally available but are currently unavailable (e.g., due to equipment failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

The fourth example mode (or configuration) 530 (e.g., a no fixed hotspots available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the fixed hotspot access network and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the fourth example mode 530 comprises a backbone provider network, a local infrastructure provider network, a mobile hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fourth example mode 530 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the backbone provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fourth example mode 530 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Also note that in various example configurations, the backbone provider network may also be communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network via one or more wireless (or non-tethered) links.

As additionally shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fourth example mode 530 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the local infrastructure provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also, though not explicitly shown, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fourth example mode 530 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network (or any component thereof), the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links.

The mobile hotspot access network is further shown in the fourth example mode 530 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Further, the end-user devices are also shown in the fourth example mode 530 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein.

In the fourth example mode 530 (e.g., the no fixed hotspots mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server via the mobile hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network. As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an end-user device and a server via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network and/or the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network and/or local infrastructure provider network).

Similarly, in the fourth example mode 530 (e.g., the no fixed hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the mobile hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network). As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an environment device and a server (e.g., communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network and/or backbone provider network) via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc.

For example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network and/or the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network and/or local infrastructure provider network). Additionally for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the mobile hotspot access network and/or backbone provider network).

In the fourth example mode 530, in an example implementation, some of the control/management functions may for example be implemented within the local backbone provider network (e.g., within a client premises). For example, communication to the local infrastructure provider may be performed through the backbone provider network (or Cloud). Note that in a scenario in which there is a direct communication pathway between the local infrastructure provider network and the mobile hotspot access network, such communication pathway may be utilized.

For example, since the mobile hotspot access network does not have a communication link via a fixed hotspot access network, the Mobile APs may utilize a direct connection (e.g., a cellular connection) with the backbone provider network (or Cloud). If a Mobile AP does not have such capability, the Mobile AP may also, for example, utilize data access provided by the end-user devices communicatively coupled thereto (e.g., leveraging the data plans of the end-user devices).

The fourth example mode 530 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. In an example implementation, the fourth example mode 530 may be utilized in an early stage of a larger deployment, for example a deployment that will grow into another mode (e.g., the example first mode 500, etc.) as more communication system equipment is installed. The fourth example mode 530 may, for example, be utilized in a scenario in which there is no fiber (or other) connection available for Fixed APs (e.g., in a maritime scenario, in a plantation scenario, etc.), or in which a Fixed AP is difficult to access or connect. For example, one or more Mobile APs of the mobile hotspot access network may be used as gateways to reach the Cloud. The fourth example mode 530 may also, for example, be utilized when a vehicle fleet and/or the Mobile APs associated therewith are owned by a first entity and the Fixed APs are owned by another entity, and there is no present agreement for communication between the Mobile APs and the Fixed APs. Note also that the fourth example mode 530 may be utilized in a scenario in which the fixed hotspot access network is normally available but are currently unavailable (e.g., due to equipment failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

The fifth example mode (or configuration) 540 (e.g., a no mobile hotspots available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the mobile hotspot access network and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the fifth example mode 540 comprises a backbone provider network, a local infrastructure provider network, a fixed hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fifth example mode 540 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network (or any component thereof), fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary.

Also shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fifth example mode 540 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Also note that in various example configurations, the backbone provider network may also be communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network via one or more wireless (or non-tethered) links.

As additionally shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fifth example mode 540 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network (or any component thereof), fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary. Also note that in various example configurations, the local infrastructure provider network may also, at least temporarily, be communicatively coupled to the mobile hotspot access network (or any component thereof) via one or more wired (or tethered) links.

Also, though not explicitly shown, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the fifth example mode 540 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the backbone provider network, the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Note that the communication link(s) shown in the fifth example mode 540 of FIG. 5B between the local infrastructure provider network and the fixed hotspot access network may be wired and/or wireless.

The fixed hotspot access network is also shown in the fifth example mode 540 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Further, the end-user devices are also shown in the fifth example mode 540 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein.

In the fifth example mode 540 (e.g., the no mobile hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server via the fixed hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network. As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an end-user device and a server via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network and/or local infrastructure provider network).

Similarly, in the fifth example mode 540 (e.g., the no mobile hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the fixed hotspot access network, the local infrastructure provider network, and/or the backbone provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the fixed hotspot access network). As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an environment device and a server (e.g., communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network and/or backbone provider network) via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc.

For example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network and/or the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network). Also for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the backbone provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network and/or local infrastructure provider network). Additionally for example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network and/or the backbone provider network).

In the fifth example mode 540, in an example implementation, the end-user devices and environment devices may communicate directly to Fixed APs (e.g., utilizing Ethernet, Wi-Fi, etc.). Also for example, the end-user devices and/or environment devices may communicate directly with the backbone provider network (e.g., utilizing cellular connections, etc.).

The fifth example mode 540 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. In an example implementation in which end-user devices and/or environment devices may communicate directly with Fixed APs, such communication may be utilized instead of Mobile AP communication. For example, the fixed hotspot access network might provide coverage for all desired areas.

Note also that the fifth example mode 540 may be utilized in a scenario in which the fixed hotspot access network is normally available but is currently unavailable (e.g., due to equipment failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

The sixth example mode (or configuration) 550 (e.g., the no fixed/mobile hotspots and local infrastructure available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the local infrastructure provider network, fixed hotspot access network, mobile hotspot access network, and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the sixth example mode 550 comprises a backbone provider network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the sixth example mode 550 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary.

Also shown in FIG. 5B, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the sixth example mode 550 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the backbone provider network may be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links.

The end-user devices are also shown in the sixth example mode 550 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein.

In the sixth example mode 550 (e.g., the no fixed/mobile hotspots and local infrastructure available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server via the backbone provider network. Similarly, in the sixth example mode 550 (e.g., the no fixed/mobile hotspots and local infrastructure mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the backbone provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network).

The sixth example mode 550 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. In an example implementation, for example in which an end-user has not yet subscribed to the communication system, the end-user device may subscribe to the system through a Cloud application and by communicating directly with the backbone provider network (e.g., via cellular link, etc.). The sixth example mode 550 may also, for example, be utilized in rural areas in which Mobile AP presence is sparse, Fixed AP installation is difficult or impractical, etc.

Note also that the sixth example mode 550 may be utilized in a scenario in which the infrastructure provider network, fixed hotspot access network, and/or mobile hotspot access network are normally available but are currently unavailable (e.g., due to equipment failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

The seventh example mode (or configuration) 560 (e.g., the no backbone and mobile hotspots available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the backbone provider network, mobile hotspot access network, and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the seventh example mode 560 comprises a local infrastructure provider network, fixed hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5C, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the seventh example mode 560 (or configuration) via one or more wired (or tethered) links. For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wired links. Note that such a wired coupling may be temporary.

Also, though not explicitly shown, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to any or all of the other elements present in the seventh example mode 560 (or configuration) via one or more wireless links (e.g., RF link, non-tethered optical link, etc.). For example, the local infrastructure provider network may be communicatively coupled to the fixed hotspot access network (or any component thereof), the end-user devices, and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Note that the communication link shown in the seventh example mode 560 of FIG. 5C between the local infrastructure provider network and the fixed hotspot access network may be wired and/or wireless.

The fixed hotspot access network is also shown in the seventh example mode 560 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Additionally, the end-user devices are also shown in the seventh example mode 560 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein.

In the seventh example mode 560 (e.g., the no backbone and mobile hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an end-user device and a server via the fixed hotspot access network and/or the local infrastructure provider network. As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an end-user device and a server via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an end user device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network).

Similarly, in the seventh example mode 560 (e.g., the no backbone and mobile hotspots available mode), information (or data) may be communicated between an environment device and a server via the fixed hotspot access network and/or the local infrastructure provider network. Also for example, an environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network). As will be seen in the various example modes presented herein, such communication may flexibly occur between an environment device and a server (e.g., communicatively coupled to the local infrastructure provider network) via any of a variety of different communication pathways, for example depending on the availability of a network, depending on bandwidth utilization goals, depending on communication priority, depending on communication time (or latency) and/or reliability constraints, depending on cost, etc. For example, information communicated between an environment device and a server may be communicated via the local infrastructure provider network (e.g., skipping the fixed hotspot access network).

The seventh example mode 560 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. In an example controlled space implementation, Cloud access might not be provided (e.g., for security reasons, privacy reasons, etc.), and full (or sufficient) coverage of the coverage area is provided by the fixed hotspot access network, and thus the mobile hotspot access network is not needed. For example, the end-user devices and environment devices may communicate directly (e.g., via Ethernet, Wi-Fi, etc.) with the Fixed APs

Note also that the seventh example mode 560 may be utilized in a scenario in which the backbone provider network and/or fixed hotspot access network are normally available but are currently unavailable (e.g., due to equipment failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

The eighth example mode (or configuration) 570 (e.g., the no backbone, fixed hotspots, and local infrastructure available mode) may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the first example mode 500, albeit without the backbone provider network, local infrastructure provider network, fixed hotspot access network, and communication links therewith. For example, the communication system in the eighth example mode 570 comprises a mobile hotspot access network, end-user devices, and environment devices.

As shown in FIG. 5C, and in FIG. 1 in more detail, the mobile hotspot access network is shown in the eighth example mode 570 to be communicatively coupled to the end-user devices and/or environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein. Further, the end-user devices are also shown in the eighth example mode 570 to be communicatively coupled to the environment devices via one or more wireless links. Many examples of such wireless coupling are provided herein.

In the eighth example mode 570 (e.g., the no backbone, fixed hotspots, and local infrastructure available mode), information (or data) might not (at least currently) be communicated between an end-user device and a server (e.g., a coupled to the backbone provider network, local infrastructure provider network, etc.). Similarly, information (or data) might not (at least currently) be communicated between an environment device and a server (e.g., a coupled to the backbone provider network, local infrastructure provider network, etc.). Note that the environment device may communicate with or through an end-user device (e.g., instead of or in addition to the mobile hotspot access network).

The eighth example mode 570 may be utilized for any of a variety of reasons, non-limiting examples of which are provided herein. In an example implementation, the eighth example mode 570 may be utilized for gathering and/or serving data (e.g., in a delay-tolerant networking scenario), providing peer-to-peer communication through the mobile hotspot access network (e.g., between clients of a single Mobile AP, between clients of respective different Mobile APs, etc.), etc. In another example scenario, the eighth example mode 570 may be utilized in a scenario in which vehicle-to-vehicle communications are prioritized above vehicle-to-infrastructure communications. In yet another example scenario, the eighth example mode 570 may be utilized in a scenario in which all infrastructure access is lost (e.g., in tunnels, parking garages, etc.).

Note also that the eighth example mode 570 may be utilized in a scenario in which the backbone provider network, local infrastructure provider network, and/or fixed hotspot access network are normally available but are currently unavailable (e.g., due to equipment failure, due to communication link failure, due to power outage, due to a temporary denial of service, etc.).

As shown and discussed herein, it is beneficial to have a generic platform that allows multi-mode communications of multiple users or machines within different environments, using multiple devices with multiple technologies, connected to multiple moving/static things with multiple technologies, forming wireless (mesh) hotspot networks over different environments, connected to multiple wired/wireless infrastructure/network backbone providers, ultimately connected to the Internet, Cloud or private network infrastructure.

FIG. 6 shows yet another block diagram of an example network configuration, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The example network 600 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 700, 800, 900, and 1000, discussed herein. Notably, the example network 600 shows a plurality of Mobile APs (or OBUs), each communicatively coupled to a Fixed AP (or RSU), where each Mobile AP may provide network access to a vehicle network (e.g., comprising other vehicles or vehicle networks, user devices, sensor devices, etc.).

In accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, systems and methods are provided that manage a vehicle communication network, for example in accordance with the location of nodes and end devices, in a way that provides for stable TCP/IP Internet access, among other things. For example, an end user may be provided with a clean and stable Wi-Fi Internet connection that may appear to the end user to be the same as the Wi-Fi Internet connection at the user's home, user's workplace, fixed public Wi-Fi hotspots, etc. For example, for a user utilizing a communication network as described herein, a TCP session may stay active, downloads may process normally, calls may proceed without interruption, etc. As discussed herein, a vehicle communication network in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure may be applied as a transport layer for regular Internet traffic and/or for private network traffic (e.g., extending the access of customer private LANs from the wired network to vehicles and users around them, etc.).

In accordance with an example network implementation, although a user might be always connected to a single Wi-Fi AP of a vehicle, the vehicle (or the access point thereof, for example an OBU) is moving between multiple access points (e.g., Fixed APs, other Mobile APs, cellular base stations, fixed Wi-Fi hotspots, etc.). For example, mobility management implemented in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure supports the mobility of each vehicle and its users across different communication technologies (e.g., 802.11p, cellular, Wi-Fi, etc.) as the Mobile APs migrate among Fixed APs (and/or Mobile APs) and/or as users migrate between Mobile APs.

In accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, a Network Controller (NC), which may also be referred to as an LMA or Mobility Controller (MC), may monitor the location (e.g., network location, etc.) of various nodes (e.g., Mobile APs, etc.) and/or the location of end users connected through them. The NC may, for example, provide seamless handovers (e.g., maintaining communication session continuity) between different access points and/or different technologies with low link latency and low handover times.

The architecture provided herein is scalable, for example taking advantage of redundant elements and/or functionality to provide load-balancing of control and/or data communication functionality, as well as to decrease failure probability. Various aspects of the present disclosure also provide for decreased control signaling (e.g., in amount and/or frequency), which reduces the control overhead and reduces the size of control tables and tunneling, for example both in backend servers and in APs (e.g., Fixed APs and/or Mobile APs).

Additionally, a communication network (or components thereof) in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure may comprise the ability to interact with mobile devices in order to control some or all of their connection choices and/or to leverage their control functionality. For example, in an example implementation, a mobile application can run in the background, managing the available networks and/or nodes thereof and selecting the one that best fits, and then triggering a handoff to the selected network (or node thereof) before breakdown of the current connection.

The communication network (or components thereof) is also configurable, according to the infrastructure requirements and/or mobility needs of each client, etc. For example, the communication network (or components thereof) may comprise the capability to support different Layer 2 (L2) or Layer 3 (L3) implementations, or combinations thereof, as well as IPv4/IPv6 traffic.

Various architectures have been disclosed for providing mobility support for Mobile APs and users, maintaining all the Mobile APs and their connected users reachable inside the network, and ensuring the session continuity for all the data traffic (e.g. video streaming and video calls) for them. The network controllers (NCs) may forward the data traffic of the Mobile AP and their users, while the Mobile AP is constantly connecting to different Fixed/Mobile access points (either through DSRC or WiFi, using single-hop or multi-hop connections) or leveraging to the cellular technology, to reach the Internet.

Due to the very high mobility of Mobile APs, high density of contacts between Mobile APs and/or Fixed APs, well known paths of at least some of the vehicles (Mobile APs), the traditional mobility/traffic patterns of users, etc., there may be ways (detection and/or prediction functions) to reduce the handover times of Mobile APs between different technologies and/or access points.

However, there may also be ways to optimize handovers (HOs) for users when they are moving between Mobile APs and/or Fixed APs (reduce HO times and HO packet lost). Shorter and smoother handovers, without being dropped if possible, could allow users to experience a better quality of service, since delays and service interruptions may be immediately noticeable in interactive and real-time applications. Accordingly, it may be beneficial for the network elements with local capabilities that allow them to make periodic quality measurements (e.g., RSSI of possible connections to other neighbors, available connection points and their resources, etc.) or learn from the network, and then anticipate temporary disconnections, exploiting the features provided by different technologies and make-before-break solutions to optimize the HOs.

The context and details that allow a network to optimize the HOs may allow Mobile APs to release unused resources for configurations that are not used or needed anymore, thereby allowing efficient use of resources for other connections. Also, sharing up-to-date knowledge from the various APs may help the vehicles and other elements of a mobile/fixed network to become synchronized to each other.

Accordingly, the current disclosure strives to make handoffs more efficient for devices connected to Mobile APs and/or Fixed APs. This may be done, for example, by making use of vehicular context in order to find ways to reduce user handoff times and increase the user quality of experience. There are disclosures that allow the Mobile/Fixed AP to periodically inspect the context of its neighbors (speed, direction, users, stop time, etc.) to select the best AP to transfer the user context so that the user can be handed off efficiently when the user needs to connect to another AP.

The vehicular and user context information may be collected and shared to predict and prepare the handovers of users among different Mobile and/or Fixed APs. The context information may be transferred in advance when it is predicted/detected that the ongoing user connection is starting to get worse.

In the figures described below, the shape of various vehicles does not indicate the type of a vehicle. For example, while a vehicle may be shaped like a bus, that vehicle may be, for example, a car, van, a truck, a tram, train, airplane, boat, ship, etc., as appropriate for the environment. Accordingly, while various descriptions are given for vehicular traffic on streets, various embodiments of the disclosure may also apply to vehicular traffic in canals or open bodies of water, to a mass transit system comprising underground/elevated trains or traditional trains, or to airborne vehicles (airplanes, drones, etc.).

FIG. 7 shows an example scenario for a pedestrian with a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. The example network 700 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 800, 900, and 1000 discussed herein. Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a plurality of users 710, 712, 714, and 716 walking with a plurality of nearby vehicles 720, 722, 724, 726, 728, and 730 that act as Mobile Access Points (MAPs), and a Fixed AP (FAP) 740. Accordingly, the vehicles 720, 722, 724, 726, 728, and 730 (and/or Mobile APs or OBUs on-board such vehicles) may also be referred to as MAPs. While not shown, each of the users 710, 712, 714, and 716 is assumed to have a user device such as, for example, a smartphone, that is configured to connect to a communication network via one of the vehicles 720, 722, 724, 726, 728, and 730 and/or the stationary AP 740. Accordingly, when it is stated that a user is connected (to communicate to the Internet or to an access point), it should be realized that the user is communicating via a user device.

As can be seen in FIG. 7, the user 710 is connected to the AP in the vehicle 722, the user 712 is connected to the AP in the vehicle 728, and the user 716 is connected to the AP in the vehicle 726. The user 714 is connected to the FAP 740 rather than to the closer MAP 730 because the connection to the FAP 740 may last longer than a connection with the closer but rapidly moving vehicle 730, and the communication between the user 714 and the FAP 740 is acceptable according to pre-determined threshold(s). This may be because there is a greater likelihood that there may be one or more handoffs when connected to a vehicle (MAP) as opposed to being connected to a FAP, thus reducing communication overhead present in handoffs to different APs. Accordingly, in various embodiments of the disclosure, when a user is able to connect to multiple APs, preference may be given to stable connections with stationary APs rather than with moving APs as long as communication reliability/quality is acceptable.

In various embodiments of the disclosure, a vehicle (MAP) may have a list of various users, and also the time since they were first seen by the MAP. If, for example, the user 710 only started to be seen while the vehicle 722 was moving, it can be assumed that the user 710 is outside the vehicle 722, and the user 710 is trying to connect to the vehicle 722. However, for those cases where the user 710 is riding in the vehicle 722 but has his mobile device turned off, this may lead to a false identification of the user 710 as being outside the vehicle 722.

Accordingly, the vehicle 722 (MAP) may also measure signal strength and/or reliability to help determine whether the user 710 is outside the vehicle. The signal strength/reliability may change as the vehicle 722 approaches the user 710 outside the vehicle 722 and then passes by the user 710, while a user 710 in the vehicle 722 would have a relatively constant signal strength/reliability. For example, in the above situation, the user 710 may be inside the vehicle 722, but does not turn on his mobile device until the middle of the trip. Therefore, the quality of the user connection can be measured with respect to some pre-determined threshold to determine if the user 710 is inside or outside the vehicle 722, since typically the quality of a wireless connection may be better when the user 710 is inside the vehicle 722. Other ways of detecting that the user 710 is outside the vehicle may also be used. For example, GPS may be used to determine the relative speeds and/or locations of the user 710 and/or the vehicle 722, Doppler shift of wireless signals may be analyzed to determine whether the user 710 is moving with the vehicle 722, motion sensors (e.g., accelerometers, gyroscopes, vibration sensors, etc.) may be utilized to determine motion of the user 710 relative to motion of the vehicle 722, audio sensors may be utilized to determine whether a device of the user 710 is experiencing noise inside or outside of the vehicle 722, environmental sensors may be utilized to determine whether a device of the user 710 is operating in the environment inside or outside of the vehicle 722, multi-antenna triangulation may be utilized within or outside of the vehicle 722 to determine user location relative to a vehicle, etc.

When it is determined that the user 710 is outside the vehicle 722, the vehicle (MAP) 722 may transmit the user context information to inform other APs nearby to better deal with the user 710, allowing other MAPs to prepare and setup in advance for connecting with the user 710 when the user is available for connection. This may reduce the times for user association by an AP. The user context information may include, for example, information such as media access control (MAC) number, broadcast service set ID (BSSID), IP address, received signal strength indicator (RSSI), etc. Part of the user context information may also include, for example, information about the location of the user 710, the speed of the user 710, and the direction of movement of the user 710, as well as information about the AP such as its location, its speed, and the direction it is heading if it is a MAP or the location of the AP if it is a FAP.

The vehicle 722 may broadcast the user context information, and each of the receiving APs such as vehicles 720, 724, 726, 728, and 730, as well as the FAP 740 can determine if it might be a good AP for the user 710. A MAP 720, 728, or 730 that is moving away from the user 710 may, for example, discard the user context information for the user 710. The MAPs 724 and 726 may keep the user context information to possibly receive a handoff of the user 710 from the MAP 722.

Once an AP determines that it can be the next AP to connect to the user 710, it may allocate resources for connecting to the user 710. Accordingly, various embodiments of the disclosure can expedite connecting an AP to a user. Since there may be more than one AP that can connect to the user, coordination among the APs to determine the next AP to connect to the user may be advantageous. The transfer of user context information and the synchronization among the APs is explained in detail in various applications that are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety, and among them the U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/222,192, filed on Sep. 22, 2015, and titled “Communication Network of Moving Things,” the U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/221,997, titled “Integrated Communication Network for a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, and the U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/281,432, titled “Systems and Methods for Managing and Triggering Handovers of Mobile Access Points in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Jan. 21, 2016, and which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

After being notified of a user that may be handed off to a Mobile AP, the Mobile AP may keep the link for a specific user configured, for example, for a default length of time or until informed that the user is connected to another node. The default length of time may be, for example, a scanning period or some other length of time. After the user connects to an AP, that AP may advertise to others so that they may release their resources for use with other connections. This advertisement may be broadcast/unicast/multicast as appropriate.

FIG. 8 shows an example scenario for a stationary person with a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. The example network 800 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 900, and 1000 discussed herein. Referring to FIG. 8, there is shown a user 810 waiting, for example, for a bus with a plurality of nearby vehicles 820, 822, 824, 826, and 828 that act as mobile access points (MAPs), and a Fixed AP (FAP) 840. Accordingly, the vehicles 820, 822, 824, 826, and 828 may also be referred to as MAPs. While not shown, the user 810 is assumed to have a user device such as, for example, a smartphone, that may be able to connect to a communication network via one of the vehicles 820, 822, 824, 826, and 828 and/or the stationary AP 840. Accordingly, when it is stated that a user is connected (to communicate to the Internet or to an access point), it should be realized that the user is communicating via a user device.

As can be seen in FIG. 8, the user 810 is connected to the vehicle 820 that is closest to the user 810. The user 810 may also be able to connect to the vehicles 822 and 824, but not to the vehicles 826 and 828, or to the stationary AP 840. It may be that at the present time, the user 810 has a better connection to the vehicle 820 than to the vehicles 822 and 824, and the connection to the FAP 840 might not provide a minimum connection quality required. Accordingly, while various embodiments of the disclosure may give preference to a FAP when it is within range, the FAP 840 may be far enough away that communication between the user 810 and the FAP 840 is unreliable. However, when an area is known to have many users gathered together, such as at a bus terminal, the FAP 840 may be reconfigured and/or possibly relocated by technicians to be able to provide a reliable connection to the users in that area.

For many practical purposes, various embodiments of the disclosure may treat the stationary user 810 similarly as the pedestrians illustrated with respect to FIG. 7. Furthermore, the Fixed APs such as the FAP 840 can help with detecting that users are stopped nearby. The Mobile APs can advertise to the Fixed APs in the area about the user context information of the user who tried to connect to it, and the Fixed APs may run an algorithm to select the Mobile or Fixed APs able to provide a connection to that user. The FAP(s) may then advertise the decision to the APs in the range so that the appropriate APs can prepare to connect to the user.

When a vehicle, such as the vehicle 824, stops at a bus terminal or a bus stop, there may be requests to connect by user(s) who are not going to board the vehicle 824. The vehicle 824 might not want to make a temporary connection with those user(s) who will be left behind. Accordingly, in various embodiments of the disclosure the vehicle 824 may generate and update a list of users before, during, and after a stop, and then determine which users were outside the vehicle 824 and entered the vehicle 824, and which users remained outside. Accordingly, any resources that were allocated/configured to potentially accept a user can be released upon determination that the user is not in the vehicle 824.

FIG. 9 shows an example scenario for a person with a mobile device who exited from a vehicle in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. The example network 900 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, and 1000 discussed herein. Referring to FIG. 9, there is shown a user 910 who has just exited the vehicle 920 at, for example, a bus terminal and is waiting, for example, to transfer to another vehicle. There is a plurality of nearby vehicles 920, 922, 924, and 926 that are parked, and a Fixed AP (FAP) 940 in the area. There are also vehicles 928 and 930 that are operating. The vehicles 920, 922, 924, 926, 928, and 930 may act as mobile access points (MAPs). While not shown, the user 910 is assumed to have a user device such as, for example, a smartphone, that may be able to connect to a communication network via one of the vehicles 920, 922, 924, 926, 928, and 930 and/or the stationary AP 940. Accordingly, when it is stated that a user is connected (to communicate to the Internet or to an access point), it should be realized that the user is communicating via a user device.

Various embodiments of the disclosure may have a vehicle such as the vehicle 920 determine how long it will be at a stop. For example, if the vehicle 920 stops at a bus terminal, it may remain there for many minutes or hours until it is ready to load passengers again. However, if the vehicle 920 stops at a regular bus stop in a city route, it may for example only stop for less than a minute. Accordingly, various embodiments of the disclosure may allow a vehicle that will be at rest for a while to dedicate its resources as a Fixed AP. In an embodiment of the disclosure, a vehicle may determine whether it is at a bus terminal by checking to see how many other vehicles, such as, for example, buses, are also stopped in its vicinity by scanning to see what types of APs are around it, or by determining its position using, for example, GPS, a beacon, etc. At a bus terminal, there may be many vehicles such as the vehicles 920, 922, 924, and 926 acting as MAPs parked in their parking slots, while on a street there may be, for example, only a few buses such as 928 and 930 that are passing each other. The different stops may also be differentiated by analyzing the number of users that disconnect as well as by how many request to be connected to the Mobile AP. For example, a bus that arrived at a terminal may have all of the passengers disembark and no new ones embark for a while. The users that are waiting to get on board may be determined as described previously with respect to FIGS. 7 and 8 by generating a list of users before, during, and/or after a stop. A location identification technology such as, for example, GPS may also be used to identify where the vehicle may be.

As described previously, a MAP may reserve its resources for a user until the user does not need the resources anymore. Accordingly, the vehicle 920 may keep the connection resources for the user 910 until either the vehicle 920 is notified by another AP that the user 910 is connected to another AP or there is a period of time when there is no communication between the user 910 and the vehicle 920. The notification may be sent by a communication node that may be, for example, the AP that is currently connected to the user 910 or a synchronizing device (not shown) that may update the APs within its range. The period of time may be, for example, a scanning period or some other period.

Various embodiments of the disclosure may also broadcast/multicast/unicast, as appropriate, to other Mobile APs in range some information of the previously-connected users that are now disconnected. Various embodiments of the disclosure may also have a Mobile AP first check with the Fixed AP, and then broadcast/multicast/unicast user information to other neighbors. The Fixed AP may work as a redundant point to help with context forwarding between Mobile APs, for example to handle cases where the user 910 moves from a first vehicle to a second vehicle that is not able to communicate directly with the first vehicle. Accordingly, even if the first vehicle is not able to communicate with the second vehicle directly, the second vehicle may be prepared to connect to the user 910 when the user 910 comes within range.

FIG. 10 shows an example scenario for a person with a mobile device in a vehicle in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. The example network 1000 may, for example, share any or all characteristics with the other example networks and/or network components 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, and 900 discussed herein. Referring to FIG. 10, there is shown a user 1010 who is in the vehicle 1022 within communication distance of nearby vehicles 1020, 1024, and 1026 and a Fixed AP (FAP) 1040. The vehicles 1020, 1022, 1024, 1026, 1028, and 1030 may act as Mobile Access Points (MAPs). While not shown, the user 1010 is assumed to have a user device such as, for example, a smartphone, that may be able to connect to a communication network via one of the vehicles 1020, 1022, 1024, 1026, 1028, and 1030 and/or the stationary AP 1040. Accordingly, when it is stated that a user is connected (to communicate to the Internet or to an access point), it should be realized that the user is communicating via a user device.

In one scenario, a user 1010 may be in the vehicle 1022 and connected wirelessly to the vehicle 1022 acting as a MAP, while within communication range of various other APs, such as vehicles 1020, 1024, and 1026, as well as the Fixed AP 1040. As described previously, various embodiments of the disclosure may have the vehicle 1022 (e.g., a Mobile AP installed in the vehicle) determine that the user 1010 is in the vehicle 1022 by using, for example, the location, speed, and/or direction of movement information from one or more GPS devices (e.g., a GPS device of the vehicle, Mobile AP, a device of the user 1010 or other user, etc.), accelerometer and/or gyroscope readings (e.g., of the vehicle, Mobile AP, a device of the user 1010 or other user, etc.), Doppler analysis, triangulation utilizing multiple antennas, etc.

Furthermore, the vehicle 1022 may keep a list of users that are connected to the vehicle 1022. The vehicle 1022 may also track, for example, mean RSSI variation over a time window of those on the connection list. However, even if a user's RSSI is lower than a specific threshold, that user's context information should not be transmitted to other possible neighbors while the vehicle 1022 is moving, since the user 1010 should not change its connection to another nearby AP until the user 101 exits the vehicle 1022.

FIG. 11 shows an example flowchart for handling a handoff of a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. The example flowchart 1100 may, for example, be used to describe some characteristics of the other example networks, components, and/or flowcharts 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, and 1200 discussed herein. The flowchart of FIG. 11 shows one example of handover of a user from one AP to another. Various embodiments of the disclosure need not be limited by this description.

At 1102, a first AP may be in a state where it is generating or updating a list of users and the user context information for the users connected to the first AP. While this list may be used for the first AP to determine, for example, where various users are with respect to the first AP, at least some of the information on this list may also be shared with other neighboring APs to help them keep track of users. Similarly, information from other APs may be received by the first AP.

At 1104, the first AP may transmit user context information of a user that needs (or potentially needs or likely needs) to be handed off soon. The user may be a pedestrian that is connected to a Mobile AP or a pedestrian that is walking away from a Fixed AP. The user context information may comprise, for example, MAC number, BSSID, IP address, RSSI, etc. The user context information may also include the present position of the user, which direction the user is moving, and how fast the user is moving, anticipated trajectory of the user based on common user movement patterns or based on historical movement of the particular user, etc. The user context information may be broadcast, multicast, or unicast, as appropriate to at least a second AP.

At 1106, a receiving AP, for example, the second AP, may determine if it is appropriate for receiving the handoff of the user. To determine this, the receiving AP can determine if the distance between the user and the receiving AP is increasing. If so, the receiving AP may deem itself inappropriate for the handoff of the user. Otherwise, if the user is within service range of the first AP and/or anticipated to soon be within service range, it may determine that the connection request is a valid request for a possible handoff.

If the receiving AP determines that it is not an appropriate AP for the handoff, it may update other neighboring APs at 1112. After 1112, the receiving AP can go to 1102 to generate or update its user list. If the receiving AP determines that it is an appropriate AP for the handoff, it will reserve resources at 1108 for connecting with the user.

At 1110, if a handoff is made with the receiving AP, then the receiving AP may update other neighboring APs at 1112. If a handoff is not made, then the receiving AP will determine at 1114 whether to free resources or keep the resources for a possible handoff. The resources can be freed, for example, if the receiving AP received a message from another AP that it has completed the handoff of the user or if the receiving AP is now out of range of service for the user. The resources may also be freed after a certain period of time such as, for example, a scan time, an integer multiple of scan times, an empirically-determined amount of time within which a handoff is expected to occur, etc. In that case, the receiving AP's resources are freed at 1116, and the receiving AP may transmit a message to the neighboring APs that it has released the resources, and hence is able to receive a handoff of another user(s). The determination of scan time may be design and/or implementation dependent.

If the receiving AP determines at 1114 that it should not free its resources, then it will go back to 1110 to see if it needs to receive the handoff of the user.

While it has been described that the receiving AP will update neighboring APs of its status at various times, various embodiments of the disclosure need not be limited so. For example, the receiving AP might not update the neighboring APs after freeing its resources reserved for the user.

FIG. 12 shows an example flowchart for handling a request to connect from a mobile device in a vehicular environment, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. The example flowchart 1200 may, for example, be used to describe some characteristics of the other example networks, components, and/or flowcharts 100, 200, 300, 400, 500-570, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, and 1100 discussed herein. The flowchart of FIG. 12 shows one example of connecting to a user. Various embodiments of the disclosure need not be limited by this description.

At 1202, an AP may be in a state where it is generating or updating a list of users and the user context information for the users connected to the AP. While this list may be used for the AP to determine, for example, where various users are with respect to the AP, at least some of the information on this list may also be shared with other neighboring APs to help them keep track of users. Similarly, information from other APs may be received by this AP.

At 1204, the AP may receive a connection request from a user. The user may have, for example, just entered a service area for the AP or just turned on his mobile device. Accordingly, the AP may need to determine whether it is appropriate to connect to the user at 1206. If there is no connection request, the AP may further update the list of users at 1202.

At 1206, the AP may determine if it is appropriate for connecting to the user. To do this, the AP may determine if the user is on board the AP (e.g., on-board the vehicle, such as a bus, to which the Mobile AP is attached). If so, the AP can determine that it is a valid AP for the connect request. The AP may be configured, for example, to not accept users who are outside the AP. This may be, for example, when the number of users are already at or close to the number of users that the AP can handle, or for those express vehicles that are traveling on a highway at a high speeds.

Whether a user is on board may be determined by using, for example, a GPS device on the user's mobile device that can give the position of the user, the speed of the user, and direction of movement of the user. Other information such as the RSSI for the user may also be used. Even when the AP (vehicle) is configured to allow external users to be connected, the AP can determine whether the user should be connected by checking various parameters such as whether the distance between it and the user is increasing, or whether the quality of the communication is acceptable. If the distance is increasing to an extent that the user will be out of the service range within a threshold time, or if the connection quality is not acceptable, the AP may deem it inappropriate to connect to the user.

If the AP is deemed to be appropriate for the connection request, or if the user had connected to the AP within a recent pre-determined time such that the user may still be on the user list, resources for connecting the user can be allocated at 1208. At 1210, the user can be connected to the AP. The neighboring APs may also be updated at 1212. The AP may then update the user list at 1202.

If at 1206 the AP determines that it is not an appropriate AP for connecting to the user, it may update other neighboring APs at 1112 to the user's request for connection.

FIG. 13 shows an example high-level block diagram of an access point, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure. Referring to FIG. 13, there is shown an AP 1300, which may be a MAP or a FAP. The AP 1300 comprises a processor 1302, memory 1304, and input/output interface 1306.

The processor 1302 may be any one or more processors suitable for use in an AP for executing instructions for operation and/or use of the AP 1300. The memory 1304 may comprise one or more of volatile and non-volatile memory devices, whether semiconductor devices, magnetic media devices, or other types of devices. The memory 1304 may be used to store instructions to be executed by the processor 1302, as well as store data needed by the processor 1302 or data generated by the processor 1302. The memory 1304 may also store received data from another device external to the AP 1300, as well as store data to be transmitted by the AP 1300. The memory 1304 may also comprise plug-in memory devices using a variety of interfaces such as, for example, USB, SATA, SCSI, and the like.

The input/output interface 1306 may comprise various hardware (HW) circuitry and software (SW) components that may be used to communicate to other devices/nodes external to the AP 1300, as well as for receiving input by, for example, a technician who may be reconfiguring the AP 1300, and for displaying output locally. Accordingly, the input/output interface 1306 may comprise communication circuitry for transmitting and/or receiving in any of the various supported protocols and frequencies, antennas for supporting the communication circuitry, input/output devices for a technician or an authorized user to use such as, for example, a keyboard, mouse, trackball, touch screen, display screen, etc.

While specific functions have been described for the processor 1302, memory 1304, and input/output interface 1306, various embodiments of the disclosure may have functionality that are differently arranged. For example, the processor 1302 may have a memory block comprising volatile and/or non-volatile memory, and also some I/O interface. Similarly, the input/output interface 1306 may comprise one or more processors and local memory (volatile and/or non-volatile) for performing input/output related functions.

It should be noted that various embodiments of the disclosure may have various other specific hardware (HW) and/or software (SW) in the AP 1300, however, only a limited number of functions (HW or SW) have been described for the sake of brevity.

Additionally, while various technology generations of cellular communication are in existence, and newer technology generations will be introduced in the future, the term “cellular protocol” may be used to refer to any cellular protocol for voice and/or data that may be used by various mobile devices such as, for example, smartphones now and in the future.

Accordingly, it can be seen that an example embodiment of the disclosure presented is a method that comprises generating by a first access point (AP), a list of communication devices within communication distance of the first AP, determining context information for at least a portion of the communication devices, and sharing the context information for at least a first communication device that is on the list of communication devices with at least a second AP.

The context information for the first communication device may comprise one or more of media access control (MAC) number, broadcast service set ID (BSSID), IP address, received signal strength indicator (RSSI), location of the first communication device, direction of travel of the first communication device, and speed of travel of the first communication device.

The method may also comprise communicating by the first AP and the second AP with at least one of the communication devices using wireless communication using, for example, uses one or more of a cellular protocol, Wi-Fi protocol, Bluetooth protocol, and ultra wideband (UWB) protocol.

The method may comprise, for example, when the first AP is a mobile AP (MAP), keeping track by the MAP of those of the communication devices that are on a same vehicle as the MAP. The MAP may determine, for example, whether a particular one of the communication devices are on the same vehicle as the MAP by using at least one of: position of the particular one of the communication devices, speed of travel of the particular one of the communication devices, direction of travel of the particular one of the communication devices, environmental noise sensed by the particular one of the communication devices, etc.

The MAP may also be configured not to hand off the first communication device to another AP as long as the first communication device is on the same vehicle as the MAP.

When the first AP determines that the first communication device should be handed off to another AP, the first AP may generate a list of one or more candidate APs that may be suitable for handing off the first communication device. The first AP may then transmit context information of the first communication device to the candidate APs.

When the second AP is one of the candidate APs, upon receiving the context information of the first communication device, the second AP may determine whether it is suitable for handoff based on the received context information from the first AP. When the second AP determines that it is suitable for handoff, the second AP may allocate resources to be used for connecting to the first communication device. The second AP may release the allocated resources when, for example, one or both of the following conditions arises: a pre-determined time period expires, and notification by a communication node that the first communication device is connected to a third AP. The pre-determined time period may be, for example, a multiple of a scanning period or some other determined time period.

When the second AP determines that it is not suitable for handoff, it may transmit to at least one neighboring AP that it is not suitable for handoff of the first communication device.

Generating the list of communication devices may also include updating the list of communication devices to perform at least one of: remove a communication device, add a communication device, and update the context information.

When the first AP receives a connection request from a second communication device, the first AP may make a determination of whether it is suitable for connecting to the second communication device based on context information of the second communication device. Upon determination by the first AP that it is not suitable for connecting to the second communication device, the first AP may transmit to at least one neighboring AP the connection request by the second communication device. However, upon determination by the first AP that it is suitable for connecting to the second communication device, the first AP may allocate resources suitable for connecting to the second communication device and makes a connection to the second communication device.

Accordingly, it can also be seen that an embodiment of the disclosure may comprise a first access point (AP) that is configured to generate a list of communication devices within communication distance of the first AP, determine context information for at least a portion of the communication devices, and share the context information for at least a first communication device that is on the list of communication devices with at least a second AP.

Furthermore, an embodiment of the disclosure may be a non-transitory machine-readable storage having stored thereon, a computer program having at least one code section, the at least one code section being executable by a machine for causing the machine to perform operations comprising generating, by a first access point (AP), a list of communication devices within communication distance of the first AP; determining context information for at least a portion of the communication devices; and sharing the context information for at least a first communication device that is on the list of communication devices with at least a second AP

In accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, examples of the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/355,149, filed on Jun. 27, 2016, and titled “Systems and Methods for Managing and Triggering Handovers of Users in a Network of Moving Things,” which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, examples of the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,192, titled “Communication Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for integrating such networks and/or components with other networks and systems, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/221,997, titled “Integrated Communication Network for A Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for synchronizing such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,016, titled “Systems and Methods for Synchronizing a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,042, titled “Systems and Methods for Managing a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for monitoring such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,066, titled “Systems and Methods for Monitoring a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Still further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for detecting and/or classifying anomalies in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,077, titled “Systems and Methods for Detecting and Classifying Anomalies in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Yet further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing mobility in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,098, titled “Systems and Methods for Managing Mobility in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing connectivity in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,121, titled “Systems and Methods for Managing Connectivity a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for collecting sensor data in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,135, titled “Systems and Methods for Collecting Sensor Data in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for interfacing with such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,145, titled “Systems and Methods for Interfacing with a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Still further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for interfacing with a user of such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,150, titled “Systems and Methods for Interfacing with a User of a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Yet further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for data storage and processing in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,168, titled “Systems and Methods for Data Storage and Processing for a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for vehicle traffic management in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,183, titled “Systems and Methods for Vehicle Traffic Management in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for environmental management in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,186, titled “Systems and Methods for Environmental Management in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing port or shipping operation in such networks and/or components, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/222,190, titled “Systems and Methods for Port Management in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Sep. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for enhancing the accuracy of positioning or location information based at least in part on historical data, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/244,828, titled “Utilizing Historical Data to Correct GPS Data in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Oct. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for enhancing the accuracy of position or location of positioning or location information based at least in part on the utilization of anchors, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/244,930, titled “Using Anchors to Correct GPS Data in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Oct. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for providing communication between applications, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/246,368, titled “Systems and Methods for Inter-Application Communication in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Oct. 26, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Still further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for probing, analyzing and/or validating communication, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/246,372, titled “Systems and Methods for Probing and Validating Communication in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Oct. 26, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Yet further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for adapting communication rate, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/250,544, titled “Adaptive Rate Control for Vehicular Networks,” filed on Nov. 4, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for reconfiguring and adapting hardware, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/273,878, titled “Systems and Methods for Reconfiguring and Adapting Hardware in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 31, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for optimizing the gathering of data, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/253,249, titled “Systems and Methods for Optimizing Data Gathering in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Nov. 10, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for performing delay tolerant networking, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/257,421, titled “Systems and Methods for Delay Tolerant Networking in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Nov. 19, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Still further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for improving the coverage and throughput of mobile access points, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/265,267, titled “Systems and Methods for Improving Coverage and Throughput of Mobile Access Points in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 9, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Yet further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for coordinating channel utilization, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/270,858, titled “Channel Coordination in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for implementing a network coded mesh network in the network of moving things, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/257,854, titled “Systems and Methods for Network Coded Mesh Networking in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Nov. 20, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for improving the coverage of fixed access points, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/260,749, titled “Systems and Methods for Improving Fixed Access Point Coverage in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Nov. 30, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing mobility controllers and their network interactions, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/273,715, titled “Systems and Methods for Managing Mobility Controllers and Their Network Interactions in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 31, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Still further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing and/or triggering handovers of mobile access points, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/281,432, titled “Systems and Methods for Managing and Triggering Handovers of Mobile Access Points in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Jan. 21, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Yet further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for performing captive portal-related control and management, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/268,188, titled “Captive Portal-related Control and Management in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 16, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for extrapolating high-value data, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/270,678, titled “Systems and Methods to Extrapolate High-Value Data from a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 22, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for providing remote software updating and distribution, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/272,750, titled “Systems and Methods for Remote Software Update and Distribution in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Dec. 30, 2015, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for providing remote configuration updating and distribution, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/278,662, titled “Systems and Methods for Remote Configuration Update and Distribution in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Jan. 14, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Still further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for adapting the network, for example automatically, based on user feedback, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/286,243, titled “Systems and Methods for Adapting a Network of Moving Things Based on User Feedback,” filed on Jan. 22, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Yet further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for enhancing and/or guaranteeing data integrity when building or performing data analytics, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/278,764, titled “Systems and Methods to Guarantee Data Integrity When Building Data Analytics in a Network of Moving Things,” Jan. 14, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Also, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for performing self-initialization and/or automated bootstrapping of mobile access points, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/286,515, titled “Systems and Methods for Self-Initialization and Automated Bootstrapping of Mobile Access Points in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Jan. 25, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Additionally, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for managing power supply and/or utilization, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/295,602, titled “Systems and Methods for Power Management in a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Feb. 16, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Further, in accordance with various aspects of this disclosure, the networks and/or components thereof presented herein are provided with systems and methods for automating and easing the installation and setup of the infrastructure, non-limiting examples of which are provided in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/299,269, titled “Systems and Methods for Automating and Easing the Installation and Setup of the Infrastructure Supporting a Network of Moving Things,” filed on Feb. 24, 2016, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In summary, various aspects of this disclosure provide communication network architectures, systems and methods for supporting a network of mobile nodes, for example comprising a combination of mobile and stationary nodes. As a non-limiting example, various aspects of this disclosure provide communication network architectures, systems, and methods for supporting a dynamically configurable communication network comprising a complex array of both static and moving communication nodes (e.g., the Internet of moving things). While the foregoing has been described with reference to certain aspects and examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the disclosure. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the disclosure without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is intended that the disclosure not be limited to the particular example(s) disclosed, but that the disclosure will include all examples falling within the scope of the appended claims.

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	Number	Date	Country
Parent	15450569	Mar 2017	US
Child	16213431		US

Systems and methods for optimizing handovers for better quality of service for users in a network of moving things

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