Managing Mobility in Beyond-3G Environments

Beyond 3G (B3G) environments typically consist of multi-homed terminals and wireless overlay networks. This paper presents a categorization of IP-level mobility management solutions for B3G environments. Closely observing the mobility requirements of a wide range of possible applications, the paper also motivates the consideration of a new mobility management approach in B3G environments, whereby location management (i.e., reaching mobile end-users at the IP-level for session invitations) is decoupled from handover management (i.e., switching ongoing sessions, collectively or individually, to another access network whenever appropriate). For example, one can use cellular GPRS/UMTS networks for location management and WiFi or cellular networks for handover management. The paper elaborates upon the merits of such so-called context-aware mobility solutions, which are attained from an optimum use of the mobility management features embedded in the underlying infrastructure.