KR20070022411A - Mobile type Wireless LAN Service Systems - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a mobile WLAN service system (mobile gateway) capable of sharing the Internet by a plurality of Internet users through a mobile communication network or a personal portable Internet network, and a function thereof.

Since the mobile WLAN service system according to the present invention can provide the Internet service inside the mobile body while utilizing the existing network infrastructure as it is, there is an advantage in that the user can use the service without purchasing a separate equipment from the user's point of view. From a carrier's point of view, it is possible to attract wireless Internet subscribers without distributing mobile modems or personal mobile Internet terminals on a large scale, which leads to early settlement of mobile wireless Internet services.

Mobile communication network, personal mobile internet network, WiBro, wired LAN, wireless LAN, gateway, USB, Ethernet, variable bandwidth limit

Description

Mobile type wireless LAN service system

1 is a schematic diagram of an internet service system using satellites.

2 is a diagram schematically illustrating the evolution of a mobile communication network.

3 is a schematic diagram of an Internet service system using mobile communication and a personal mobile Internet network.

4 is a schematic diagram of an Internet service system according to the present invention.

5 is a schematic structural diagram of a mobile WLAN service system according to the present invention.

6 is a schematic structural diagram of a system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a diagram illustrating an antenna configuration of a mobile gateway access device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a control flowchart for bandwidth allocation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a mobile WLAN service system in which a plurality of Internet users can share the Internet through a mobile communication network or a personal portable Internet network.

As the use of the Internet is rapidly activated, the demand for using the Internet in a mobile environment is greatly increased. The demand for using the Internet in mobile vehicles such as buses, trains, passenger cars, and high-speed railways is increasing. In order to use the Internet, you can attach a LAN card to your computer to connect to the Internet network. Depending on how the LAN card is physically connected to the Internet network, it is divided into wired and wireless. A protocol such as IEEE 802.11b / g / a is used to connect to the Internet via Aceess Point (also called AP). By the way, the WLAN has a service radius of 20 to 30m, a spatial limitation (100m if using a separate device), roaming service is also not available, providing a very limited mobile Internet environment.

In addition, a service that provides the Internet in a different mobile environment uses satellites. In order to use the Internet from a moving object, it is possible to receive a service using a communication satellite. As shown in FIG. 1, a satellite antenna and a transceiver are installed in a moving vehicle to receive the Internet through a communication satellite. The method using a communication satellite has a limitation in mass distribution because the installation cost and the cost of renting and servicing a communication satellite channel are high. In addition, there is a drawback that communication is not possible when operating a tunnel or underground. Another method for using the Internet in a moving object is to use a mobile communication network and a personal portable Internet network.

First of all, the mobile communication network and the mobile Internet network are briefly reviewed. The mobile communication system, which started with the analog method in the 1980s, has been changed to the digital mobile communication method in the 1990s with rapid development since then. Mobile and CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) methods are available. The GSM system has been widely spread around Europe and Southeast Asia, and the CDMA system has spread to North America and Korea. It has evolved from voice service to data service, and GSM has evolved to GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) to strengthen data service. CDMA has evolved to 1x EVDO (1x EVolution Data Only). In addition, the mobile communication system is evolving in the direction of providing a faster data rate by evolving into a third generation communication network called Wideband CDMA (WCDMA). Also, as mobile wireless Internet services such as personal mobile Internet (Wi-Bro) have been recently developed, wireless Internet services in a mobile environment will be launched soon. The personal mobile Internet was created to expand the service radius, the shortcomings of the aforementioned WLAN, to provide services in high-speed mobile environments, and to support high-speed data services, which are disadvantages of mobile communication networks. In Korea, since 2006, the plan is to introduce personal mobile Internet service in earnest. This evolution of mobile communication is shown in FIG.

Recently, a mobile communication method introduced at home and abroad has been applied to provide a data service of up to about 2Mbps. In order to access the Internet using such a mobile communication system, a portable computer and a mobile phone of a mobile subscriber are required as shown in FIG. In the case of a mobile Internet service using a subscriber's mobile phone and a portable computer, it is difficult for a large number of users to use the Internet and a waste of radio frequency channels may occur. In addition, such a method has a disadvantage in that a user who wants to use the Internet in a mobile device must purchase a separate mobile communication modem.

The mobile gateway access device according to the present invention is a device that solves this problem and enables a plurality of Internet users to use the Internet service through a mobile communication network. 4 illustrates the concept of a mobile WLAN service system (mobile gateway) of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the mobile WLAN service system is located in the middle of a mobile communication network and an existing network, and performs a function of a wireless-to-wireless conversion apparatus that allows a user of a wired LAN and a wireless LAN to access the Internet through a mobile communication network.

There is a case in which similar products have been developed to service a WLAN in a moving object. It is designed to use mobile communication network in most cases. On the other hand, the mobile gateway access device should be able to accommodate various types of mobile communication modem, and it is not desirable to change the hardware every time a new mobile communication method is applied, so it must have a general hardware structure and interface.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a mobile WLAN system that can use the wireless Internet at a low cost in a mobile.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile WLAN service system which can be easily applied without a significant change to the current system.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile wireless LAN service system that can be easily applied to different mobile communication systems.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention firstly, the user can use the Internet in a variety of mobile environments with the additional burden of the service fee without the purchase of additional equipment, second, wired network, wireless for a variety of network connection acceptance Network, mobile communication network, and mobile internet network (WiBro) to accept all connections. Third, in terms of user service, basic access point (AP) function and wireless bridge (repeater) function to expand to other areas. Fourth, it is characterized by improving the interface method between the existing mobile communication modem and the processor to increase the communication speed.

4 is a service conceptual diagram of a mobile gateway access device for a mobile wireless LAN service according to the present invention. This equipment is a device that uses a wireless LAN for subscriber service and a mobile communication network and a personal mobile Internet network. Since the mobile gateway access device according to the present invention can provide an Internet service inside a mobile body while using the existing network infrastructure as it is, there is an advantage in that the user can use the service without having to purchase a separate equipment from the user's point of view. From a carrier's point of view, it is possible to attract subscribers without distributing mobile communication modems or personal mobile Internet terminals on a large scale, which leads to early settlement of mobile wireless Internet services. In addition, the system according to the present invention is a device that can use the Internet from a moving object utilizing the wireless LAN and wired LAN card that is basically mounted on the user's notebook. In other words, access to the Internet network is performed using mobile communication and personal mobile Internet, and actual acceptance of subscribers is based on the existing wireless LAN and wired LAN.

As shown in FIG. 5, the path between the mobile modem and the processor is connected to the USB method and the Ethernet interface instead of the existing serial to solve the problem of a decrease in communication speed. The USB host recognizes the mobile communication modem as a slave device, transmits and receives data, and transfers the data to the processor. In case of a modem such as personal mobile Internet, if the Ethernet interface is provided without providing the USB interface, the hardware interface structure is set to provide the Ethernet interface as a countermeasure. Through this, the structure is designed to accept universally any kind of modem.

Next, the difference from the existing mobile gateway is as follows. Existing mobile gateways were simply physical combinations of mobile modems and WLAN access points. That is, the wireless LAN access point is configured in a simple form connecting the mobile communication terminal. Therefore, when a new mobile communication method is introduced, a problem arises in that the hardware must be completely replaced. The introduction of personal mobile Internet service has created a burden of discarding the existing hardware and purchasing new equipment.

On the other hand, the mobile gateway in the present invention was invented to cope with the new service by replacing only the mobile communication modem unit even when a new mobile communication method is introduced using the USB interface.

In the present invention, it is designed to accommodate two WLAN cards so that one WLAN card acts as a WLAN access point and the other WLAN card acts as a WLAN repeater. Therefore, when a wireless LAN service is required at a remote point, as shown in FIG. 6, the wireless LAN service is enabled by connecting to a wireless LAN repeater (wireless LAN bridge).

Referring to FIG. 5, the mobile communication modem 10 connects to a mobile communication network and transmits and receives data. The mobile communication modem is applicable to various types of mobile communication modems. Modem according to various wireless methods such as CDMA 1xRTT, GSM, GPRS, 1xEVDO, W-CDMA, personal mobile Internet can be applied. The mobile modem provides a serial interface or a USB interface for data transmission and reception. Most mobile gateways use serial interfaces. On the other hand, the mobile gateway developed in the present invention simultaneously used the USB interface and the Ethernet interface. By using a USB interface (or Ethernet interface), the data transmission and reception speed could be increased, and the structure can accommodate various types of mobile communication systems.

By using the USB interface, the configuration of the device is complicated compared to the existing mobile gateway. That is, the conventional method using the serial interface is very simple in software, but when using USB as in the present invention, a USB driver must be developed to fit the operating system. This is because the mobile communication modem 10 serves as a slave from the perspective of the USB device, and therefore, the processor 20 should serve as a host. The role of the USB host is to recognize the USB slave device and drive it normally. To this end, the USB host 40 is used. The USB host 40 recognizes the mobile communication modem 10 as a slave device and transmits it to the processor 20.

The processor 20 controls the overall function of the mobile gateway. This includes network management, wireless LAN management, and mobile modem management. In the present invention, the mobile gateway is provided with a wireless interface for mobile communication or personal mobile Internet, a wireless LAN interface for subscriber wireless LAN service, and a wireless interface for wireless LAN repeater.

In general, in the case of mobile communication and personal mobile Internet, space diversity is used to prevent performance deterioration even at high speeds. Thus, two wireless antennas are mounted. At this time, the separation distance of the two antennas is slightly different depending on the frequency band used. If using 800 ~ 900MHz mobile communication frequency should be separated by 15cm. Personal mobile Internet uses 2.3GHz, so it should be about 8cm apart. As such, two antennas are required for diversity for mobile communication or personal portable Internet.

Next, when operating as a WLAN access point, two antennas are required to provide diversity. In case of WLAN antenna, it should be spaced more than 6 cm. Finally, one (or two) WLAN antenna ports for the WLAN repeater are required. As described above, the mobile gateway of the present invention requires at least five antenna ports. 8 is a configuration diagram of an antenna port of a mobile gateway.

The mobile gateway invented in the present invention is an apparatus for providing a wireless LAN and wired LAN service through a mobile communication network (including a personal mobile Internet). From the point of view of a subscriber using a wireless LAN, it is not important to pass through a mobile communication network or a wired communication network. However, it is necessary for a telecommunication service provider to separately charge a WLAN user connected through a mobile communication network and a WLAN user connected through a wired communication network. That is, it is necessary to prepare a separate charging system for a user who uses the WLAN in a moving vehicle instead of using the WLAN service in a fixed area. Since the mobile gateway of the present invention is a wireless LAN and wired LAN service device using a mobile communication network, most mobile applications are objects that move. That is, a device capable of providing a wireless LAN service in a train or a bus. Therefore, there should be a function of distinguishing between a wireless LAN user using a mobile communication network and a wireless LAN user using a wired communication network. To this end, the present invention provides a method for distinguishing a WLAN user through a mobile gateway by using an Electronic Serial Number (ESN) of CDMA as a user identifier for WLAN authentication. 7 shows a charging method and a process for authentication for a WLAN user.

The WLAN user attempts to access the WLAN using his WLAN terminal (200). The processor detects an access attempt of the WLAN subscriber and attempts to open a mobile communication channel (201). Accordingly, the mobile communication network authentication server checks the ESN number and opens the call path.

Next, the processor reads the ESN number of the mobile communication modem and inserts the ESN number into the dummy header of the WLAN 802.1x authentication packet. The WLAN user attempts to authenticate with the WLAN server using the 802.1x method (204). At this time, the RADIUS server, which is the WLAN authentication server, verifies the ID and password of the WLAN user. Once authentication is made, the WLAN user can use the WLAN normally.

At this time, the function of verifying the ESN number in the wireless LAN user authentication packet is added to the RADIUS server so that the subscriber using the wireless LAN is connected using the mobile gateway or accesses the wireless LAN connected to the existing wired communication network. The charge is attempted by distinguishing whether the user is connected through the point (207).

The mobile gateway invented in the present invention is a device that allows a plurality of users to use the Internet using a wireless LAN in a moving object. In the case of a mobile communication network, the bandwidth actually available is 1 to 2 Mbps, and in the case of a personal mobile Internet, the speed is about 4 to 5 Mbps. If one user accesses the Internet through the mobile gateway and downloads and watches videos at the same time, the bandwidth is taken seriously and exclusively, which slows down other users' Internet access speed.

In the wired Internet, bandwidth limiting algorithms are used to prevent certain users from monopolizing the bandwidth of Internet services. To do this, wired Ethernet uses an algorithm called bandwidth limiting. However, similarly, in the case of WLAN, an algorithm for limiting bandwidth is implemented. In this method, the maximum allocation bandwidth per subscriber is defined in advance in the WLAN access point, and the subscriber who wants to use more than the maximum allocation bandwidth is restricted.

In the case of the mobile gateway invented in the present invention, the mobile gateway is a device that services the Internet through a WLAN in a moving object. Therefore, it is very rare for a lot of users. In the case of a general wireless LAN access point, many users can be connected at the same time because it is installed in a public place or office, but the mobile gateway in the present invention is mounted on a moving train, bus, and vehicle, so that three to five users can be connected at the same time. Is expected. Forcing a user to limit bandwidth while there are not many users can be frustrating for users. If you use the Internet alone inside a car you are driving slowly, this can cause service complaints.

Therefore, in a mobile WLAN device such as a mobile gateway, a method of restricting bandwidth in accordance with the number of users should be applied. That is, bandwidth should be variably limited in case of one user and two or more users connected to the mobile gateway.

9 is an algorithm for variably allocating bandwidth. As shown in FIG. 9, the mobile gateway checks the total mobile network bandwidth (MBW) that can be used by accessing the mobile communication network. Next, check the number of users connected to the WLAN. If one person is connected, allocate the full bandwidth. If the WLAN access user N increases in the middle, the bandwidth is allocated by dividing by MBW / N. This process is continuously performed by monitoring mobile network bandwidth and WLAN access user.

The present invention solves the problem of speed, which is a disadvantage of the existing mobile gateway, and at the same time has a function of a wireless LAN repeater for expanding the service area, and connects a mobile communication modem to an existing network using a USB interface or an Ethernet interface. High-speed service is possible, and because it uses USB interface (or Ethernet interface), even if a new method is introduced into the mobile network in the future, it can be used without limiting the data rate. As shown in FIG. 5, as shown in FIG. 5, the first WLAN 30 operates as a WLAN access point providing a service to an actual subscriber, and supports the second WLAN 50. ) Is a wireless LAN repeater for providing services in other areas. For there is an effect that can expand the service area by to perform.

To summarize the effects of the present invention, first, it is possible to accommodate various mobile communication schemes. Since the conventional method uses a serial interface, there is a limit in accommodating high speed mobile communication data methods such as 1xEVDO, GPRS, and W-CDMA. On the other hand, the mobile gateway product invented in the present invention has an advantage of universally accommodating 1xEVDO, GPRS, W-CDMA, personal mobile Internet, etc. using a USB host interface and an Ethernet interface.

Secondly, the mobile gateway proposed by the present invention provides not only a WLAN access point function but also a WLAN repeater function. Since the WLAN repeater function is supported, there is an advantage of providing a WLAN service even in a somewhat remote area.

Claims (6)

In the system for providing a mobile service of the Internet, A base station of a mobile communication network; Perform communication with the base station to be connected to the Internet through the mobile communication network, perform a demodulation function for internet communication with the mobile communication network, convert the signal according to the demodulation to the WLAN method, and receive the received WLAN signal A mobile gateway for converting the data to the Internet through the mobile communication network; And, One or more terminals for performing wireless LAN communication with the mobile gateway Mobile WLAN service system, characterized in that provided. The method according to claim 1, The mobile gateway, A modem for the demodulation; A WLAN access point performing an access point function for the WLAN communication; Universal serial bus or Ethernet interface for connecting the modem and the wireless LAN unit; And, Processor for controlling the operation of the wireless LAN unit Mobile WLAN service system comprising a. The method according to claim 1, The mobile gateway, A mobile WLAN service system further comprising a wireless LAN relay unit for providing wireless LAN services to a plurality of terminals by performing wireless LAN communication with another mobile gateway. The method according to claim 1, The mobile WLAN service system of claim 2, wherein the UE is used to distinguish a wired or wireless connection of the terminal. The method according to claim 1, The mobile gateway, Mobile WLAN service system, characterized in that for controlling the connection speed according to the number of the connected terminal. The method according to claim 3, The mobile gateway, Two antennas for communication with the mobile communication network; Two antennas for the WLAN access point; A mobile WLAN service system comprising at least one antenna for the WLAN relay unit.

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